How the end of Roe v Wade will affect American politics
Democrats’ hopes of a boost may rest on wishful thinking
IN THE 50 years since the Supreme Court handed down its decision on Roe v Wade, the right to an abortion has been deemed a constitutional guarantee in America. As he drafted a new decision that would overturn this precedent, Justice Samuel Alito recognised that the verdict would be treated cataclysmically. “We do not pretend to know how our political system or society will respond to today’s decision overruling Roe,” he wrote. “Even if we could foresee what will happen, we would have no authority to let that knowledge influence our decision.” Little could he have known that he—and the country—would get an unplanned preview of the public reaction.
This article appeared in the United States section of the print edition under the headline “The draft seen round the world”
United States May 7th 2022
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