Sen. Elizabeth Warren on Friday said Congress should pass new laws to protect abortion rights in the wake of newly passed restrictions in Alabama and other states.
The 2020 presidential candidate from Massachusetts said establishing federal statutory rights to abortion services would pre-empt state restrictions, like those approved in states like Alabama, Georgia and Ohio.
“Because these federal protections would be valid on a variety of constitutional grounds — including equal protection and the commerce clause — they would ensure that choice would remain the law of the land even if the Supreme Court overturns Roe,” she said in a Medium post, referring to the court’s 1973 ruling that generally legalized abortion in the country.
Ms. Warren also called to repeal the Hyde Amendment, which generally bars federal money from being used to fund abortions.
She also called for federal laws that would preempt state efforts to limit access to abortion services, either geographically or otherwise, and said she wants to guarantee “reproductive health coverage” as part of all health coverage.
“Our democracy should not be held hostage by right-wing courts, and women should not have to hope that Brett Kavanaugh and Donald Trump’s Supreme Court will respect the law,” the senator said. “Congress should act to ensure that the will of the people remains the law of the land.”
Democrats like Ms. Warren have criticized the Alabama measure, signed into law this week, that would ban abortion even in cases of rape and incest, with even some Republicans saying it goes further than they would like to see.
Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand, another 2020 presidential contender, had also advocated for similar federal protections for abortion this week. Ms. Gillibrand was in Georgia on Thursday to speak out against a new law in the state that prohibits abortion after a fetal heartbeat can be detected, or about six weeks into a pregnancy.
• David Sherfinski can be reached at dsherfinski@washingtontimes.com.
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