Roe v. Wade & Republican controlled Supreme Court

[Tennessee Gal]

The Supreme Court, prior to the death of Rhenquist, was comprised of 7 justices appointed by Republicans (Nixon 1, Ford 1, Reagan 3, Bush I 2) and 2 justices appointed by a Democrat (Clinton).

Since 1955 there have been 21 judicial appointments to the Supreme Court. Republican presidents appointed 15 justices (Eisenhower 4, Nixon 4, Ford 1, Reagan 3, Bush 2, and Bush 1). Democratic presidents appointed 6 justices (Kennedy 2, Johnson 2, and Clinton 2).

The Supreme Court at the time of the Roe v. Wade decision was comprised of 6 justices nominated by Republican presidents (Eisenhower 2, Nixon 3, and Reagan 1) and 3 justices nominated by Democratic presidents (Roosevelt 1, Kennedy 1, and Johnson 1).

The Roe v. Wade decision and the possibility of overturning Roe v. Wade has always been controlled by justices nominated by Republican presidents because they were in the majority on the court.

If the Democratic Party has pushed an agenda in opposition to the Republican Party regarding Roe v. Wade, they have certainly been quite unsuccessful!

Those are the facts, plain and simple.

Those who want to blame the Democratic Party or activist Democratic judges for legalizing abortion or for not overturning the legalization of abortion could not be more wrong!

Republicans, if you don't like Roe v. Wade and are upset that it has not been overturned, you have no one to blame but your own Party!

[bluestateguy]

1. True

And Byron White, appointed by Kennedy, was against Roe vs. Wade until the day he retired.

[Maraya1969]

2. HAHAHAHAHA

All those "Christian front organizations" should read this.

Also, if Roe V Wade is overturned what talking points do the Repubs have to use to get elected except fear that is might get turned back again? I think Repub strategists don't want Roe overturned. It's their best weapon. Even though you have just pointed out that is makes no sense.

EDIT: It's early

[awoke_in_2003]

3. well...

they could always switch to the "homos are trying to get married and things" talking points. Works pretty good in the south.

[rogerashton]

4. According to the conservatives' own story

conservatism always fails. It isn't just Roe vs. Wade. Conservatives have held the White House for 25 of the last 37 years, and Congress (including Dixiecrats as conservatives) for pretty much the same period. And the two Democratic presidents we have had were not liberal by any objective standard -- Clinton is a moderate and Carter a conservative, so far as domestic issues and culture are concerned. Remember, deregulation got started under Carter!

So everything the Conservatives love to hate about this country has come about on their watch.

So why can't the conservatives get the job done that they have assigned themselves? Something wrong with conservatives, perhaps? Their carefully cultivated ignorance, perhaps? Of course, they blame it on some conspiracy of us devious liberals, and damn, I wish they were right! I wish we were that good!

Edited to correct html.

[Johnny Noshoes]

5. Just a minor correction

Roe V Wade was decided in the 1970's so one of those Justices couldn't have been a Reagan appointee as he wasn't President yet.

[Tennessee Gal]

6. Thank you for pointing out the error!

Rhenquist was appointed by Nixon, not Reagan.

So, at the time of Roe v. Wade, Nixon had appointed 4 justices and Eisenhower 2 justices.

[Pharlo]

7. Heads up....'Frontline' 11/08/05

This November, the Supreme Court will take up its first major abortion case in five years: Ayotte v. Planned Parenthood of Northern New England. This case will come before a changed court. But for Betty Thompson, a former abortion clinic director in Jackson, Mississippi, the concern is less about Ayotte and more that Roe v. Wade is simply becoming irrelevant as states pass hundreds of abortion regulations across the United States. " are going to chip away at Roe v. Wade until the law is on the books, but nobody will be able to access the service," she tells FRONTLINE. According to one abortion provider in the South, who prefers to remain anonymous: "The assault on abortion rights is very clever. It's very smart. And we are losing."

In the last two years, Mississippi has passed legislation on fetal homicide prosecution, new clinic regulations, requirements to report abortion complications, rights of conscience, and a law that would prohibit the state's last abortion clinic from offering abortions beyond the first trimester. Americans United for Life (AUL), the nation's oldest national pro-life organization, refers to this as the "Mississippi Miracle." "We're sending a very clear message that we do want to protect the unborn," says Lt. Gov. Amy Tuck. "That's why we've passed the legislation that we have, and it's passed overwhelmingly. It's bipartisan support. It's Democrats and Republicans. ... It's the House of Representatives and the Senate. Mississippi is truly pro-life."

With an ever-increasing number of state abortion regulations and a steady decline in abortion providers, the procedure, while still legal, has become daunting and expensive in many states. In Mississippi, Medicaid offers support for women seeking to continue with an unintended pregnancy, but no state funds or facilities may be used for abortion services. In the last decade, all but one clinic providing pregnancy terminations in the state have closed. The last abortion clinic, in Jackson, is difficult to access for women outside the capital who do not own a car, who have limited funds for gas or who cannot easily take time off from work or child care responsibilities. "It's like even before Roe v. Wade for these poor women," says Pat White, a nurse-midwife who has been working in the Mississippi Delta for decades. "We are making decisions for them. These women have no option except to continue with the pregnancy, whether they can afford it, or whether or not it's wanted, or whether or not they can emotionally provide for the child."

But Americans United for Life considers Mississippi an example for the nation. In fact, the organization's motto is "Changing Law to Protect Human Life, State by State." "Mississippi has an impressive track record," AUL senior legal counsel Clarke Forsythe tells FRONTLINE. "Our goal is to see that other states pass the type of legislation that Mississippi has passed over the past decade, and we see a lot of legislative activity. Legislators and governors across the country in many different states are looking at the same type of common sense legislation that Mississippi has passed."

http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/clinic/#press

[Maraya1969]

8. Please start a new thread with this unless it has already been started

I was going to do it but I thought I might be rude. :)