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One of the pillars of the American political system is our independent judiciary. Hamilton on Federalist 78 said that “it is the best expedient which can be devised in any government, to secure a steady, upright, and impartial administration of the laws.” When the confidentiality that judges have to settle their disputes in the Supreme Court is violated, the nature of the Supreme Court is infringed.
When judges cannot establish arguments based on the Constitution but must fear a rabid mob, the foundations of the American system are under attack. That is just what happened with the leak of a draft of the Supreme Court’s decision in Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization, which would repeal Roe v. Wade, which legalized abortion throughout the United States up to 21 weeks with almost no restrictions. This, quickly, caused Democrats to hit the roof. Sadly, yet completely foreseeable, none criticized the violation of the most important unwritten rule of the Supreme Court.
Probably the goal of whoever leaked the draft was precisely that: to undermine the Supreme Court. To pressure the justices to change their decision and to pressure the Senate to pack the Supreme Court or eliminate the Filibuster. It does not appear that this will happen, however, it has taken a stab at the Supreme Court’s metapolitical status.
The Court’s decision is legally sound. The U.S. Constitution says nothing in favor of abortion; rather, the 14th Amendment could be interpreted as offering protection to the unborn. In any case, Roe v. Wade was a terrible case of judicial activism that has taken a long time to be overturned and put the United States in the beautiful company of China, Vietnam, and North Korea as the countries with the most liberal abortion laws in the world.
Now it would be up to the individual states to decide what to do with abortion laws. Not ideal for pro-lifers, but a very significant step. The ultimate goal remains clear: to make abortion not only illegal but unthinkable. That no woman should feel she is in a personal situation where she believes she should have an abortion. There is much work to be done.
But this is the state of the left in America. To burn down and end everything in their path when things don’t go their way, even the most important institutions in their country. If they thought the summer of 2020 was complicated, they can’t imagine what the summer of 2022 will be like.
This article originally appeared in El American’s newsletter on May 4, 2022. Subscribe for free here!
Edgar is political scientist and philosopher. He defends the Catholic intellectual tradition. Edgar writes about religion, ideology, culture, US politics, abortion, and the Supreme Court. Twitter: @edgarjbb_ // Edgar es politólogo y filósofo. Defiende la tradición intelectual católica. Edgar escribe sobre religión, ideología, cultura, política doméstica, aborto y la Corte Suprema. Twitter: @edgarjbb_