The President of the United States, Joe Biden, signed this Friday a decree with a series of measures to protect abortion, after the decision taken at the end of June by the Supreme Court to annul the ruling that guaranteed that right throughout the country and called voters to vote en masse in the next mid-term legislative elections to combat “extremist” initiatives.
“For the love of God, there are elections in November, vote, vote, vote!”, Claimed the president in a brief and harsh speech at the White House.
Biden said he was convinced that a “record number” of American women will vote in the November elections to renew Congress. “This is the fastest way” to restore abortion rights across the country, through federal law, he said.
The president has little room for action, since the Democrats do not have a solid parliamentary majority.
The decree signed this Friday urges the Department of Health to take actions to guarantee access to contraceptives and abortion pills and seeks to increase the protection of doctors who carry out these practices, the White House reported.
The purpose of the decree is to “protect sensitive health information” and “combat digital surveillance” related to abortion.
The text also provides for the protection of mobile clinics that perform procedures to interrupt pregnancy on the borders of states where this practice is prohibited and to protect the confidentiality of women who choose to do so on the Internet.
According to a White House statement, the purpose of the decree is to “protect sensitive health information” and “combat digital surveillance” related to abortion.
Likewise, it is proposed to organize a network of volunteer lawyers to guarantee that women can travel within the country if they decide to have an abortion without being harassed by the law if they live in a state that prohibits the practice.
Since the Supreme Court of Justice annulled on June 24 the ruling Roe vs. Wade who in 1973 guaranteed the right to abortion at the federal level, seven states have already banned access to voluntary termination of pregnancy, and many more are expected to follow suit.
The sentence is the result of a decades-long effort by critics of abortion, who seek to return more power to the states, and which was made possible thanks to the solid conservative majority that remained on the Supreme Court after Donald Trump passed by. the White House.
Since the Supreme Court of Justice annulled on June 24 the ruling Roe vs. Wade, seven states have already banned access to voluntary termination of pregnancy.
In this Friday’s speech, in which he was accompanied by the Vice President, Kamala Harris and the Secretary of Health, Xavier Becerra, Biden attacked a Supreme Court “out of control” and against “extremist” positions of the Republican Party.
If the Republicans win the elections and approve a law that prohibits abortion throughout the country, the Democratic president promised that he will oppose his veto.
“Now is the time … to protect the nation from an extremist project,” which could also call into question the right to contraception or same-sex marriage, he said.
The 79-year-old Democrat also said he was deeply moved by the case, revealed by the press, of a 10-year-old girl who became pregnant after rape and was forced to leave her state, Ohio, to terminate the pregnancy.
“10 years, 10 years,” he repeated. “Put yourself in that girl’s shoes!”
Today I signed an Executive Order to protect the reproductive rights of women in the aftermath of the Supreme Court’s extreme decision to overturn Roe v. Wade.
It formalizes the actions I announced right after the decision and will add new measures to protect women’s health. pic.twitter.com/cujWTnxKvw
— President Biden (@POTUS) July 8, 2022
The day the ruling became known, Biden had already described it as a “tragic mistake” and had announced regulatory measures on access to abortion pills and on the right of women to travel to other states if they wish to have an abortion.
Since then, however, the Democrat has remained silent on the issue, drawing increasingly virulent criticism from his own Democratic Party, the AFP news agency reported.
In recent weeks, both Democrats and abortion rights advocates have been pressing Biden to take stronger action to protect access to voluntary termination of pregnancy.
With this Friday’s measure, it tries to respond to these objections, starting with the promise to “protect sensitive health information” and “combat digital surveillance,” according to the press release from the US executive.
Many activists warn of the dangers linked to online data, such as geolocation or information collected by apps to monitor menstrual cycles, which could be exploited to prosecute women who have had abortions.
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