Continue Justice Ginsburg’s Mission to Protect Women’s Right to Choose

“The decision whether or not to bear a child is central to a woman’s life, to her well-being and dignity. It is a decision she must make for herself. When Government controls that decision for her, she is being treated as less than a fully adult human responsible for her own choices.”

Those were the words of Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg in 1972, expressing a central principle of the pro-choice stance that she stood by throughout her long career: We are not for abortion; we are for the right of every woman to choose abortion if she deems it in her best interest.

During all her nearly 27 years on the Supreme Court, Justice Ginsburg held fast to that principle. Now, without her, the political makeup of justices hangs in the balance, and we face an uphill battle to maintain those rights guaranteed for women in the 1973 Roe v. Wade decision.

That is why we must elect Joe Biden. Another four years with Trump in office will push the U.S. and the world even further backward in the quest for women’s access to reproductive health and their right to choose. We cannot let that happen.

In 1999, Donald J. Trump told NBC News’s Meet the Press that he was, in his words, “very pro-choice.” Two decades later, as Congress conducted his impeachment trial, he addressed cheering crowds at the January 2020 March for Life Rally, saying, “It is my profound honor to be the first president in history to attend the March for Life.” Rally organizers called him the most pro-life president ever.

What are we to believe? Let his actions in office speak for themselves.

Trump has appointed two Supreme Court justices and more than 200 federal judges, all vocally conservative and most outright anti-abortion. His 200th appointment, for instance, Cory Wilson of Mississippi, has publicly called for the “complete and immediate” reversal of Roe v. Wade. If Trump’s cronies in the Senate get their way, he will appoint a third Supreme Court justice and shift the balance of opinion for a generation to come.

Long before Justice Ginsburg’s passing, Trump had made it a campaign promise that a key criterion for his next Supreme Court nominee would be that person’s likelihood to vote to overturn Roe v. Wade. If Republicans ramrod this appointment through before we know the coming election results, he will get his way.

Trump has already chipped away at women’s reproductive rights. He has done all he can to weaken the Affordable Care Act, steadily restricting access to health care for millions of women. His administration is party to a suit now before the Supreme Court intended to declare the Affordable Care Act illegal. If his nominee is confirmed, the ACA is dead in the water, robbing some 23 million of their current health care coverage .

Trump has put rules in place that allow employers and insurers to opt out of covering the costs of birth control, including abortion, on religious or moral grounds.

He has implemented a so-called domestic gag rule by denying federal funding to health care clinics that perform abortions, effectively de-funding some 900 clinics, especially those that serve the needs of women of color.

He has likewise banned aid worldwide to any group that provides abortion, thus cutting off support to global health initiatives on HIV, malaria, tuberculosis, maternal and child health, and nutrition.

This is why we must elect Joe Biden and Kamala Harris, whose platform and history guarantee action to secure women full and equal rights to reproductive health care and opportunities by:

Doubling down on the Affordable Care Act, ensuring access to preventive care, including contraception, with free services to those in need

Reversing the all-out assault by Trump and some state officials on women’s right to choose

Pushing back against state and local TRAP laws—targeted restrictions on abortion providers—such as facility specifications, hospital proximity or privileges, and reporting requirements, designed to severely impair clinic capabilities. 

Rescinding the Hyde Amendment, so that Medicaid can be used to fund abortions, thus better serving the needs of the underprivileged and communities of color.

Codifying the protections now affirmed by Roe v. Wade, so that protecting a woman’s right to choose does not hang in the balance of politically selected judicial appointees

Restoring federal funding for Planned Parenthood, to support the essential reproductive health services they provide to millions of women nationwide

Reestablishing U.S. support for essential global health initiatives, stymied by Trump’s so-called global gag order to hold back medical aid to countries where abortion is freely discussed

This is not a religious issue. Joe Biden is a practicing Catholic, and yet he understands and upholds the constitutional right of every woman to control her own body and future.

Look at the bigger picture. Despite what anti-abortionists would have you believe, fewer abortions have been performed during every Democratic presidency since 1980: down 30% under Clinton, down 26% under Obama, while only down 3%-4% during the Reagan and both Bush administrations, according to statistics from the CDC. Abortion rates in the U.S. hit a record low in 2016, at the end of President Obama’s 8 years in office. More robust funding for family planning means fewer abortions—a goal we all can share.

Our obligation to carry on the mission of Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg is clear. Supporting reproductive health and family planning services for all is essential. Protecting the right to choose for every woman in the United States, no matter her race, age, marital status, or economic status, is a goal we all must share—and a mission we will accomplish by electing Joe Biden and Kamala Harris this November.