May 5, 2022 - Politics & Policy

Pelosi: Marriage equality under threat if Roe v Wade overturned

Axios

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) delivers remarks at the Capitol Building on May 02, 2022 in Washington, DC. — House Speaker Nancy Pelosi delivers at the Capitol Building earlier this week. Photo: Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) told reporters Wednesday that a U.S. Supreme Court ruling overturning Roe v. Wade would threaten marriage equality.

Driving the news: Pelosi said at a news conference in Seattle that this week's leaked draft indicating the justices would overturn the landmark abortion ruling was "an assault on women, a lack of respect of women and their judgment," which mocked the 1973 decision and undermined privacy as a value in the Constitution.

"It did violence not only to women, but to the Constitution of the United States."

— House Speaker Nancy Pelosi on the Supreme Court's draft opinion

The big picture: Abortion politics have begun to reshape Democrats' campaign messaging and tactics in the wake of the draft opinion leaked to Politico last Monday, which has since been confirmed by Chief Justice John Roberts.

What she's saying: "Precedent? Forget about it," Pelosi said, noting how Roe v. Wade had been consistently upheld for nearly 50 years.

"This is an assault on privacy. Who know's what's next? ... Marriage equality? There are so many things that are rooted in privacy in the Constitution," Pelosi added.
Pelosi expanded on this point to the Seattle Times on Wednesday, when she said such a ruling would have an impact beyond a woman's right to choose.
"The next thing could be gay marriage equality, there’s so many other things that once you’ve dispensed with precedent and privacy, that they could have the majority to do," Pelosi told the outlet.

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Pelosi: Marriage equality under threat if Roe v Wade overturned

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