Supreme Court Abortion Ruling Meaningful for Election
2020-07-05
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1In its first big abortion ruling since President Donald Trump took office,
2the U.S. Supreme Court blocked a Louisiana law that would likely have closed all but one abortion center in that state.
3In the ruling, which took place Monday, five justices voted to block the law.
4Four voted against blocking it.
5Supporters of abortion rights are pleased, and maybe a bit surprised.
6People who oppose abortion are unnerved and angry.
7But, people on both sides agree on one thing: The upcoming election is critical to their cause.
8The Supreme Court's ruling is seen as an important test of the court's position, following Trump's appointments of two conservative justices: Neil Gorsuch and Brett Kavanaugh.
9Both Gorsuch and Kavanaugh supported the Louisiana law.
10But they were outnumbered, as Chief Justice John Roberts sided with the court's four more liberal justices.
11The ruling was another major decision in which the conservative-leaning court failed to give a victory to conservatives during an election year.
12One recent ruling protects members of the LGBT community from discrimination at work.
13Another rejected Trump's effort to end protections for young immigrants.
14Anti-abortion leaders say there is an urgent need to reelect Trump so that he can appoint more conservative justices to the court.
15Abortion rights activists say it is extremely important to defeat Trump and end Republican control of the Senate.
16Republican lawmakers in the Senate have been able to confirm many conservative judges during Trump's time in office.
17Heidi Sieck is the co-founder of #VOTEPROCHOICE, a rights group online.
18She told the Associated Press (AP) that the Louisiana law was a clear "challenge to our reproductive freedom. And it points to the urgent need to vote for pro-choice candidates from the top of the ballot all the way down."
19James Bopp Junior is with the group National Right to Life.
20He made a similar point, but from the opposite position.
21He told the AP, "The decision demonstrates how difficult it is to drain the (D.C.) swamp and how important it is that President Trump gets reelected so that he may be able to appoint more pro-life justices."
22Religious leader Frank Pavone is national director of the pro-life group Priests for Life.
23He is also a member of the Trump campaign's Catholic voter outreach project.
24He noted that two of the liberal justices - Ruth Bader Ginsberg and Stephen Breyer - are the oldest members of the court.
25"Nobody can predict the future, but who's going to name their replacements when the time comes?" Pavone said.
26He added that this is a question that moves a lot of people to vote.
27Anti-abortion activists have made clear that Monday's ruling would not stop them from pushing for abortion restrictions through state governments.
28In recent years, several states have put in place near-total bans on abortion.
29 Courts have later blocked such bans.
30However, the group Texas Right to Life urged lawmakers in their state to go forward with a measure that would start with a ban on late-term abortions and continue to a total ban.
31Mike Gonidakis is president of Ohio Right to Life.
32He warned against moving too quickly toward widespread bans.
33He noted that the courts blocked a measure last year that would ban most abortions as early as six weeks into pregnancy.
34Abortion rights advocate Nancy Northup, leader of the Center for Reproductive Rights, said Monday's ruling would not stop those trying to ban abortion.
35But she said her group would continue to fight state by state, law by law, to "protect our constitutional right to abortion."
36Northup urged Congress to pass a bill called The Women's Health Protection Act.
37The measure seeks to strengthen women's ability to access abortions, even in states that pass laws seeking to restrict access.
38The measure was introduced in May 2019 and has strong Democratic support - but no chance of passage for now because of Republican opposition.
39From the other side of the debate, there also are dreams of a congressional solution.
40Michael New is an abortion opponent who teaches social research at Catholic University of America in Washington, D.C.
41He said some anti-abortion legal experts believe Congress could find ways to restrict or ban abortion without the courts.
42For example, they could establish constitutional legal protections for unborn children.
43But any such measures would not succeed for now since Democrats in Congress would wholly oppose them.
44I'm Alice Bryant.
