Sen. Josh Hawley told The Washington Post over the weekend that he would only support a Supreme Court nominee who has clearly stated that Roe v. Wade was incorrectly decided.
The Missouri Republican said he will vote "only for those Supreme Court nominees who have explicitly acknowledged that Roe v. Wade is wrongly decided. By explicitly acknowledged, I mean on the record and before they were nominated.”
Roe v. Wade was the 1973 Supreme Court decision which ruled that access to abortion is part of a constitutional right to privacy.
Hawley, who entered the Senate after winning his election in 2018, emphasized that “I don’t want private assurances from candidates. I don’t want to hear about their personal views, one way or another. I’m not looking for forecasts about how they may vote in the future or predications... I want to see on the record, as part of their record, that they have acknowledged in some forum that Roe v. Wade, as a legal matter, is wrongly decided.”
To make himself abundantly clear, Hawley reiterated that “If there is no indication in their record that at any time they have acknowledged that Roe was wrong at the time it was decided, then I’m not going to vote for them - and I don’t care who nominates them.”
Hawley’s remarks come a month after a 5-4 ruling striking down a Louisiana abortion law in which Chief Justice John Roberts was the swing vote, according to The Hill.
Hawley clerked for Roberts, who was appointed by George W. Bush. Roberts said during his 2005 confirmation hearing that Roe v Wade was “settled as a precedent of the court.”
Brian Freeman ✉
Brian Freeman, a Newsmax writer based in Israel, has more than three decades writing and editing about culture and politics for newspapers, online and television.
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