The attorney who argued Roe v. Wade in front of the Supreme Court 44 years ago said reproductive rights are at risk under President Donald Trump.
Sarah Weddington, who argued on behalf of Norma McCorvey, known as Jane Roe in the definitive case, said Trump’s administration and the Republican control of the House and Senate threaten the landmark abortion law.
“I think everyone who cares about the Roe v. Wade issue and other reproductive rights is very concerned about what will happen,” Weddington said in an interview with NBC News.
Weddington pointed out that support for reproductive rights was stronger in the 1960s and 1970s among Republicans as well as Democrats.
“There were a lot of Republicans for choice, a number of Republican members of the state legislatures and Congress who were pro-choice,” she said. “President Ford and Mrs. Ford were both pro-choice. You had a considerable number of Republicans who were pro-choice. I can’t name those Republicans today.”
Trump, who picked strong abortion restrictions supporter Mike Pence as his Vice President, will soon nominate a new member of the Supreme Court to fill the late Justice Antonin Scalia’s spot after he died in 2016. He has sworn to appoint anti-abortion rights justices, and although appointing one conservative justice won’t be enough to overturn Roe v. Wade, further open spots on the court could threaten the ruling.
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Write to Mahita Gajanan at mahita.gajanan@time.com