>> DO YOU BELIEVE IN PUNISHMENT FOR ABORTION, YES OR NO?
>> THERE HAS TO BE SOME FORM OF
PUNISHMENT.
PUNISHMENT. >> WHAT?
>> WHAT? >> THAT I DON’T KNOW.
>> THEN CANDIDATE DONALD TRUMP
MADE THOSE COMMENTS BACK IN
2016.
2016. ESTABLISHMENT REPUBLICANS AND
ANTI ABORTION ACTIVISTS RUSHED
TO EXPLAIN HE WAS CONFUSED.
OF COURSE, THAT WASN’T THEIR
POSITION.
POSITION. >> OF COURSE, WOMEN SHOULDN’T BE
PUNISHED.
PUNISHED. LOOK, YOU KNOW, I THINK PROBABLY
DONALD TRUMP WILL FIGURE OUT A
WAY TO SAY HE DIDN’T SAY IT OR
WAS MISQUOTED OR WHATEVER.
I DON’T THINK SO.
I DON’T THINK THAT THE AN
APPROPRIATE RESPONSE.
APPROPRIATE RESPONSE. >> HERE WE ARE THREE YEARS LATER
WITH PRESIDENT TRUMP IN THE OVAL
OFFICE, TWO OF THE CONSERVATIVE
NOMINEES ON THE ACCEPTSUP PREELR
AND MEMBERS OF HIS PARTY COULD
DO EXACTLY WHAT HE SAID, PUNISH
A WOMAN FOR HAVING AN ABORTION.
PRODONALD TRUMP IS MOST LIKELY
THE CHAMPION OF THE ANTI
ABORTION MOVEMENT YOU COULD FIND
IN THE ENTIRE COUNTRY AND HERE
HE IS HAVING THE COURT NOMINEES
ACHIEVE A DECADE’S LONG GOAL OF
UNDOING ROE V WADE.
JOINING ME NOW TO DISCUSS WHAT
IS HAPPENINGS, LAURA BASSETT
COVERING IT ALL AND CAROLINE
FREDERICKSON, PRESIDENT OF THE
AMERICAN CONSTITUTIONAL SOCIETY,
ONE OF THE NATION’S LEADING
PROGRESSIVE ORGANIZATIONS.
PROGRESSIVE ORGANIZATIONS. LET ME START WITH YOU.
OBVIOUSLY, THERE HAS BEEN SO
MUCH ACTIVISM AND ACTIVITY IN
REPUBLICAN STATES ATTEMPTING TO
DWINDLE AWAY AT ACCESS.
THIS SEEMS A NEWER STRATEGY AND
A MORE SORT OF FRONTAL ASSAULT.
IS THAT WHAT YOU’RE SEEING?
>> ABSOLUTELY.
>> ABSOLUTELY. THE WAVE OF ANTI ABORTION
RESTRICTIONS STARTED IN 2011
WHEN THE TEA PARTY SWEPT THE
HOUSE AFTER 2010.
AND SO WE’VE BEEN SEEING
INCREASING AMOUNTS OF ABORTION
RESTRICTIONS EVERY YEAR AND THIS
YEAR IT APPEARS TO BE THE WORST.
THE ABORTION LAWS ARE GETTING
DEFINITELY A LOT MORE EXTREME.
WE’RE SEEING ALL OUT ABORTION
BANS OR THEY MIGHT AS WELL BE
THE ONE IN GEORGIA OR THE ONE IN
OHIO MIGHT AS WELL BE THE
SIX-WEEK BANS BEFORE MOST WOMEN
EVEN REALIZE THEY ARE PREGNANT
AND THE REASON REPUBLICANS ARE
SO EMBOLDENED NOW BECAUSE LOOK,
THIS HEART BEAT BAN, REPUBLICANS
HAVE BEEN TRYING TO PASS THIS
FOR YEARS.
FOR YEARS. KASICH A FEW YEARS AGO VETOED IT
BECAUSE HE SAID IT WAS TOO
EXTREME.
EXTREME. IT NOT TOO EXTREME FOR
REPUBLICANS BECAUSE DONALD TRUMP
IS PRESIDENT AND THERE IS A
CONSERVATIVE SUPREME COURT AND
THINK THIS COULD GET UP THERE TO
THE SUPREME COURT AND OVER
ATTORNEY ROE.
ATTORNEY ROE. >> CAROLINE, MY UNDERSTANDING OF
THE LEGAL JURYISPRUDENCE UNDER
ROE, THEY ARE FLATLY AGAINST THE
LAW AND VIOLATE ROE.
WHAT IS THE STRATEGY THEY ARE
PURSUING IN TERMS OF THE LEGAL
FIGHT HERE?
FIGHT HERE? >> WELL, YOU KNOW, I THINK
CLEARLY THEY KIND OF MISTOOK THE
TALE FOR A HOW-TO MANUEL.
THEY ARE TRYING TO LAND THIS
DIRECTLY AT THE SUPREME COURT.
