Good morning. A truly seismic story erupted in the United States overnight: the leak of a draft majority opinion that appears to indicate that the Supreme Court voted privately to repeal half a century of protecting abortion rights.
The leak to Politico’s website was immediately the subject of intense textual and legal analysis by American journalists and experts trying to verify its authenticity. This would be the most serious security breach in the history of the court.
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But while caution was clearly the right approach to such an important story, there were all indications – from the formatting of the document and footnotes to the distinctive tone of the conservative author, Judge Samuel Alito – that it was legitimate. There was no comment from the Supreme Court itself.
The court could still vote otherwise. But if the end of Roe v Wade, the 1973 decision that enshrined the constitutional right to abortion, does happen, it will be news of a generation relevant to American women and a huge blow to reproductive rights advocates around the world.
With protesters immediately rushing to the Supreme Court building to express their outrage at the news, today’s bulletin explains what is at stake and what happens next. This is right after the headlines.
Five great stories
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Asylum Priti Patel could face a class action lawsuit on behalf of thousands of Ukrainians stuck in a “chaotic” visa backlog as they seek to come to the United Kingdom. Only 15% of the 74,700 Ukrainians who applied for the sponsorship route have reached the UK.
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Politics Councilors in the UK are facing abuse, threats and intimidation as part of a “really toxic” atmosphere that discourages new candidates, local authorities have warned.
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Housing The government can revive Margaret Thatcher’s right-to-purchase scheme to make up to 2.5 million households eligible to buy their homes at a 70% discount. Housing experts said the proposals run the risk of reducing affordable housing stocks.
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Swiss Secrets Swiss politicians will discuss the country’s controversial banking secrecy amid ongoing pressure to remove rules allowing prosecutors to prosecute whistleblowers. The debate follows the leak of data on potential criminal customers of Credit Suisse to a consortium of retail outlets, including the Guardian.
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Theater The curtain will fall on the musical “Cinderella” by Andrew Lloyd Webber in the West End less than a year after its opening, which will cause horror among some members of the cast who did not know about the closure. The show suffered heavy losses during its blockade action.
In depth: the end of the US right to abortion?
Protesters in front of the US Supreme Court in Washington early Tuesday. Photo: Alex Brandon / AP
What happened?
A draft Supreme Court ruling, apparently by conservative judge Samuel Alito, was leaked to Politico in an article published late Monday night. The court appears to be preparing to rule in favor of the Mississippi in a case on whether the state can ban almost all abortions during and after 15 weeks of gestation – a direct challenge to guaranteeing abortion rights under Roe v Wade.
The 98-page document, which includes 118 footnotes and a 31-page appendix on historical abortion laws, has been published in full. “Rowe is very wrong from the beginning,” it said. “His motives were extremely weak and the decision had harmful consequences.
It said Rowe v. Wade “should be repealed” and continued: “It is time to listen to the constitution and return the issue of abortion to elected representatives.”
What is Rowe against Wade?
Rowe v. Wade is a court ruling that protects the right to abortion in the United States to the extent that the fetus can survive outside the womb, widely considered to be 24 weeks gestation. Full-term pregnancy is 39 weeks gestation. The 1973 decision is one of the most controversial in American history and has faced many legal challenges during the year – but it has survived to this day.
For more details on the challenge of the law currently under consideration, see Jessica Glenza’s December explanation.
What does the leak of information about the court’s decision tell us?
Although it is alleged that the opinion is a draft, it would have been written after the court had voted on the issue – and shows that a majority of the judges have reached the same opinion as Alito. Politico said four other Republican-appointed judges backed the ruling, which means a total of at least five votes in the nine-member court.
After such a vote, the judge is given the opinion of the majority and then writes a draft, which is then distributed and edited. It is possible to change the opinion or even change the vote before the final court decision, which is expected in the next few months.
How significant is the expiration of a draft decision of the Supreme Court?
