The road to a Democratically controlled House of Representatives in Washington D.C. may go through Arizona thanks to today’s Arizona Supreme Court ruling outlawing women’s reproductive freedom.
Surprisingly, there is maybe bipartisan agreement among Democrats and Republicans at the House level that the Arizona State Supreme Court overreached in invalidating a 2022 Republican ban on abortion after 15 weeks and reaffirming an 1864 Civil War-era ban that gives no grace period and only the exception for the life of the mother.
More likely, the two Republicans that are acting bipartisan, Juan Ciscomani and David Schweikert, in advocating for the repeal of the 1864 law and a compromise measure at the state legislature, are attempting to appease swing voters in their battleground purple districts before they turn on them at the ballot box this November and help elect a Democratically controlled House.
Good luck with that. The Democrats running in those contests will undoubtedly bring up every comment and shred of paper that contains Ciscomani’s and Schweikert’s anti-reproductive freedom views.
On the Independent and Democratic side of the Congressional Ledger, both incumbents and candidates vying to defeat their Republican opponents, conveyed a consistent message of disgust with the Court decision, blamed Donald ‘I killed Roe v Wade’ Trump for making this happen, and called for the people to show their opposition to it at the ballot box this November.
Senator Kyrsten Sinema posted on social media:
“A woman’s health care choices should be between her, her family, and her doctor. Today’s decision by the Arizona Supreme Court endangers women’s health, safety, and well-being. Arizonans should not be forced to travel out of state just to receive basic, sometimes even life-saving, health care. Doctors and hospitals should not be punished for providing health care to their patients. Throughout my over 20 years of public service, I’ve always supported women’s access to reproductive care, and I will work with anyone to protect Arizona women’s ability to make their own decisions about their futures.”
Senator Mark Kelly appeared livid at the United States Senate, saying with Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer behind him:
“This is going to criminalize doctors for doing their jobs and it’s going to have a devastating effect on the health and freedom of women in Arizona. It’s going to put lives at risk. Now, this law may have been written 160 years ago but it’s only being reinstated now because of politicians who worked to overturn Roe v Wade…This is devastating for women in Arizona…I refuse to allow Arizona to become a state where doctors are going to be afraid to practice to just do their jobs. Women deserve the right to make these decisions on their own. Not politicians in Washington making them for them…This is a really sad day for the state of Arizona.”
Representative and Senate Candidate Ruben Gallego issued a statement that offered:
Today’s ruling is devastating for Arizona women and their families. This is not what Arizonans want, and women could die because of it. Yet again, extremist politicians like Kari Lake are forcing themselves into doctors’ offices and ripping away the right for women to make their own healthcare decisions. Lake called this a ‘great law’ – even though it will ban nearly all abortions, including in cases of rape or incest.
“Our fight against extremist bans like the one enacted today has never been more important — which is why I’m committed to doing whatever it takes to protect abortion rights at the federal level. This isn’t about partisanship — it’s about protecting Arizonans’ rights. And here in Arizona, we support a woman’s right to an abortion — which is why I am going to defeat Kari Lake and fight like hell to protect abortion rights once and for all.”
Representative Raul Grijalva posted on social media:
“The Arizona Supreme Court’s ruling is a cruel and regressive decision that is part of the national assault by Republicans to ban and criminalize abortion nationwide. It underscores the importance of the upcoming election in November that will determine the future of reproductive rights in our state and across the country. I applaud Attorney General @krismayes’ commitment not to prosecute under a law from a time when Arizona was not even a state and women did not have the right to vote. I call for the Arizona legislature to permanently codify and safeguard the right to access affordable, comprehensive abortion care, and contraceptives for Arizonans without delay. I will continue to push and support legislation in Congress, including the Women’s Health Protection Act, to protect the right to abortion throughout the United States, block the barrage of state bans and restrictions on abortion, and overturn Dobbs v. Jackson to ensure a person’s freedom to make decisions about their own reproductive health care is between them and a health care provider – not the government.”
Representative Greg Stanton also issued a statement on social media and spoke about the court decision on the House floor.
