Topline
Justice Samuel Alito’s dissenting opinion of the Supreme Court’s ruling Friday—blocking a lower court’s ruling restricting access to a commonly used abortion pill—has sparked backlash on social media from attorneys or current and former politicians after he suggested the Biden Administration would not “obey” a ruling that restricted access to the drug.
Justice Samuel Alito said there were “legitimate doubts” the Biden Administration would follow a … [+]
Key Facts
The Biden Administration has “not dispelled legitimate doubts” it would follow an “unfavorable ruling” to restrict mifepristone, Alito wrote in his dissenting opinion Friday.
Former U.S. attorney Joyce White Vance—an Obama appointee—called Alito’s criticism of the Biden Administration “unwarranted and completely unbefitting a Supreme Court justice.”
Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-N.Y.) referred to Alito’s opinion as a “tantrum” and suggested the Supreme Court has “devolved into a highly politicized entity that is rapidly delegitimizing.”
Former Minnesota Sen. Al Franken (D) jokingly suggested Supreme Court justices are “much better qualified to judge the safety and efficacy” of mifepristone than the Food and Drug Administration.
Scott Lemieux, a political science professor at the University of Washington, also told Insider he believed Alito’s opinion included an act of “theater,” criticizing three justices—Elena Kagan, Sonia Sotomayor and Amy Coney Barrett—for using the “shadow docket,” or cases that are ruled on without oral argument.
The White House did not immediately respond to an inquiry from Forbes.
Crucial Quote
“The Government has not dispelled legitimate doubts that it would even obey an unfavorable order in these cases,” Alito wrote, “much less that it would choose to take enforcement actions to which it has strong objections.”
Tangent
Alito wrote the majority opinion in the Supreme Court’s ruling to overturn Roe v. Wade last year. Alito suggested that the case was “egregiously wrong from the start” and added its “reasoning was exceptionally weak.”
Key Background
The Supreme Court’s ruling to block a decision by controversial U.S. District Judge Matthew Kacsmaryk restricting access to the abortion pill mifepristone comes after the Biden Administration asked the court to pause the decision. The Biden Administration argued Kacsmaryk’s ruling would “cause profound disruption and grave harm” by removing access to the drug. The Supreme Court’s decision has drawn praise from Democratic lawmakers, including Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, Rep. Nancy Pelosi and Vice President Kamala Harris. Biden said the decision was a blow to “politically driven attacks on women’s health” and vowed to “continue this fight in the courts.” Republican leaders, including former President Donald Trump, former Vice President Mike Pence and Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, have not commented on the decision.
Further Reading
Biden Salutes Ruling Keeping Abortion Pill Legal—But GOP Largely Mum (Forbes)
Mifepristone: Supreme Court Keeps Abortion Pills Legal—At Least For Now—Blocking Ruling (Forbes)
Supreme Court Halts Abortion Pill Restrictions—For Now (Forbes)
Source: https://www.forbes.com/sites/tylerroush/2023/04/22/justice-alito-criticized-for-tantrum-his-dissent-suggested-biden-wouldnt-follow-courts-ruling/