CNN analyst Jeffrey Toobin responded to the retirement announcement of Justice Anthony Kennedy with a dire prediction about the court’s future.
During a segment of CNN Newsroom with Brooke Baldwin, Toobin warned, “Abortion will be illegal in a significant part of the United States in 18 months.”
Toobin explained that he expected Kennedy’s replacement to be a conservative more in the mold of Gorsuch than of Kennedy. He also warned that a stable 5–4 conservative majority in the Supreme Court was likely to spell trouble for the defense of landmark abortion case “Roe v. Wade.”
“Let’s talk facts. Let’s talk about what America is going to be like that’s different,” Toobin continued. “You are going to see 20 states pass laws banning abortion outright. Just banning abortion. Because they know that there are now going to be five votes on the Supreme Court to overturn Roe v. Wade. And abortion will be illegal in a significant part of the United States in 18 months. There is just no doubt about that.”
Fellow guest Ken Cuccinelli pointed out the fact that if “Roe v. Wade” were to be overturned, it would simply mean that the power to decide abortion law would be returned to the states.