The statement read:
On the House floor, the Representative commented:
“On behalf of all Arizonans, tonight I am angry. Today the Arizona Supreme Court upheld an 1864 law passed before Arizona was a state before women could even vote, that bans abortion at every stage of pregnancy without exceptions for rape and incest. It puts women’s lives at risk…This is the devastating reality of a Post-Roe America. Politicians deciding who can receive health care and when. Not families and their doctors…Arizonans will remember in November.”
Several Arizona Congressional Candidates also offered their perspectives on today’s Court ruling:
Arizona House Congressional Six Candidate Kirsten Engel issued a statement that read:
“I am shocked and angry. For the Arizona Supreme Court to return us to the 1800s, nearly fifty years prior to Arizona’s statehood when women lacked the right to vote or own property, is atrocious. This decision takes away rights and freedoms earned by generations of Arizona women and mandates prison time for anyone who helps a woman get an abortion, which could include friends and family as well as medical professionals. This must be reversed by the people. In Congress, I will fight to restore Roe v. Wade into law, and that starts by defeating Juan Ciscomani, who has voted again and again to restrict abortion access.”
In a couple of social media posts, she also called out Representative Juan Ciscomani’s hypocrisy on the issue, posting:
Congressional District Three Candidate Yassamin Ansari also issued a press release, stating:
“Abortion is a human right. Upholding a ban on our bodily autonomy – a ban that was created before women could vote – is not justice. This ban endangers the lives of women and their children. That’s why, when Roe was overturned, I led the charge to direct the Phoenix Police Department to make enforcement of Arizona’s abortion ban their lowest priority — because no doctor, nurse, patient, or pharmacist should go to jail for providing or receiving basic healthcare. We’re watching firsthand what extremist Republicans like Trump and his MAGA allies will do when they’re in power – ban abortion nationwide. We need to restore Roe v. Wade, pass the Arizona Right to Abortion Initiative, and make sure women have the right to an abortion.”
She also posted on social media:
She later released a video on social media where she conveyed that the ruling was “insane,” “outrageous,” and “devastating.”
Ms. Ansari, the former Phoenix Vice Mayor and Councilwoman, also said:
“The entire state and country is outraged by this. Women are under attack and it is unfathomable that we are in this position in 2024. Make no mistake. This is because of Donald Trump…Now you have supreme courts and legislators and extremists in Arizona who are stripping away our fundamental freedoms…As a young woman, I’m completely outraged and devastated and ready to take action. It is so angering that in the year 2024, we still have to fight for these types of freedoms…We have to keep this fight and we have to restore Roe v Wade here in Arizona. Please get involved with the Arizona Abortion Access Initiative…to make sure we enshrine our rights to an abortion in our state constitution and above all, we need to elect women to office who will fight against this and protect our rights.”
Congressional District One Candidate Conor O’Callaghan also reacted to the ruling, writing in a statement:
Today’s ruling by the Arizona State Supreme Court is an absolute outrage. It is a calamity for our state and a sad day for our country. The America I grew up in stood for expanding rights, not eliminating them. This decision does exactly the opposite, taking away freedoms and limiting the ability of individuals to pursue the healthcare choices that are right for them. It will have tragic consequences for Arizonans.
“The state’s highest court has decided to retroactively undo years of precedent and revert our state to a Civil War-era abortion ban – a law that was in place almost 50 years before Arizona became a state and almost 60 years before women had the right to vote! I have always been and will always be a fierce advocate for individual autonomy in private healthcare decisions, particularly when it comes to the right to an abortion. This commitment is deeply personal to me; my wife, Tina, had a D&E after a miscarriage, a routine procedure now considered illegal in some states in a post-Roe world.
“In Congress, I will work tirelessly to advance legislation that ensures healthcare services are accessible to all. Abortion is healthcare and we must fiercely defend women’s reproductive rights everywhere.
“I am proud that my campaign carries the Arizona for Abortion Access petitions and we will continue to work alongside reproductive health advocates in Arizona to ensure the right to choose is protected for all.”
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As a legislative candidate for Arizona’s LD 7 State Senate, I readily urge our Legislature to immediately respond to our Supreme Court’s draconian abortion ruling by codifying every woman’s innate right to make her own reproductive decisions in consultation with her medical care givers.