RI reacts to news that Supreme Court is prepared to overturn Roe v. Wade

The news that the U.S. Supreme Court is prepared to overturn Roe v. Wade has drawn strong reactions in Rhode Island, mainly from Democrats.

"Here in Rhode Island, we will always protect a woman’s right to choose," said a post from Gov. Dan McKee on social media Monday night. "We will NOT go backwards on reproductive rights."

"I was angry and saddened to wake up this morning and read reports that the Supreme Court has drafted an opinion that will overturn Roe v. Wade," Lt. Gov. Sabina Matos said in a Tuesday morning statement. "The court's draft opinion will rule that women are second class citizens. As a mother, I will not stand for that. I always have and always will be a staunch, unapologetic defender of a woman's right to access reproductive health care."

More: What would an overturn of Roe v. Wade mean in New England?

"Two things are crystal clear this morning: First, elections matter," Matos added.

"And second, Rhode Island must continue to protect women's access to health care because we cannot count on a partisan Congress to do that for us."

In a statement, U.S. Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse said overturning Roe would “give right-wing ideologues a political victory" and go against the will of the American public.

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“I hope the Republican justices seriously reconsider a decision to upend nearly 50 years of precedent and harm millions,” he said. “It would be a blow from which the Court may not recover, and which would fall squarely on women of this country.”

Rep. Jim Langevin, who changed his stance on abortion rights last year, said that overturning Roe would be a "most severe rollback of women’s rights in this country’s history."

"I support whatever it takes to make sure that Roe v. Wade remains the law of the land," he wrote on Twitter.

Bishop Thomas Tobin of the Diocese of Providence said that he would not be commenting "until a decision of the Court on this matter is final."

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A number of Democratic candidates for the Second Congressional District said the prospect of the Supreme Court decision made it important to ensure that the seat does not fall into Republican hands this fall.

“Since 1973, the US Supreme Court has recognized a woman’s right to choose, and to control her health care decisions,” Joy Fox said in a statement. “Should the Supreme Court choose to overturn that, as has been reported, it will be up to the Congress to protect women's reproductive health. I’m ready to fight to protect our rights."

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“It is now more important than ever to have women representing women in Congress to protect Roe v. Wade,” wrote Sarah Morgenthau. “Rhode Island, you have the power to send a pro-choice woman to Washington who will always protect your reproductive rights.”

Morgenthau specifically called for Congress to pass the Women's Health Protection Act and codify the right to an abortion in federal law, as did rival Seth Magaziner.

“If enacted, this ruling would be a horrible tragedy for millions of people who need access to abortion care. But we can fight back,” Magaziner said. “I am proud to have worked with hundreds of committed advocates to pass the Reproductive Privacy Act in 2019, and I will fight in Congress to codify Roe v. Wade into federal law."

The Second Congressional District has traditionally leaned Democratic, but some political forecasters see a potential path to a Republican victory during this year's midterm elections. The Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee seized on the opportunity to attack Republican candidate and former Cranston Mayor Allan Fung, calling him a "puppet" who "would join Republicans in Congress in attacking women’s freedom."

The committee pointed out that Fung had opposed codifying the right to abortion into state law in 2018 — something that a number of local Democrats also felt was unnecessary at the time.

Fung, in a statement, said: "My views are in line with the majority of Rhode Islanders. As your next congressman, I would not vote for legislation that allowed late term or partial birth abortion, and I would be against taxpayer funding of abortion. In Rhode Island, Roe is already on the law books, and as such nothing would change for Rhode Islanders. I am not running to change abortion laws, I’m running as laser focused on lowering the price of groceries, lowering the price of gas and home heating oil and keeping our neighborhoods safe.”

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Gubernatorial candidate Nellie Gorbea seized the opportunity to take a swipe at her Democratic rival Helena Foulkes.

"Reminder that Mitch McConnell stole a Supreme Court seat which helped make tonight's horrifying news possible," Gorbea wrote on Monday night. "Which is just one in a very long list of reasons why donating to Mitch McConnell is never okay and inexcusable for someone who wants to be governor of RI."

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Foulkes has said that she regrets donating to McConnell's campaign, something that she did when she was an executive at CVS.

For her part, Foulkes wrote: "What a horrific moment in our nation’s history. It has literally never been more important that Rhode Island has a governor who will fight every single day to protect abortion access for all."

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Gorbea, Foulkes, Magaziner and Matt Brown all called for Rhode Island to pass the Equality in Abortion Coverage Act, which would allow abortion to be covered by the state's Medicaid programs, as well as the health plan used by state employees.

McKee's office said on Tuesday that the governor also supports the bill.

"The governor has been in full support of the Equality in Abortion Coverage Act, legislation that is currently pending before the General Assembly," said spokeswoman Alana O'Hare. "He urges the General Assembly to pass this bill and send it to his desk for signature."

In 2019, Rhode Island enshrined the right to an abortion in the state Constitution, which means that abortion will remain legal even if Roe v. Wade is struck down.

But abortion-rights activists say that the state could do more to guarantee access to abortion, including getting rid of financial barriers.

More: Opinion/Cassar and Valverde: Time to end Rhode Island’s abortion bans

The Rhode Island Democratic Women's Caucus said in a statement that the the state's current ban on abortion coverage through state health plans "reinforces racial and health inequality," just like striking down Roe would.

The Equality in Abortion Coverage Act, which is known as H7442 in the House and S2549 in the Senate, has been introduced for several consecutive years. It has drawn opposition from the Rhode Island Catholic Conference, which objected to using "taxpayer dollars" to fund abortions.

Advocates for abortion rights are now seizing on the moment to drum up support for passing the bill.

“This leaked SCOTUS opinion confirms our worst fears — we must act NOW to end RI abortion bans by passing the EACA,” said a tweet from Planned Parenthood Votes RI. The political advocacy group estimates that more than 330,000 Rhode Islanders are unable to use their health insurance to cover the costs of an abortion due to the current state law.

Many also noted that codifying the right to abortion in Rhode Island was not without controversy.

"It wasn't so long ago we were told that Roe would never be overturned," tweeted Rep. Michelle McGaw. "We knew better and kept pushing back and passed the #RPA in RI in 2019."

"I just can’t believe we still have to fight this battle," said Rep. Carol Hagan McEntee, adding that she feared that there could "be many ramifications beyond the Roe decision."

"It's really daunting that we have to fight this again," she said.

This article originally appeared on The Providence Journal: Overturn Roe v Wade? Rhode Island reacts to Supreme Court draft leak