Ignore for the moment the heated nature of the specific topic involved in this story. Instead focus on the contradictory, though not surprising, lack of principle underlying the action.
South Dakota lawmakers yesterday approved the nation’s most far-reaching ban on abortion, setting the stage for new legal challenges that its supporters say they hope lead to an overturning of Roe v. Wade.
The measure, which passed the state Senate 23 to 12, makes it a felony for doctors to perform any abortion, except to save the life of a pregnant woman. The proposal still must be signed by Gov. Mike Rounds (R), who opposes abortion.
The bill was designed to challenge the Supreme Court’s ruling in Roe , which in 1973 recognized a right of women to terminate pregnancies. Its sponsors want to force a reexamination of the ruling by the court, which now includes two justices appointed by President Bush.
Like it or not, Roe V. Wade is the law. It may even be appropriate to challenge it, as these legislators are doing. But every legislator who voted for this can never again complain about “activist judges”. Not only are they counting on judges to be activist in accepting their change to accepted law, they’re engaging in activist legislating. There is no other way to explain this action, as they openly accept that it violates current law. They’re counting on the expectation that President Bush stacked the court in their favor with Chief Justice Roberts and Justice Alito.
The bill’s sponsor, Rep. Roger W. Hunt, offered another interesting perspective on good for me but not for thee:
Hunt has also said that when the inevitable challenge to the ban is filed in court, the ban’s supporters will be prepared for a costly court fight with $1 million already pledged by “an anonymous donor.”
If the issue at hand was a liberal favorite, and supporters replaced “anonymous donor” with George Soros, Republicans like Mr. Hunt would be screaming rather than boasting.
Hypocrites, every one of them.