Madison mayor, two top alders denounce draft copy of SCOTUS abortion ruling

MADISON, Wis. (WMTV) - Madison’s mayor and the top two members of the city council teamed up Tuesday morning to denounce a leaked draft copy of an upcoming Supreme Court decision that would repeal the landmark Roe vs. Wade and Planned Parenthood vs. Casey rulings the elevated abortion as a right in the United States.

“We refuse to go back to 1849,” they wrote, referencing the 173-year-old Wisconsin law that bars abortions in the state and was unenforceable, but never repealed. If the Supreme Court precedents were to fall, the law would likely go back into effect.

On Friday, Politico published what it claimed was a draft copy of a coming Supreme Court decision that will strike down the landmark Roe v. Wade decision that enshrined the right to an abortion in the United States.

The draft opinion was penned by Justice Samuel Alito with Justices Clarence Thomas, Brett Kavanaugh, Neil Gorsuch, and Amy Coney Barrett concurring, according to Politico. The report states Alito is highly critical of the Roe decision and the subsequent Planned Parenthood vs. Casey decision. The ruling stems from the challenge to a Mississippi abortion law.

The letter, which was signed by Mayor Satya Rhodes-Conway, Council President Keith Furman, and Council Vice-President Jael Currie described the nation’s highest court as extremist and argued they only represent a minority of voters. They warned the ruling could be a precursor.

“We know that if this decision is allowed to stand, many more equally important rights will come under attack. The court’s reasoning threatens the right to privacy, gay rights, contraceptive rights and more,” the letter stated.

On Monday night, shortly after the draft was published by Politico, Rhodes-Conway responded to the report with a reference to the Handmaid’s Tale, tweeting simply, “Welcome to Gilead.”

The trio argued the draft offers an example of why the U.S. Senate should eliminate the filibuster that requires 60 senators to vote to close debate and allow the final vote to take place. They also called for the passage of the Women’s Health Protection Act.

Sen. Tammy Baldwin (D-WI) co-sponsored the legislation and, in her response to the draft copy, also urged passage of the bill.

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