Senate Democrats on Tuesday vowed "to hold a vote on legislation to codify" abortion rights, following the leak of a draft opinion authored by Supreme Court Justice Samuel Alito that would strike down Roe v. Wade.
"Now that the court is poised to strike down Roe, it is my intention for the Senate to hold a vote on legislation to codify the right to an abortion in law," Senate Majority Leader Charles Schumer, D-N.Y., said, The Hill reported. "A vote on this legislation is not an abstract exercise. This is as urgent and real as it gets. We'll vote to protect a women's right to choose."
Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Dick Durbin, D-Ill., added, "We're discussing at this point what our next move is. There is discussion about floor action on this basic issue from the Alito opinion and we're going to make a decision on that shortly."
He added, top Democrats plan on "asking the senators to go on record on aspects of this, for instance, rape and incest exceptions."
Durbin added, "many" of his Republican colleagues "have said that should be included; yet, the Mississippi law, which is at issue here, does not include those protections specifically."
"There is no discussion about expanding the court," he noted on the idea progressives have floated in recent years.
Senate Minority Whip John Thune, R-S.D., described the push by Democrats to codify abortion rights in legislation as being "part of their agenda" to garner support from liberals.
"That issue is an article of faith for Democrats, and I'm sure they want to put Republicans on the record on that to use it politically," he said.
Theodore Bunker ✉
Theodore Bunker, a Newsmax writer, has more than a decade covering news, media, and politics.
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