The Pro-Life Movement Had a Plan Post-Roe. The G.O.P. Didn’t.

Matter of Opinion

New York Times Opinion

Society & Culture, Ross Douthat, News, New York Times, Journalism

4.2 • 7.2K Ratings

🗓️ 1 March 2024

⏱️ 35 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

When the Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade in 2022, the Republican Party declared victory. But the Alabama Supreme Court’s decision last month that frozen embryos are considered “extrauterine children,” which prompted hospitals to suspend I.V.F. procedures, has complicated that victory. Given Americans’ overwhelming support for in vitro fertilization, conservative politicians have tried to distance themselves from the ruling. This week on “Matter of Opinion,” the hosts discuss that political scramble and ask whether the Republicans have made up their minds over what it means to be “pro-life.” The hosts also consider how much public opinion should influence the decisions of lawmakers and judges, and where the debate over reproductive rights is headed. Plus, listeners weigh in on how much the economy is going to affect their vote.

Transcript

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0:00.0	There's Michelle. Can you hear us?
0:02.0	Is it not working in here even?
0:04.0	Oh, what was that?
0:05.0	You sound like a demon from hell.
0:08.0	Guys, I think you're going to be glad to have some Catholics on this episode just putting it out there.
0:17.0	From New York Times opinion, I'm Lydia Polgreen.
0:20.0	I'm Michelle Kottle.
0:21.0	I'm Ross Dauthant.
0:22.0	I'm Carlos Lousada. And this is a matter of opinion. All right, guys. So I wanted to talk about where the debate over abortion is going.
0:40.8	And I want to talk about it in light of a recent decision by Alabama's Supreme Court,
0:44.8	which ruled that frozen embryos should be considered children and that the destruction of
0:48.8	frozen embryos can amount to the wrongful death of a human being. This decision obviously is coming at a very
0:54.9	politically potent moment since the Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade.
0:59.8	Fights over abortion have upended a lot of our fixed ideas about politics.
1:03.7	It played havoc with the midterms in 2022.
1:06.6	And now it seems as though other areas of reproductive health care
1:11.2	are up for grabs just in time for the 2024 election.
1:15.1	But before we go to where the debate is headed, this ruling took me really by surprise, I wasn't
1:18.9	expecting it, and so I'm curious, did you guys have any personal reactions to hearing it and were you surprised?
1:25.5	Yeah, you know often with significant cases that are going to generate either big
1:30.4	public controversy or potential
1:33.0	policy impacts, you know, we hear about them, sometimes months ahead of time.
	...

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