In June, the U.S. Supreme Court overturned the landmark Roe v. Wade ruling that provided constitutional protections for abortions across the nation for nearly 50 years. The decision, condemned by President Joe Biden, activists and communities across the country, will dramatically change life for millions seeking out safe reproductive health care options.
With a conservative majority high court, experts have warned that many other rights may be at risk following the erasure of reproductive health protections. In his concurring opinion, Justice Clarence Thomas called for overruling decisions in Griswold v. Connecticut, on the right to obtain contraception; Lawrence v. Texas, on the right to same-sex relationship; and Obergefell v. Hodges, on the right to same-sex marriage.
Republican Senator John Cornyn of Texas also mentioned the need to overturn Brown vs Board of Education in a tweet responding to former President Obama’s statement surrounding the recent ruling.
Controversial opinions from Republicans amid the landmark ruling don’t stop there, with Eastern North Carolina’s U.S. Rep. Greg Murphy tweeting out, “No one forces anyone to have sex.”
The tweet has since been deleted.
The North Carolina Democratic Party issued a statement condemning Rep. Murphy’s comments and said “Congressman Greg Murphy’s comments are disgusting, wrong and shameful, but this is just the latest of the NC GOP’s attempts to excuse their extreme anti-choice agenda, including from their own U.S. Senate nominee Congressman Ted Budd, that supports abortion bans with no exceptions for rape or incest.”
Historically, Republicans in the state General Assembly have consistently pushed back against reproductive health measures – attempting to restrict or ban abortion in North Carolina.
With the recent Supreme Court ruling, several prominent state Republicans have expressed their intentions to follow their national counterparts in stripping away reproductive health care access, among other rights.
