A bill that would have recognized the rights of abortion in the United States and codified many aspects of the 1973 Act. Roe v. WadeDecision on abortion, did not garner enough votes to pass the Senate Wednesday.
The vote was expected not to succeed due to the It is highly likely that it will be filibustered and voted on by Republicans. The bill did not receive even 50 votes from senators.
Forty-nine Democratic senators voted in favor of the bill, while fifty Republicans and Democratic Sen. Joe Manchin from West Virginia, voted against it. voted against the legislation.
The vote was presided by Kamala Harris (Vice President). Before the roll was taken, Democratic lawmakers of the House marched from their chamber to reach the Senate. chanting “My body, my choice”To encourage a vote in favor of the legislation they have already passed.
The vote was conducted in response to A draft opinion from the Supreme Court, which was leaked earlier this yearFive conservative justices, representing a majority of the court, voted in favor of overturning the almost 50-year-old precedent of abortion rights protections. Roe.
Speaking before the vote, Senate Majority leader Chuck Schumer (D. New York) acknowledged the likely outcome but noted that Americans would be able to see exactly where their elected senators stand regarding the bill.
“The public will not forget which side of the vote senators fall on today, they will not forget who voted to protect their freedoms, and they will not forget those responsible for the greatest backslide of individual liberties in half a century,” he predicted.
In a statement issued after the vote President Joe Biden blasted the Senate’s “failure to act” on protecting “constitutional rights” to abortion access.
“To protect the right to choose, voters need to elect more pro-choice senators this November, and return a pro-choice majority to the House,” he added. “If they do, Congress can pass this bill in January, and put it on my desk, so I can sign it into law.”
Schumer also warned voters that if they elected “more MAGA Republicans” — that is, lawmakers who are strongly aligned with former Republican President Donald Trump — they would likely see a nationwide ban on abortion in the next legislative session.
Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Kentucky) has indeed signaled that his party is headed in that direction, noting that a national ban on the medical procedure could be “possible” if Republicans take control of Congress.
“If the leaked opinion became the final opinion, legislative bodies — not only at the state level but at the federal level — certainly could legislate in that area,” McConnell said last week. “And if this were the final decision, that was the point that it should be resolved one way or another in the legislative process. So yeah, it’s possible.”
