US Senator Josh Hawley Friday celebrated the US Supreme Court ruling that abolished the constitutional right to abortion, calling it a sweeping decision that would change the shape of US politics for the next decade.
“I really think this is going to be a turning point in American politics,” said Hawley, a Republican from Missouri, during a conversation with reporters. “I think we are now entering a new period of transformative change in American politics.”
The landmark decision, in which six conservative judges overturned a nearly 50-year-old precedent in Roe v. Wade, is likely to cause a ripple in American politics as access to abortion will be determined by where a person lives.
Hawley said he welcomes the interstate debate as some, like California, immediately moved to embrace abortion rights and others, like Missouri, moved immediately to limit it†
He predicted that people will base their decisions on whether abortion is allowed, and that the decision will eventually lead to the redrawing of demographic lines across the country.
“I would predict that the effect will be that more and more red states will become more red, purple states will become red, and the blue states will become a lot more blue,” Hawley said. And as a result, I would look for Republicans to expand their power in the Electoral College. And that is very good news.”
He said the political realignment would mean that social conservatives would no longer have to partner with fiscal conservatives in politics, resulting in a more populist, conservative Republican Party — which is also the path of the Republican Party he currently occupies.
His prediction was immediately criticized by Kansas City mayor Quinton Lucas, who wrote on Twitter that moving is not an option for many people whose roots are in conservative states.
“I was born here, for better or for worse,” Lucas wrote. “I’m not going anywhere else and I hope enough like-minded people stay too so we can change things here.”
The first state-level fight takes place in Kansas
While Hawley said he welcomed the state-level debate on abortion rights, Kansas will be the first state to officially test voter opinion. In August, Kansans will vote on whether or not to add language to the Kansas Constitution stating that abortion is not a constitutional right.
On Friday, politicians in Kansas weighed in on the vote, citing the heightened stakes now that the Supreme Court has officially quashed Roe. The vote has too much of an impact on the region, such as: many Missourians already travel to Kansas to have an abortion.
US Rep. Sharice Davids, D-Roeland Park, urged Kansans to vote against the constitutional amendment. She was a co-sponsor of a bill that sought to guarantee access to abortion. The bill failed in the US Senate.
“This is no longer hyperbole or hypothetical,” Davids said. “For 50 years we have been protected from the most extreme attempts to control people’s decisions about their bodies, but that protection is now gone and Kansas is at a major decision point.”
Davids faces a competitive reelection bid this year as a new congressional card has added Republican voters to her district in a year when Democrats are expected to struggle in the polls. Her likely Republican opponent, Amanda Adkins, had no influence on the vote on the constitutional amendment. Instead, she criticized David’s stance on abortion.
“I’m pleased that the Supreme Court is returning decisions related to abortion to the states because it gives voters more say on the issue,” Adkins said. “Most Kansans agree that we want to reduce the number of abortions, inform parents of minors when their child wants to have an abortion, eliminate late-term abortions, oppose the financing of abortion by taxpayers and support safety regulations in clinics. .”
The provisions to which Adkins refers are already in effect in Kansas. Davids called her position out of touch with the 3rd congressional district.
The Kansas vote wouldn’t ban abortions, but it would allow the Republican-controlled legislature to impose stricter restrictions. Republicans have generally avoided saying whether that is their intention.
US Senator Jerry Moran said he supported the decision and the fact that abortion rights are now determined by states, but did not mention the constitutional amendment. Neither did US Senator Roger Marshall, when he issued: a video statement about the verdict.
But U.S. Representative Jake LaTurner, R-Galena, expressed hope that Kansans would support the constitutional amendment so that they could follow the example of other states that have already imposed bans.
“Unfortunately, this welcome ruling will not protect life in Kansas,” LaTurner said. “It is now more important than ever that Kansans reaffirm our commitment to protecting the unborn and vote to pass the Value Them Both amendment to ensure our state does not become a center for unrestricted abortions.”
The vote may provide some indication of shifts in the way people vote on the issue of abortion. The Roe v. Wade ruling of 1973 helped the Christian right grow as a force in American politics, and the issue motivated many conservatives to vote. Now that the decision has been reversed, Democrats see the issue as a potential motivating factor for those seeking to guarantee access to abortion.
In Missouri, the top two Democratic candidates in the US Senate primaries — philanthropist Trudy Busch Valentine and retired Marine Lucas Kunce — were quick to denounce the decision. Republican candidates in the race were quick to praise the decision and subsequent abortion ban, except for medical emergencies in Missouri.