BECAUSE IT SEEMED TO ME THAT THE
EARTHQUAKE THAT THE COURT IS
ABOUT TO DELIVER, NOT ONLY TO
ABORTION RIGHTS BUT TO RIGHTS OF
PERSONAL AUTONOMY AND PRIVACY IN
MANY AREAS OF THE LAW, THAT
EARTHQUAKE WAS NOT THE PRODUCT
OF NATURE.
IT WAS THE PRODUCT OF A
CAREFULLY ORCHESTRATED SET OF EVENTS BY PARTISAN REPUBLICANS
EVENTS BY PARTISAN REPUBLICANS
WITH AN AGENDA TO ROLL BACK THE
CLOCK.
THEY WERE NOT INVOLVED IN THE
WRITING OF THE CONSTITUTION.
THEY DIDN'T GET THE RIGHT TO
VOTE UNTIL 1920.
SO WE HAVE THIS OPINION BY ALITO
SAYING, GUESS WHAT?
THE OLD HISTORY OF THE UNITED
STATES WAS ONE IN WHICH WELL
DIDN'T REALLY HAVE RIGHTS, AND
BECAUSE IT IS OUR JOB TO
TRANSPLANT THAT ORIGINAL MEANING
TO THE CURRENT TIME, IT IS
UNFORTUNATE, BUT THE RIGHT OF
WELL TO CONTROL THEIR OWN BODIES
IS NOT IN THE CONSTITUTION.
IT IS NOT PART OF OUR MISOGYNIST
TRADITION AND IT IS NOT
EXPLICITLY MENTIONED.
OF COURSE, LOTS OF THINGS AREN'T
EXPLICITLY MENTIONED.
THE NINTH AMENDMENT TELLS US
THAT RIGHTS THAT ARE NOT WRITTEN
DOWN MAY NONETHELESS BE
PROTECTED.
BUT I THOUGHT IT WAS IMPORTANT
TO TURN BACK THE CLOCK TO THE
TIME WHEN JUSTICE TOM AGENCYHOMA
WAS ACCUSED OF HAVING SEXUALLY
HARASSED ANITA HILL, GOT ON THE
COURT BECAUSE ANITA HILL WAS NOT
TAKEN SERIOUSLY, SHE WAS NOT
BELIEVED.
THOMAS BECAME THE FIFTH VOTE IN
THE MAJORITY IN BUSH V. GORE
WHICH GAVE THE PRESIDENCY BY A
5-4 SUPREME COURT VOTE TO
SOMEBODY THAT LOST THE NATIONAL
POPULAR VOTE BY ALMOST 600,000
VOTES.
IT WAS A CASCADE FROM THERE ALL
THE WAY TO THE HYPOCRISY OF
MITCH McCONNELL, WHO SAID FOR A
TOTAL OF 293 DAYS, WE JUST CAN'T
GET AROUND TO LISTENING TO ANY
TESTIMONY FROM MAKE GARLAND
BECAUSE THERE'S AN ELECTION
AROUND THE CORNER.
AS SOON AS TRUMP BECAME
PRESIDENT, THE SEAT THAT HAD
BEEN VACATED BY THE DEATH OF
JUSTICE SCALIA THEN GOES TO
JUSTICE GORSUCH.
AS YOU RECOUNTED IN YOUR
NARRATIVE, JUSTICE AMY CONEY
BARRETT GETS CONFIRMED TO THE
SUPREME COURT ESSENTIALLY DURING
THE PRESIDENTIAL ELECTION.
SO WHAT WE HAVE IS NOT ANY KIND
OF CONSISTENT PRINCIPLE THAT
ACCOUNTS FOR WHERE WE ARE NOW,
BUT WE HAVE A SERIES OF
MACHINATIONS WHICH MAKES IT ALL
THE MORE OUTRAGEOUS THAT THESE
FIVE JUSTICES COULD TURN BACK
THE CLOCK ON WOMEN'S RIGHTS,
DEPRIVE TENS OF MILLIONS OF WELL
IN AMERICA OF THE RIGHT TO
CONTROL THEIR LIVES AND THEIR
BODIES.
IT MEANS WE REALLY NEED TO TAKE
SERIOUSLY THE POSSIBILITY OF
EXPANDING THE SIZE OF THE COURT
OR AT THE VERY MINIMUM MAKING
SURE THAT PEOPLE FOR WHOM WE
VOTE BELIEVE IN THE FREEDOM OF
CHOICE OF WOMEN AND IN EQUALITY
FOR WOMEN.
>> ONE OF THE THINGS YOU
MENTIONED IS THAT THROUGH LINE,
WHICH IS THAT WE DIDN'T BELIEVE
THE WOMEN, GOING BACK TO ANITA
HILL IN THE 1990s, WE DID NOT
BELIEVE HER, THE SENATORS DID
NOT.
GOING BACK TO KAVANAUGH, WE DID
NOT BELIEVE DR. CHRISTINE BLASEY
FORD, THE SENATORS DID NOT.
THEY VOTED TO CONFIRM BOTH OF
THE JUSTICES WHO WERE CREDIBLY
ACCUSED.
IN TERMS OF THE IDEA THAT YOU
HAVE TWO CREDIBLY ACCUSED
PEOPLE, WHO THE ACCUSATION IS
THAT THEY TOOK AWAY THE BODILY
AUTONOMY FROM A WOMAN, FROM
ANOTHER PERSON, THAT THEY ARE
GOING TO BE A PART OF THE
DECIDING MAJORITY IN TAKING AWAY
BODILY AUTONOMY FROM MILLIONS OF
AMERICAN WOMEN AND PEOPLE WHO
CAN BECOME PREGNANT, I MEAN WHAT
DOES THAT SAY ABOUT WHERE WE
ARE?
>> IT SAYS THAT WE ARE TRYING,
OR AT LEAST A SMALL MINORITY OF
AMERICANS ARE TRYING, BECAUSE IT
IS ONLY THE MINORITY WHO BELIEVE
IN TAKING THESE RIGHTS AWAY FROM
WOMEN
WOMEN.
A SMALL MINORITY OF AMERICANS
ARE TRYING TO ERASE WOMEN FROM
OUR HISTORY, TRYING TO DENY THE
TRUTH OF THEIR TESTIMONY, TRYING
TO DISREGARD THEIR PLACE IN
AMERICAN LIFE.
YOU KNOW, ROE v. WADE WAS
IMPORTANT BECAUSE, AMONG OTHER
THINGS, IT MADE IT POSSIBLE FOR
WELL TO ENTER THE WORKPLACE
WITHOUT HAVING TO DEAL WITH
UNSAFE AND ILLEGAL ABORTIONS
THAT TRANSFORMED AMERICAN
SOCIETY.
YET JUSTICE ALITO IN THIS DRAFT
OPINION, WHICH AT LEAST
TENTATIVELY FIVE OF THEM --
JUSTICE ALITO SAYS PEOPLE --
RELY ON ROE v. WADE, IT IS NOT --
NOT -- AGAIN, THESE ARE -- LIVES
AGAIN, THESE ARE -- LIVES
BECAUSE -- OVER THEIR
REPRODUCTIVE.
SO -- FOR IS JUSTICE ALITO AND
THE GROUP OF JUSTICES JOINING
HIM ARE ENGAGED IN THE PROCESS
OF CANCELLATION THAT IS REALLY
PROFOUNDLY INCONSISTENT WITH THE
AMERICAN DREAM, WITH THE IDEA OF
FREEDOM AND JUSTICE FOR ALL.
>> FOR ALL PEOPLE, LAURENCE
TRIBE.
THANK YOU FOR BEING HERE.