IT SORT OF -- THEY DID USED TO
GO AROUND IT AND PRETEND WHAT
THEY WERE DOING WAS JUST
REASONABLE LIMITATIONS WHEN THEY
ALWAYS HAVE BEEN AIMING AT THE
HEART OF ROE.
RIGHT NOW, THEY ARE COMING OUT
OF THE DARKNESS AND DOING IT IN
BROAD DAYLIGHT AND SAYING THAT
THAT’S WHAT THEY ARE ALL ABOUT.
THEY WANT TO OVERTURN ROE AND
WANT THE SUPREME COURT WITH
DONALD TRUMP’S NOMINEES TO DO IT
FOR THEM.
FOR THEM. >> BUT I GUESS THE QUESTION IN A
MORE TECHNICAL SENSE AND MAYBE
THIS IS A BORING BUT I JUST --
LIKE THERE IS A DISTRICT COURT,
GO TO A DISTRICT COURT.
SOMEONE WILL SUE.
A JUDGE WILL STRIKE IT DOWN, AND
THEN WHAT HAPPENS?
>> WELL, I MEAN, THEY GO TO AN
APPEALLLATE COURT STACKED WITH
RIGHT-WING JUDGES OF DONALD
TRUMP AND ON THE EXPRESS TRAIN
TO THE SUPREME COURT.
THEY INDICATED AND WE KNOW
THAT’S WHAT JUSTICE KAVANAUGH
AND THEY ARE WAITING AND THE
REST OF THEM ARE SIGNALING QUITE
OBVIOUSLY THAT THAT THE THE
DIRECTION THAT THEY WANT TO GO.
>> LAURA, DO YOU THINK THERE
IS -- I THINK AMONG WOMEN
PARTICULARLY IN WOMEN WHO ARE
SUPPORT ABORTION RIGHTS AND
ACTIVE, THERE IS A REAL TANGIBLE
FEAR THAT WE ARE RIGHT, WE’RE
STANDING AT THE PRECIPICE RIGHT
NOW.
NOW. WHERE ARE WE?
>> I THINK WOMEN ARE TERRIFIED
FROM WHAT I’M SEEING OVER THE
PAST COUPLE WEEKS WITH THE
GEORGIA BILL.
GEORGIA BILL. THE GEORGIA BILL IS UNLIKE
ANYTHING WE’VE SEEN.
WE’RE TALKING ABOUT A BILL THAT
DEFINES ABORTION AS MURDER.
IT WOULD THREATEN WOMEN WITH UP
TO LIFE IN PRISON OR CAPITAL
PUNISHMENT FOR AN ABORTION.
TEN YEARS IN PRISON FOR GOING
OUT TO A DIFFERENT STATE TO HAVE
AN ABORTION AND THREATENING
WOMEN WITH JAIL TIME FOR EVEN
POSSIBLY A MISCARRIAGE.
NOW WE’VE GOT AN OHIO BILL THAT
THE POSSIBLY BANNING THE
INSURANCE COVERAGE OF BIRTH
CONTROL.
CONTROL. I THINK WOMEN HAVE GOTTEN A BIT
COMPLACENT OVER THE YEARS
THINKING ROE V WADE WAS SET IN
THE ’70s AND SAYING, THIS IS
SERIOUS AND WE DON’T HAVE A
SUPREME COURT TO PROTECT US.
WE MIGHT ACTUALLY SOON BE PUT IN
JAIL FOR SOMETHING THAT USED TO
BE A COMMON HEALTH CARE
PROCEDURE.
PROCEDURE. >> CAROLINE, WHAT DO YOU THINK
ABOUT WHERE THE SUPREME COURT IS
AND WHETHER THEY WOULD TAKE A
CASE ON THIS, A FULL FRONTAL
JUST CHALLENGE TO ROE, SOMETHING
LIKE A COMPREHENSIVE MAP?
>> YOU THINK WE MIGHT HAVE
THOUGHT DIFFERENTLY UNTIL THIS
TERM BUT WE’VE ALREADY SEEN THE
SUPREME COURT ISSUING RADICAL
DECISIONS AND MOVING IN A
DIRECTION THAT SEEMS TO
CONTEMPLATE GOING TO ROE.
PEOPLE SAY CHIEF JUSTICE ROBERTS
IS WORRIED ABOUT THE STATUS OF
THE COURT AND PROCEEDING
INCREATELY
INCREATELY INCREATEMENT
INCREATEMENT INCREATEMENTLY.
INCREATEMENTLY. WE’VE ALREADY SEEN THAT THEY
HAVE INDICATED THEY ARE READY TO
UNDUE A DECISION THEY ISSUED A
COUPLE YEARS AGO, WHICH FOUND
LAW AND CONSTITUTIONAL FOR
PUTTING REAL CONSTRAINTS ON
WOMEN’S ACCESS TO ABORTION AND I
THINK IT COULD HAPPEN ANY TIME.
>> AND YOU ONLY NEED FOUR VOTES