Posted on 05/08/2022 8:34:28 AM PDT by Morgana
Arkansas Gov. Asa Hutchinson (R) on Sunday said a national abortion ban floated by Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) is “inconsistent with what we’ve been fighting for.”
McConnell told USA Today in an interview published on Saturday that a national ban on abortions is “possible,” as the country reacts to a drafted majority opinion from the Supreme Court that shows the bench poised to overturn Roe v. Wade.
Asked by anchor Martha Raddatz on ABC’s “This Week” if he would oppose a national ban on the medical procedure, Hutchinson said such a move may have “some constitutional issues.”
“I think it’s inconsistent with what we’ve been fighting for four decades, which is that we wanted the Roe v. Wade reversed and the authority to return to the states. And so as a matter of principle, that’s where it should be,” Hutchinson said.
“If you look at a constitutional or a national standard that goes against the, that trust of the states having prerogative, and secondly, I think there’s some constitutional issues with a national standard as well as to one is the authority of the Constitution to enact that,” he added.
Hutchinson said returning abortion decisions back to the states, which would occur if Roe v. Wade is overturned, “makes sense under the Constitution.”
“If the court reverses Roe v. Wade, they’re saying that the Constitution does not provide that, which returns it to the states. And to me that makes sense under the Constitution,” the governor said.
“And that’s where the vigorous debate is going to be. That is where we’re gonna face a lot of concerns on the compassion side. And state’s gonna make different determinations of it, but the people are going to express to their representative exactly the direction they want to go. And to me that makes sense and I think it makes sense under our Constitution,” he added.
The conversation comes less than one week after Politico published a draft Supreme Court opinion tht showed the bench had voted to overturn Roe v. Wade. While the Supreme Court said the document was “authentic,” it emphasized that the ruling is not final.
McConnell told USA Today that “if the leaked opinion became the final opinion, legislative bodies — not only at the state level but at the federal level — certainly could legislate in that area,” when asked if a national ban on abortion is “worthy of debate.”
“And if this were the final decision, that was the point that it should be resolved one way or another in the legislative process. So yeah, it’s possible,” he added.
McConnell is not being helpful. He is throwing gasoline on the fire. Perhaps purposefully?
Sometimes when you appear to be winning it is better to be quiet and not spike the ball prematurely. The decision is not yet official. Remember Roberts flipped on Obamacare at the last minute.
I think Asa’s been bought.
I wonder if he’s too old and feeble like a certain other person we know?
He wants to be POTUS.
The last thing mcturdle wants to do is have a majority GOP. That would mean he would actually have to pass Conservative legislation instead of just paying lip service and showvoting when there's no chance of passage.
You bet your ass he did it purposely. He is trying to flip a Judge as much as any of those fools screaming in front of the Judges houses. I loath that bastard.
He’s happier being minority leader than being majority leader.
Correct. Like most of the GOP, McConnell's political vision is power for power's sake. He prefers a regime where he and his supportive cronies can use the mechanism of government to benefit a favored few constituents, who, in turn, work to keep McConnell and his cronies in power.
To imagine that McConnell cares at all about this country, or the people of this country, generally is the very height of delusion. That people fail to recognize (or, at least, accept) this very simple reality I tend to attribute to the fact that they have made an idol of the political process itself, and look to it, rather than God, for relief, if not for their very salvation. The "broad road," in other words.
Is McConnell trying to sabotage Alito here? The point is to take fiat power away from the fedgov.
This. McConnell abhors the thought of the Supreme Court actually overturning Roe and thereby depriving him of the singular issue -- "Judges! Judges! Judges!" -- he has to gull idolatrous "pro-life" rubes into voting Republican. McConnell and his ilk would be delighted to see another 50 million abortions committed in this country if, by this, he and his fellow travelers would retain power.
Asa and Mitch can debate this all they want as if I give a ....
I think the deep truth here is that this Supreme Court ruling if it materializes is a “Moderate” compromise one it returns abortion to the states.
Abortion will be illegal in some states and fully legal in others with some variations in between.
It overturns Roe vs. Wade and keeps abortion legal in the US in those states that want it legal.
Or he could be utterly cynical and think that the vast majority of aborted babies would have grown up to be Democrats, given the demographics.
Thanks McConnell, you just handed the Left its talking point for the week. Now the news will be that if Republicans win, they’re going to push for a nationwide ban on abortions.
There's a case to be made that R v. W helps GOP politicians by allowing them to propose extreme bans on abortion that they know will get struck down by SCOTUS but keeps the pro-life base happy that they "did something".
Much like they authored several bills to repeal Obamacare that they knew President Obama would veto yet buckled once they actually had an opportunity to repeal it under President Trump.
The GOP doesn't want to pass a nationwide ban on abortion. They know it's not politically popular. R v. W gave them a safety net.
On this issue I think it is best to play the cards close and let the whacks on the left destroy themselves.
Agree.
Even the rinos are deserting mcconnell.
Does that mean you think Asa is wrong on this stance? Do you support a federal law to ban abortion or legalize abortions? Where do you stand?
“If the court reverses Roe v. Wade, they’re saying that the Constitution does not provide that, which returns it to the states. And to me that makes sense under the Constitution,” the governor said.
“And that’s where the vigorous debate is going to be. That is where we’re gonna face a lot of concerns on the compassion side. And state’s gonna make different determinations of it, but the people are going to express to their representative exactly the direction they want to go. And to me that makes sense and I think it makes sense under our Constitution,” he added.
Hutchinson is correct.
The worst thing about Roe v. Wade is that it allowed our politicians to hide behind the ruling for far too long.
The issue needs to be debated, but the debate never happened as long as Roe was out there.
When Roe is overturned, three things will happen:
They need to be heard.
-PJ
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