'Trigger Laws' in Place for Possible Reversal of Roe v. Wade

By Chris Woodward
One News Now

There's been a lot of talk as to whether the U.S. Supreme Court will overturn Roe v. Wade – but some argue it's already been reversed in many ways.

"Roe v. Wade is an almost 50-year-old decision," notes Dr. Jameson Taylor of the Mississippi Center for Public Policy.

"It's based on old science, and the Court has almost entirely abandoned that framework that's been set up by Roe and signaled to states that they can regulate abortion in a limited way to protect the life of the unborn child and to protect maternal health."

However, overturning Roe would not make abortion illegal, Taylor adds. "What it would do is allow the states to have their own choices about abortion policy," he explains.

Dr. Taylor

At least four states – Mississippi, Louisiana, North Dakota, and South Dakota – have what are known as "trigger laws" that would go into effect automatically in the event SCOTUS overturned its landmark 1973 decision. 

In that case, says Taylor, "these laws mean that abortion would become illegal in these states."Regardless, Taylor thinks intellectual and scientific honesty demands a reconsideration of Roe.

"3D and 4D ultrasounds are showing women that their unborn child is not just a blob of tissue, but a living thing with a beating heart, and that the child can sense light, move, hear, and taste," he continues.

 "Whatever you want to call it, this entity has the form of a human person – and that is something that the Supreme Court has already observed [by] inviting states to regulate abortion in ways to protect maternal health."

Of course, all this hinges on who replaces the late Supreme Court Justice Anthony Kennedy. President Trump recently nominated Brett Kavanaugh of the DC Circuit Court of Appeals to fill that slot – but liberal senators have vowed to block that nomination out of concern that Kavanaugh might rule against abortion in a future case.

Meanwhile, conservatives and special-interest groups have raised concerns about where exactly Kavanaugh stands on abortion, based on past opinions and answers he's provided when asked.

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