U.S. Supreme Court set to overturn Roe v. Wade abortion rights decision, Politico reports

div classBodysc17zpet90 cdBBJodivpWASHINGTON Reuters A leaked initial draft majority opinion suggests the U.S. Supreme Court will vote to overturn the Roe v. Wade decision that legalized abortion nationwide, Politico reported on Monday.p

pThe unprecedented leak from the conservativemajority Supreme Court sent shock waves through the United States, not least because the court prides itself on keeping its internal deliberations secret and leaks are extremely uncommon. pdivdivdiv classBodysc17zpet90 cdBBJodiv

pReuters was not able to confirm the authenticity of the draft. The Supreme Court and the White House declined to comment.p

p“Roe was egregiously wrong from the start,” conservative Justice Samuel Alito wrote in the draft opinion which is dated Feb. 10, according to Politico, which posted a copy https:www.politico.comf？id00000180874fdd36a38cc74f98520000 online.p

pBased on Alitos opinion, the court would find that the Roe v. Wade decision that allowed abortions performed before a fetus would be viable outside the womb – between 24 and 28 weeks of pregnancy – was wrongly decided because the U.S. Constitution makes no specific mention of abortion rights.p

p“Abortion presents a profound moral question. The Constitution does not prohibit the citizens of each state from regulating or prohibiting abortion,” Alito said, according to the leaked document.p

pThe news broke a little more than six months before the midterm elections that will determine if Democrats hold their razorthin majorities in the U.S. Congress for the next two years of President Joe Bidens term in office.p

pAbortion is one of the most divisive issues in U.S. politics and has been for nearly a half century. p

pFour of the other Republicanappointed justices – Clarence Thomas, Neil Gorsuch, Brett Kavanaugh and Amy Coney Barrett – voted with Alito in the conference held among the justices, the report added. p

pAfter an initial vote among the justices following an oral argument, one is assigned the majority opinion and writes a draft. It is then circulated among the justices. p

pAt times, in between the initial vote and the ruling being released, the vote alignment can change. A ruling is only final when it is published by the court.p

pIn a post on Twitter, Neal Katyal, a lawyer who regularly argues before the court, said if the report was accurate it would be “the first major leak from the Supreme Court ever.”p

pThe court, which has a 63 conservative majority, heard oral arguments in December on Mississippis bid to revive its ban on abortion starting at 15 weeks of pregnancy, a law blocked by lower courts.p

pIt appeared based on December‘s oral argument that a majority was inclined to uphold Mississippi’s abortion ban and that there could be five votes to overturn Roe.p

pThe Roe v. Wade decision recognized that the right to personal privacy under the U.S. Constitution protects a womans ability to terminate her pregnancy.p

pChristian conservatives and many Republican officeholders have long sought to overturn it.p

pThe Supreme Court in a 1992 ruling called Planned Parenthood of Southeastern Pennsylvania v. Casey reaffirmed abortion rights and prohibited laws imposing an “undue burden” on abortion access. p

pMississippi asked the justices to overturn both rulings and Alito‘s draft opinion largely adopts the Republican state’s arguments.p

pIf Roe is overturned, abortion is likely to remain legal in liberal states. More than a dozen states currently have laws protecting abortion rights. Numerous Republicanled states have passed various abortion restrictions in defiance of the Roe precedent in recent years.p

pRepublicans could try to enact a nationwide abortion ban, while Democrats could also seek to protect abortion rights at the national level.p

pDemocrats said the draft opinion undermines the importance of this years elections, in which they are seeking to maintain control of the House and Senate.p

p“We need to turn out the vote like weve never turned out the vote before,” Democratic Representative Jamie Raskin told MSNBC. “The people need to stand up and defend democratic institutions and the rights of the people because the Supreme Court is certainly not doing anything for us.”p

pRepublican Senator Josh Hawley said, without evidence, that the leak was likely from a liberal inside the court.p

p“The justices mustnt give in to this attempt to corrupt the process. Stay strong,” he said in a Twitter post.p

p Reporting by Kanishka Singh and Eric Beech in Washington Additional reporting by Andrea Shalal and Lawrence Hurley Editing by Tim Ahmann, Kim Coghill and Michael Perryp

divdivdiv classBodysc17zpet90 cdBBJodivdivdiv