WASHINGTON (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 03rd May, 2022) President Joe Biden said on Tuesday he believes the US Supreme Court should uphold the Roe v. Wade ruling that legalizes undergoing abortions throughout the United States because it ensures women's fundamental right to choose whether to terminate a pregnancy.
Late on Monday, Politico reported, citing a leaked draft majority opinion by US Supreme Court Justice Samuel Alito, that the Supreme Court had voted to overturn its decision in the Roe v. Wade case.
"I believe that a woman's right to choose is fundamental, Roe has been the law of the land for almost 50 years, and basic fairness and the stability of our law demand that it not be overturned," Biden said in a statement. "I directed my Gender Policy Council and White House Counsel's Office to prepare options for an administration response to the continued attack on abortion and reproductive rights, under a variety of possible outcomes in the cases pending before the Supreme Court."
Abortion opponents have said the Supreme Court is deciding on the constitutional issue of whether US states can decide whether to make abortion legal or not rather than the Federal government. In addition, they have pointed to the first Supreme Court leak ever as being a political ploy to galvanize political support and influence the work of the justices.
Biden said he does not know whether the leaked draft is genuine, but in case the decision is overturned, US officials at all levels should protect a woman's right to choose and voters should elect pro-choice candidates in the mid-term elections in November.
Later in the day, the US Supreme Court said in a release the document leaked late Monday night is authentic but does not represent the final decision by the court or the final position of any member on the issues in the case. The court has also launched an investigation into the leak.
US Vice President Kamala Harris has denounced the possible overturning of the Roe v. Wade decision and accused Republicans of "weaponizing the use of the law against women." In addition, Harris called on all opponents of the move to "fight for women and for our country with everything we have."
The authorities cordoned off the area around the Supreme Court in anticipation of mass protests. On Tuesday morning, proponents and opponents of abortion began to gather in front of the top court.
The Supreme Court ruled in the Roe v. Wade case in 1973 and extended constitutional protection of the women's right to undergo abortion without undue government restrictions. The 1992 decision in the case of Planned Parenthood v. Casey upheld the earlier ruling.