1In its first big abortion ruling since President Donald Trump took office, the U.S. Supreme Court blocked a Louisiana law that would likely have closed all but one abortion center in that state. 2In the ruling, which took place Monday, five justices voted to block the law. Four voted against blocking it. 3Supporters of abortion rights are pleased, and maybe a bit surprised. People who oppose abortion are unnerved and angry. 4But, people on both sides agree on one thing: The upcoming election is critical to their cause. 5The Supreme Court's ruling is seen as an important test of the court's position, following Trump's appointments of two conservative justices: Neil Gorsuch and Brett Kavanaugh. 6Both Gorsuch and Kavanaugh supported the Louisiana law. But they were outnumbered, as Chief Justice John Roberts sided with the court's four more liberal justices. 7The ruling was another major decision in which the conservative-leaning court failed to give a victory to conservatives during an election year. One recent ruling protects members of the LGBT community from discrimination at work. Another rejected Trump's effort to end protections for young immigrants. 8Anti-abortion leaders say there is an urgent need to reelect Trump so that he can appoint more conservative justices to the court. Abortion rights activists say it is extremely important to defeat Trump and end Republican control of the Senate. Republican lawmakers in the Senate have been able to confirm many conservative judges during Trump's time in office. 9Heidi Sieck is the co-founder of #VOTEPROCHOICE, a rights group online. She told the Associated Press (AP) that the Louisiana law was a clear "challenge to our reproductive freedom. And it points to the urgent need to vote for pro-choice candidates from the top of the ballot all the way down." 10James Bopp Junior is with the group National Right to Life. He made a similar point, but from the opposite position. 11He told the AP, "The decision demonstrates how difficult it is to drain the (D.C.) swamp and how important it is that President Trump gets reelected so that he may be able to appoint more pro-life justices." 12Religious leader Frank Pavone is national director of the pro-life group Priests for Life. He is also a member of the Trump campaign's Catholic voter outreach project. He noted that two of the liberal justices - Ruth Bader Ginsberg and Stephen Breyer - are the oldest members of the court. 13"Nobody can predict the future, but who's going to name their replacements when the time comes?" Pavone said. He added that this is a question that moves a lot of people to vote. 14Anti-abortion activists have made clear that Monday's ruling would not stop them from pushing for abortion restrictions through state governments. 15In recent years, several states have put in place near-total bans on abortion. Courts have later blocked such bans. However, the group Texas Right to Life urged lawmakers in their state to go forward with a measure that would start with a ban on late-term abortions and continue to a total ban. 16Mike Gonidakis is president of Ohio Right to Life. He warned against moving too quickly toward widespread bans. He noted that the courts blocked a measure last year that would ban most abortions as early as six weeks into pregnancy. 17Abortion rights advocate Nancy Northup, leader of the Center for Reproductive Rights, said Monday's ruling would not stop those trying to ban abortion. But she said her group would continue to fight state by state, law by law, to "protect our constitutional right to abortion." 18Northup urged Congress to pass a bill called The Women's Health Protection Act. The measure seeks to strengthen women's ability to access abortions, even in states that pass laws seeking to restrict access. The measure was introduced in May 2019 and has strong Democratic support - but no chance of passage for now because of Republican opposition. 19From the other side of the debate, there also are dreams of a congressional solution. 20Michael New is an abortion opponent who teaches social research at Catholic University of America in Washington, D.C. He said some anti-abortion legal experts believe Congress could find ways to restrict or ban abortion without the courts. For example, they could establish constitutional legal protections for unborn children. 21But any such measures would not succeed for now since Democrats in Congress would wholly oppose them. 22I'm Alice Bryant. 23The Associated Press reported this story. Alice Bryant adapted it for Learning English. Ashley Thompson was the editor. 24_______________________________________________________________ 25Words in This Story 26abortion - n. a medical procedure used to end a pregnancy and cause the death of the fetus 27LGBT - adj. lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender 28challenge - n. an action or statement that is against something 29drain the swamp - expression. to remove corruption or government waste 30Catholic - adj. of or relating to the Roman Catholic Church 31access - n. a way of being able to use or get something