'A horrifying decision' - US politicians from across the divide react
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US politicians from both sides of the divide have taken to social media to issue statements on the supreme court's overturning of Roe v Wade.
Former president Barack Obama said the court's decision "reversed nearly 50 years of precedent" and "relegated the most intensely personal decision someone can make to the whims of politicians and ideologues—attacking the essential freedoms of millions of Americans."
Former first lady Michelle Obama said she was "heartbroken" by the move.
"When we don’t understand our history, we are doomed to repeat its mistakes,” Ms Obama wrote in a statement posted on Twitter.
“In this country, our futures are tied together in a delicate tapestry that we each have a hand in making. Too often cynicism or indifference makes us feel like we don’t have a say in weaving it, but that couldn’t be further from the truth.
“The more we allow pessimism to push us further into helplessness, the less we will be empowered to help create the kind of country we want to live in.”
Ms Obama said that the Supreme Court’s “horrifying decision” would have “devastating consequences,” and she said it must act as "a wake-up call, especially to those who will “bear its burden”.
“This moment is difficult, but our story does not end here. It may not feel like we are able to do much right now, but we can. And we must."
Ms Obama ended her statement by encouraging those who are angry and frustrated by the decision to channel those feelings into action by “getting involved” with organisations helping women such as Planned Parenthood or The United State of Women.
Former US Secretary of State and 2016 democratic party presidential nominee Hilary Clinton said the supreme court's decision would "live in infamy as a step backward for women's rights and human rights."
"Most Americans believe the decision to have a child is one of the most sacred decisions there is, and that such decisions should remain between patients and their doctors," she said.
Most Americans believe the decision to have a child is one of the most sacred decisions there is, and that such decisions should remain between patients and their doctors.
— Hillary Clinton (@HillaryClinton) June 24, 2022
Today’s Supreme Court opinion will live in infamy as a step backward for women's rights and human rights.
Massachusetts senator Elizabeth Warren criticized the US supreme court move.
“Six radical supreme court justices have overturned nearly 50 years of precedent, stripping away the constitutional right to an abortion," she said.
"They have decided that the government – not the person who is pregnant – should make a private health care decision and deny women the right to control their own bodies and futures."
Bernie Sanders said the overturning of Roe v Wade was an "outrage."
"Overturning Roe v Wade and denying women the right to control their own bodies is an outrage and in defiance of what the American people want," the Vermont senator wrote on Twitter.
Overturning Roe v. Wade and denying women the right to control their own bodies is an outrage and in defiance of what the American people want. Democrats must now end the filibuster in the Senate, codify Roe v. Wade, and once again make abortion legal and safe.
— Bernie Sanders (@SenSanders) June 24, 2022
"Democrats must now end the filibuster in the Senate, codify Roe v Wade, and once again make abortion legal and safe."
Congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez said that overturning Roe and outlawing abortions will "never make them go away."
"It only makes them more dangerous, especially for the poor and marginalized," she said.
Overturning Roe and outlawing abortions will never make them go away.
— Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (@AOC) June 24, 2022
It only makes them more dangerous, especially for the poor + marginalized.
People will die because of this decision. And we will never stop until abortion rights are restored in the United States of America.
House Speaker Nancy Pelosi slammed the "contradiction" of the Supreme Court's ruling.
"Yesterday they said the states cannot make laws governing the constitutional right to bear arms, and today they're saying the exact reverse, that the states can overturn a constitutional right, for fifty years a constitutional right, a woman having the right to choose," she said.
"The hypocrisy is raging but the harm is endless.”
US Attorney general Merrick Garland denounced the supreme court's decision, and warned that it would harm people around the US, particularly poorer communities and racial minorities.
"The Supreme Court has eliminated an established right that has been an essential component of women’s liberty for half a century – a right that has safeguarded women’s ability to participate fully and equally in society," he said in a statement.
"In renouncing this fundamental right, which it had repeatedly recognized and reaffirmed, the Court has upended the doctrine of stare decisis, a key pillar of the rule of law.
Mr Garland said the move "deals a devastating blow to reproductive freedom in the United States."
"It will have an immediate and irreversible impact on the lives of people across the country. And it will be greatly disproportionate in its effect – with the greatest burdens felt by people of color and those of limited financial means."
On the other side of the aisle, Republican leader of the US House of Representatives, Kevin McCarthy welcomed the ruling.
"Every unborn child is precious, extraordinary, and worthy of protection. I applaud this historic ruling, which will save countless innocent lives," he said.
"The Court is right to return the power to protect the unborn to the people’s elected representatives in Congress and the states.
"In the days that follow, we must keep rejecting extreme policies that seek to allow late-term abortions and taxpayer dollars to fund these elective procedures. Much work remains to protect the most vulnerable among us.
US Senate Republican Mitch McConnell called the supreme court decision "courageous and correct."
"This is an historic victory for the Constitution and for the most vulnerable in our society," he said.
Liz Cheney, Wyoming Congresswoman and daughter of former Vice President Dick Cheney, too welcomed the ruling.
"I have always been strongly pro-life. Today’s ruling by the Supreme Court returns power to the states and the people of the states to address the issue of abortion under state law," she said.
Senator Mitt Romney of Utah, who rand against Barack Obama in the 2012 presidential election said: "the sanctity of human life is a foundational American principle, and the lives of our children — both born and unborn — deserve our protection,"
"I support the Court's decision, which means that laws regarding abortion will now rightfully be returned to the people and their elected representatives."