“So nine people appointed by the President are going to decide the fate of all women? That really bugs me,” said senior Political Science and Environmental Studies major Kym Teslik.While Roe v. Wade keeps most abortions legal, the U.S. Supreme Court heard arguments on Nov. 8 to lift the federal ban on partial-birth abortion. A 2003 decision to outlaw the procedure is considered unconstitutional by abortion rights activists, because it does not include protection for the pregnant woman’s health.

The Bush Administration is pushing that the court remembers its latest decision in 2003. Abortion advocates rely on the initial 2000 Supreme Court decision in Nebraska lifting a similar ban on the grounds that it also lacked health protection.

Dilation and extraction, or “partial-birth” abortion, usually occurs in the fifth or sixth month of pregnancy.

The normal practice of this method consists of an intact fetus delivered feet first, until only the head is left in the birth canal. The doctor proceeds to pierce the fetus’s skull and inserts a catheter into the opening to suction out the brain, killing the fetus.

This process does very little damage to the mother’s uterus.
Several thousand of these types of abortion are performed out of over 1.25 million abortions annually. Ninety percent of abortions take place during the first 12 weeks of pregnancy and are not being discussed in the hearings.

When the Supreme Court made their 2000 ruling in Nebraska, the vote to lift the ban was 5-4. Justices O’Connor and Rehnquist were still presiding. O’Connor, a moderate, was the swing vote that permitted the legalization.

Today, Justices William Rehnquist and Sandra Day O’Connor have been replaced by Bush-appointed Chief Justice John Roberts and associate justice Samuel Alito. This is the first abortion related hearing both have faced.

“(Roberts and Alito) were put there to stop certain issues, and (abortion) is one of them,” said Aaron Goldfarb, a senior concentrating in women’s studies. “It was very clever of the Republicans.”

Despite Alito’s known constructionist politics, the Justice was silent throughout the two hour debate. Justice Antonin Scallia, an outspoken abortion opponent, also kept quiet during the hearing. Justice Clarence Thomas, who voted in the minority in Nebraska, was out sick on Nov. 8. Justice Roberts assured that Thomas would still take part in deciding the case.

Abortion opponent Solicitor General Paul Clement said, “(Abortion) is a particularly brutal procedure that blurred the line between abortion and infanticide.”

Pricilla Smith, lawyer for the Center of Reproductive Rights, represented Nebraskan abortion doctor, Leroy Carhart. Smith said that the law forbidding the practice was dismissed at high court. Smith also expressed doubt at the accuracy of Congress’ findings that indicate partial-birth abortion is not necessary to save the mother’s life.

“I don’t agree with abortion but it has to be legal because of worse consequences,” said Ted Wilkinson, senior and religion and philosophy double major.

The Justice that could be the swing vote for either side of the ban is Associate Justice Anthony Kennedy. Justice Kennedy supported the ban in Nebraska, but his vote is uncertain by political analysts. Kennedy is known for more liberal rulings in the past.

Justices Ruth Bader Ginsburg, David Souter, John Paul Stevens, and Stephen Breyer all implied that they were concerned that the ban could jeopardize women’s health. They are the opposition Roberts and the other conservative Justices face.
Although the hearings were on Wednesday, a ruling is not expected until either late June or July 2007.

Abortion is one of the most controversial and polarizing issues that the United States deals with.

“I think that turning (abortion) into an ethical argument is wrong,” said Goldfarb. “Abortion availability is important, especially in cases of rape.”

“I think that several things can happen to prevent abortion: more education on birth control, harsher punishment for rapists, and being tougher on sexual assault crime,” Wilkinson said. “Partial-birth abortion is kind of where the grey area is.