Republican presidential contenders and endangered incumbents this past week were once again forced to answer complicated questions on abortion rights, as a Texas case demonstrated why the issue that dominated the 2022 and 2023 elections is poised to play a central role next year.
The Texas Supreme Court on Monday denied Kate Cox, a 31-year-old mother of two, the right to end a pregnancy that she and her doctors said threatened her life and future fertility. The decision laid bare the political reality facing Republicans as they seek to navigate between their conservative anti-abortion base and a general electorate more supportive of abortion rights. As red states implement a patchwork of new restrictions on the procedure with untested exceptions, real-world events continue to muddle their efforts to stick to and sell to voters an effective message on the issue.
The US Supreme Court’s decision last year to reverse Roe v. Wade’s long-standing federal guarantee of abortion rights saw nearly every Republican-controlled statehouse launch debates over whether and when in a pregnancy to outlaw abortion and which exceptions to allow. That’s led to a cascade of legal challenges testing the constitutionality and boundaries of those bans and renewed attacks from Democrats eager to paint Republicans as having undercut women’s health care.
President Joe Biden’s campaign, citing the Texas case, said it plans to make abortion a key focus as it seeks to draw a contrast with the 2024 Republican front-runner.
“We will make sure that the American people know that Donald Trump is to blame,” Biden campaign spokesman Michael Tyler told CNN. “If Trump is reelected, we will face the reality of a nightmare scenario – and that’s a national abortion ban.”
Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear provided a template for his fellow Democrats with his reelection win in a deep-red…
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