Democrats make fate of Supreme Court a midterm issue after Roe leak
by Max Greenwood and Julia Manchester - 05/08/22 7:00 AM ET
Democrats on the campaign trail are sounding the alarm about being able to hold control of the Senate — and with it their ability to confirm Supreme Court justices — in the wake of a leaked draft opinion suggesting the high court is poised to overturn Roe v. Wade.
Democrats are facing an existential threat to their paper-thin Senate majority in this year’s midterm. They warn that if another Supreme Court vacancy comes up, a Republican Senate majority would almost certainly doom the prospects of any nominee that President Biden puts forward.
“At this critical moment, we must protect and expand Democrats’ Senate majority with the power to confirm or reject Supreme Court justices,” Christie Roberts, the executive director of the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee (DSCC), said, also noting that the draft opinion authored by conservative Justice Samuel Alito “dramatically escalated the stakes of the 2022 election.”
The hope for Democrats is that the threat of the Supreme Court overturning Roe v. Wade, the seminal case establishing the constitutional right to have an abortion, will serve as a powerful call to action for their voters in a year when Republicans are bullish about their prospects of recapturing control of Congress. The GOP needs to pick up just five seats in the House and only one in the Senate to regain their majorities, and Democrats are already struggling with vulnerabilities on issues like the economy and immigration.
Democrats are acutely aware of what a Republican Senate majority could mean for any future vacancy on the Supreme Court.
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https://thehill.com/news/campaign/3480003-democrats-make-fate-of-supreme-court-a-midterm-issue-after-roe-leak/
