John Roberts on Abortion

From the AP Wires...

"We continue to believe that Roe was wrongly decided and should be overruled." — Roberts, in a 1991 Supreme Court brief he co-wrote for the first Bush administration, while he was principal deputy solicitor general.

"The statement in the brief was my position as an advocate for a client." — Roberts, explaining the brief during his 2003 Senate Judiciary Committee hearing on his nomination to a federal appeals court.

"Roe v. Wade is the settled law of the land. It's a little more than settled. It was reaffirmed in the face of a challenge that it should be overruled in the Casey decision. Accordingly, it's the settled law of the land. There's nothing in my personal views that would prevent me from fully and
faithfully applying that precedent, as well as Casey." — Roberts, during the confirmation hearing, when asked for his own views on Roe v. Wade.

That's all great. But here's the tricky part: unlike lower level judges, Supreme Court justices don't just accept that the law of the land is settled. Sometimes they do the settling. And the resettling. And then make some more tweaks. The media's persistent refrain seems to be that Roe and abortion rights are not truly at risk in the context of our next Supreme Court justice. Just this morning on WBUR/NPR someone said so. Wake up!! These rights are exactly what is at stake. What's left of Roe that hasn't been eroded by Casey and Webster may not be here long. I imagine that in just a few short years time, we'll have to rally our slumbering sisters and resurrect the Jane Collective, to connect folks with legitimate providers. I think we're in for a bumpy ride.

Last comment: I'd like us all to remember back to the Gore-Bush election. Ralph Nader's refrain was that the two candidates were no different. Here's the difference, Ralph. And even though most days, I'm pretty rational about Ralph, and don't blame him...Today, I'm blaming Ralph. Thanks a lot.