The Guardian’s Washington correspondent, David Smith, called the leak “stunning and unprecedented” and said it would be “the worst security breach” in the court’s history. Theories abound about the likely source of the leak, from a liberal justice official hoping to increase public pressure on the court before it publishes its ruling, to a conservative who wants to mitigate the impact of the ruling when it comes – in other words , no one knows.
A tweet from Scotusblog, a respected news and analysis site, said it was “impossible to overestimate the earthquake that this will cause in the Court of Justice to destroy trust among judges and staff.” This exodus is the gravest, most unforgivable sin. “
How did reproductive rights advocates react to the news?
With rage. A BuzzFeed reporter posted a video of about 200 protesters in court chanting slogans such as “Abortion is health care” and “My body is my choice.” Another video shows someone urging the audience, “If you’re yelling, then just yelling.”
What about politicians?
Democrats said Roe’s cancellation against Wade would be a disaster. They were led by House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, who issued a joint statement saying such a move would be “disgusting, one of the worst and most harmful decisions in the world.” modern history. “
They also immediately sought to turn Rowe v. Wade into a crucial issue in the upcoming by-elections: Christy Roberts, executive director of the Senate Democrat campaign, said, “At this critical time, we need to protect and expand the Senate majority with powers to confirm or reject judges of the Supreme Court ”. Republicans, in turn, praised the apparent vote and condemned the leak itself.
Now what?
It is worth reiterating that it is still possible for the votes to change and to mean that the obvious draft opinion will remain just that – a draft opinion. But if the Supreme Court rules on the lines proposed by the expired document, the consequences will be swift and extremely consistent.
Since the US Congress has never upheld the right to terminate a pregnancy, the repeal of Roe v. Wade would mean that individual states can immediately make their own decisions about the way forward. Twenty-six of them are expected to move quickly to do so, with many having “triggering” laws in their books that will automatically take effect in these circumstances. This means that women in these states will immediately face severe restrictions on their ability to have an abortion, and the United States will be one of only four countries to restrict this right for nearly 30 years.
What else have we read
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If you’re making your way through the latest episode of Netflix’s Ozark episodes, you’ll enjoy Stuart Jeffries saying goodbye to “one of the most rewarding TV shows around.” And if you haven’t spent half the weekend drinking a lot of it, rest assured: the landing sticks.
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As the question of how the war in Ukraine ends will become more pressing, Orisia Lutsevich of Chatham House argues that “the long-running conflict that locks Ukraine into a gray area of instability” is no better than defeat.
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Simon Huttonstone talks to Graham Nash – like Crosby, Stealth and J – about sex, drugs, rock ‘n’ roll and why he killed Vladimir Putin if he gave him half a chance. Too many amazing quotes to list, so click here instead.
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Tens of thousands face deportation from the United States over sentences that were later overturned. Sam Levin’s song about Sandra Castaneda, who spent 19 years in prison for a murder she did not commit and is still facing deportation, justifies the term “Kafkaesque.”
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Why is it so hard to give up sugar? This long reading by Raj Telhan, a physician, simultaneously absorbs personal history and explores the roots of our mania.
Sports
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snooker Ronnie O’Sullivan defeated Judd Trump 18-13 and won the World Snooker Championships. O’Sullivan overcame a lively return from Trump to catch up with Stephen Hendry’s record of seven world titles.
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Football Russia’s bid to host the European Men’s Championship has been rejected and their team will be replaced by Portugal in the women’s tournament this summer, UEFA announced.
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Athletics Sir Mo Farah said his career as an elite athlete “probably” ended after a shocking defeat by a club runner in a 10,000-meter race on Monday. The amateur who won, Ellis Cross, was rejected for an elite place in the race.
The first pages
Home page of The Guardian May 3, 2022 Photo: Guardian
The Guardian reports that “Patel is facing mass lawsuits by Ukrainians stuck in the visa backlog.” The Telegraph also focuses on the war in Ukraine with “Johnson: Ukraine is ready for its best hour”. The Mail writes “Where have our GPs gone?”, While the Times writes “Rising inflation to break a £ 7,000 pension hole”. The newspaper has “Tories affected by fighting on the eve of the election”, and the Daily Express leads with “Boris …
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