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Few issues in recent American history are more controversial than abortion. Over the past 50 years, it has divided Americans along party lines, tarnished reputations and, for many, undermined the legitimacy of the Supreme Court, which articulated constitutional rights that were later withdrawn.
The controversy has now moved from Washington to the State Capitol. Tennessee legislatures, including Nashville, have made clear their commitment to the right to oppose abortion, but the legal status of abortion deserves serious reconsideration.
seize control from a state and give it back
In 1973, the Supreme Court ruled in Roe v. Wade that a state’s undeniable constitutional right to privacy included abortion. Until this ruling, the state was in complete control. After Roe, the state retained some institutions but could not outright ban abortion. The 1992 Casey decision gave states more discretion, but it didn’t overturn Roe’s core tenets. Many state legislatures have continued to push the envelope by banning abortions beyond fewer weeks.
Dobbs’ decision earlier this year overturned Law and completed the handover of power to the states. Let’s get back to politics and governance in the 50 state system. These institutions reflect different political cultures. Illinois allows abortions up to the 24th week of pregnancy. Other states have banned virtually all abortions at all times.
Thirteen states, including Tennessee, have passed “trigger bans” in anticipation of Law’s overthrow. Many states continued to protect the mother’s life. Exceptions for incest and rape were also included. Tennessee is one of the strictest, has no exceptions for rape and incest, and has a provision allowing doctors to perform abortions to save the mother’s life, but it needs to do so. only if you bear the responsibility of proving that
Tennessee’s current abortion law did not come into being in the usual way. It was expected and there was no certainty that it would work.
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Instead of taking action on possible decisions, state legislatures, which waited for legislators to act on the law when decisions were made, opted for more responsible legislation. Then we can fully discuss the real realities surrounding threatening mothers’ lives and allowing rape and incest victims to continue their pregnancies to term. Certainty provides the focus that hypotheses often lack.
Doctors and women’s health at risk
Under current Tennessee law, a doctor is at risk of committing a Class C felony and can later be affirmed to prove that he acted with sufficient evidence that the mother’s life was in fact threatened. must make a valid defense. This “guilty until proven innocent” law threatens the ability of doctors to provide the best possible care for their patients. This threat puts women’s lives at risk.
Evidence that a majority of Tennesseans want such a draconian law is scant. Did. That vote was held against the backdrop of Roe v. Wade protection. Last month, a Vanderbilt poll reported that 75% of Tennesseans, including a majority of Republicans, believe abortion should be legal if it is the result of rape or incest. .
The preponderance of evidence is that Tennessee people overall have a marginal right to oppose abortion. It’s likely a strict time limit that women can ask for an abortion without reason, without putting medical professionals in an impossible situation.
Not the first possibility at all. But the latter two of his should be achievable without forcing conservative legislators to abandon their lifetime commitments.
All signs point to the General Assembly revisiting the issue at its next session. Party politics with scorecards and vocal national interest groups make change difficult. But that should not prevent serious reconsideration of the current overly harsh laws.
William Lyons is Director of Policy Partnerships at the Howard Baker Jr. Center for Public Policy and Professor Emeritus of Political Science at the University of Tennessee. He also served as Chief Policy Officer for Knoxville Mayor Bill Haslam, Daniel Brown, and Madeline Rogerro.
The views and opinions expressed are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the official policies or positions of the Howard Baker Jr. Center for Public Policy or the University of Tennessee.
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