To Save Roe in Congress, the D’s Must Change Their Strategy
On Wednesday May 11, the Senate, for the second time this year, defeated Democrats’ legislation to protect abortion rights under federal law. The legislation went down 51–49 on the newest version of the.
Progressive lawmakers have pushed the original bill since 2013, and it went further than codifying Roe v. Wade into federal law. It bared states from enacting restrictions that have been allowed under that ruling. In February, it was previously defeated by the Senate 46–48, with Sen. Joe Manchin joining the Republicans against it as he did again on the second vote.
Connecticut Sen. Richard Blumenthal sponsored the most recent version of the Act. He stripped out non-binding statements linking abortion restrictions to “white supremacy” and “gender oppression.” The new version also eliminated, emphasizing that the protections apply to women and “transgender men, non-binary individuals, those who identify with a different gender, and others.” So, while it did not extend Roe’s protections, it did retain them.
Democratic Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer pressed ahead with the second vote to put Republican senators on record. He continued the strategy to turn public opinion, especially women voters, against the Republican Senator’s anti-abortion stance. Schumer had warned the Republicans that…
