Fallout from the Dobbs draft opinion leak underlines need for a united pro-life front

On December 1, 1862, Abraham Lincoln concluded his remarks to Congress with these words: “Fellow citizens, we cannot escape history.” A month later, he issued the Emancipation Proclamation.

We too cannot escape history. 

In its 1973 Roe v. Wade decision, the U.S. Supreme Court declared a right to abortion, and over the past 50 years, millions have been lost, and millions more suffer. Fortunately, God’s mercy endures forever.

On December 1, 2021, the U.S. Supreme Court heard oral argument in Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization, the first case in decades to address whether a right to abortion exists. The opinion was expected to be released in late June, but for the first time in history someone leaked the draft. If the draft becomes final, Roe will be overruled, and the issue of abortion will be decided state by state.

The draft opinion consists of 98 pages and more than 100 footnotes, but here are a few key points:

The court’s conclusion: “Roe was egregiously wrong from the start.”

The Constitution makes no reference to abortion and does not imply a right to abortion. The 14th Amendment has been held to include some rights not mentioned in the Constitution, but those rights must be “deeply rooted in this Nation’s history and tradition” and “implicit in the concept of ordered liberty.”

Abortion is not such a right. In fact, when the 14th Amendment was adopted, the vast majority of the states outlawed abortion at all stages.

Never has it been more important for the pro-life movement to unite than now. As the Supreme Court and the nation come to see the truth that abortion involves two distinct human beings, the pro-life movement must be a source of healing and reconciliation.

The leak undermines the Supreme Court and our constitutional republic. Draft opinions are circulated with the understanding that this is a confidential process designed to advance sound reasoning and achieve justice with integrity. Leaking the draft torpedoes this process.

Additionally, Supreme Court justices receive lifetime appointments to be free of political pressure. Leaking the draft has unleashed a firehose of pressure and a firestorm of fury.

A little more than an hour after the leak, Sen. Bernie Sanders tweeted: “Congress must pass legislation that codifies Roe v. Wade as the law of the land in this country NOW. And if there aren’t 60 votes in the Senate to do it, and there are not, we must end the filibuster to pass it with 50 votes.”

Minutes earlier, Pennsylvania Lt. Gov. John Fetterman tweeted: “Let’s be clear: The right to an abortion is sacred. Democrats have to act quickly – get rid of the filibuster to pass the Women’s Health Protection Act + finally codify Roe into law. We cannot afford to wait.”

The next day, Sen. Charles Schumer railed against the draft opinion flanked by other pro-abortion politicians. That evening, Vice President Kamala Harris angrily addressed the annual gala for the abortion advocacy group Emily’s List. Within days, an abortion advocacy group published the home addresses of the justices believed to be in agreement with the draft opinion.

Pro-abortion politicians condemned the draft opinion but not the leak. Some activists championed the leaker.

John Adams, our nation’s second president and a signer of the Declaration of Independence, noted: “Our Constitution was made only for a moral and religious people. It is wholly inadequate to the government of any other.”

We are the only nation in the history of the world founded on a creed. Reverence for God is foundational – particularly as Creator and as the Source of Law. May we be worthy stewards of this creed. And may the pro-life movement be a united force for a new birth of freedom.

Michael Kenney, J.D., LL.M., serves as president of Pro-Life Partners Foundation.