Supreme Court Overturns Roe v. Wade

The Supreme Court issued their decision in Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization last Friday, overturning the previous Supreme Court decisions Roe v. Wade and Planned Parenthood v. Casey, allowing states to ban abortions within their jurisdictions. The previous decisions that were overturned had found that a constitutional right to abortion had existed and prevented states from banning it.

The court’s decision in Dobbs was praised by pro-life, anti-abortion rights activists who had long sought to overturn the 1973 Roe v. Wade ruling. Up to 26 states are expected to ban abortions or greatly limit the ability to obtain one.

Pro-choice, pro-abortion rights activists opposed the decision, calling it a threat to women’s rights and promising federal action to preserve abortion rights, such as access to abortion pills and possibly allowing abortions on federal lands in states that ban it.

President Biden has criticized the ruling and has said that he supports codifying a nationwide right to abortion into federal law. Such legislation would require creating an exception to the filibuster rule in the Senate or scrapping the filibuster altogether. Sens. Joe Manchin (D-WV) and Kyrsten Sinema (D-AZ), while supportive of abortion rights, are opposed to such a move.

Some opponents of the Dobbs ruling are calling for changes to the Supreme Court, with some going so far as to call it ‘illegitimate’ and calling for new justices to be added to the court to balance out its conservative lean. Three of the five justices who voted to overturn Roe were appointed by former President Trump during his term.

 

Democrats Attempt Last Push for Build Back Better Revival

Democrats are working to pass a slimmed down version of the Build Back Better bill that failed to pass last year, with Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) negotiating with Sen. Joe Manchin (D-WV), whose opposition sunk the bill last time, to agree to a smaller package focused on tax increases, deficit reduction, and climate spending, among other proposals.

Manchin and Schumer are reportedly close to a deal to allow the federal government to negotiate drug prices and limit price increases to the inflation rate. Such a proposal will need to be approved by the Senate parliamentarian to include in the reconciliation bill, which will allow Democrats to pass the bill by a simple majority and without any Republican support.

Any package will need the support of all Democrats in the Senate, including moderate Sen. Kyrsten Sinema of Arizona, who has signaled her opposition in the past to raising certain taxes.

Senate Minority Leader (R-KY) sent a tweet Thursday saying that Republicans will not help move forward a bill aimed at competing with China so long as Democrats are pursuing the reconciliation package.

 

Supreme Court Issues Flurry of Conservative Opinions in End of Term

The Supreme Court issued several other notable rulings widely seen as wins for conservatives:

· NYSRPA v. Bruen: Struck down a New York state that required gun permit applicants to show a reason for why they needed to carry a gun

· West Virginia v. EPA: Limits the ability of the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to regulate greenhouse gas emissions absent further congressional action

· Kennedy v. Bremerton School District: Coach fired for praying during school game had right to do so under 1st Amendment

 

Uvalde School Shooting Raises Questions, Calls for Gun Control

The devastating shooting last week that claimed the lives of 19 students and 2 teachers at Robb Elementary School in Uvalde, Texas, has led to renewed calls by gun control proponents to control firearm sales and availability. Gun rights supporters have criticized those calls, saying that such measures would not have a major effect on public safety and would erode constitutional rights.

Questions remain over the police response to the shooting. Uvalde police delayed entering the school to engage the shooter, with much of the scrutiny on the chief of police for the Uvalde Consolidate School District, Peter Arredondo. Arredondo is believed to have issued the order for officers not to engage with the shooter inside the school, allegedly believing that he had barricaded himself and was no longer a threat to students. Arredondo has also reportedly stopped cooperating with a state investigation into his response.

Monday saw the first of the many funerals for the victims of the shooting. Services are expected to continue into mid-June.

 

 

 

Clinton Campaign Lawyer Acquitted of Lying to the FBI

Lawyer for the 2016 Hillary Clinton campaign Michael Sussmann was acquitted by a jury in federal court Tuesday, ending a two-week trial in which he was accused of lying to the FBI.

The indictment of Sussmann was part of John Durham’s investigation into the origin of the narrative of the Trump-Russia collusion narrative. The indictment accused Sussmann of lying to the FBI in 2016 when he told FBI General Counsel James Baker that he was not representing a client when discussing his allegation that the Trump campaign was working with Russia. Sussmann was working for the Clinton campaign at the time.