The Oklahoma Supreme Court ruled on Wednesday that two state laws banning abortion are unconstitutional, but the procedure remains illegal in the state in nearly all cases except life-threatening situations.
In a 6-3 ruling, the high court said the two bans are unconstitutional because they require a “medical emergency” before a doctor can perform an abortion. The court said this language conflicts with a previous ruling it issued in March that determined the Oklahoma Constitution provides an “inherent right of a pregnant woman to terminate a pregnancy when necessary to preserve her life.”
The court's decision was welcomed by doctors who said uncertainty about the state's abortion laws often forced them to make women facing severe medical complications and nonviable pregnancies to wait for their condition to worsen before they could perform an abortion.
“In our practice we had cases where we would just have to tell women who we would normally offer a (pregnancy) termination to protect her health ... ‘We have to let you go home and monitor your condition and if you start showing signs of infection or worsening blood pressure, then come back and we have the ability to legally treat you,’” said Dana Stone, an Oklahoma City obstetrician and gynecologist. “Otherwise, we're at risk with these laws of going to jail for 10 years, having hundreds of thousands of dollars in fines and losing our medical licenses.”
Despite the court's March decision that the requirement to wait until an active medical emergency violated the state constitution, there remained uncertainty because of the two laws that remained in effect.
“With their decision today, the court has ensured that the March decision will be fully realized,” said Rabia Muqaddam, a senior staff attorney at the New York-based Center for Reproductive Rights, which challenged the laws on behalf of a Tulsa abortion provider. “Hopefully patients will be receiving the medically necessary care they need without waiting until they are on death's door.”
The laws struck down Wednesday both included a civil-enforcement mechanism that allowed citizens to sue someone who either performed or helped someone perform an abortion.
“Despite the court’s decisions today on SB 1603 and HB 4327, Oklahoma’s 1910 law prohibiting abortion remains in place," Oklahoma Attorney General Gentner Drummond said in a statement. "Except for certain circumstances outlined in that statute, abortion is still unlawful in the state of Oklahoma.”
Oklahoma's 1910 law makes it a felony crime punishable by up to five years in prison for anyone to perform an abortion or help a woman obtain an abortion unless it is “necessary to preserve her life.”
The court's decision was decried by Republican leaders and Gov. Kevin Stitt, who have worked for years to tightly restrict abortion access in Oklahoma.
“This court has once more over-involved itself in the state’s democratic process, and has interceded to undo legislation created by the will of the people," Stitt said in a statement. "I agree with Justice (Dustin) Rowe’s dissent, ‘The issues presented in this matter are political questions, which are better resolved by the people via our democratic process.’”
Vice President Kamala Harris received impressive amount of media coverage in January for making history. However, the media attention waned significantly and some are now even saying she has almost disappeared from public view. Reecie Colbert, founder of BlackWomenViews Media, joined Cheddar Politics to discuss more.
If you thought you heard the last of the Mueller report back in 2019, you'd be wrong. While the bombshell report was the biggest story in Washington for years, much of the report remained redacted. Our friends at BuzzFeed News weren't satisfied, so they sued to have certain passages unredacted. They notched another win when a federal appeals court ordered ten passages from the report to be released.
Matt Topic, BuzzFeed's attorney in the case, and Jason Leopold, reporter at BuzzFeed News, join Cheddar Politics to discuss.
The U.S. reported its first confirmed case of the omicron variant in California on Wednesday. Scientists and health officials are racing to understand the variant, with the WHO saying it's still too early to determine whether it's more contagious, more deadly or more resistant to vaccines than other variants. Omicron has pushed members of the WHO to commit to start talks over a "gobal pandemic treaty" for future pandemic preparedness.
Priti Krishtel, co-founder and co-executive director of the Initiative for Medicines, Access & Knowledge, joins Cheddar Politics to discuss.
Wednesday was not a good day for those who believe in abortion rights in this country as the Supreme Court heard arguments on a Mississippi abortion law that bans most abortions after 15 weeks of pregnancy. The majority of the court appears poised to roll back abortion rights, and the questions from the conservative justices seemed to indicate the law for nearly 50 years is likely to change.
Jessica Mason Pieklo, senior vice president and executive editor of Rewire News Group, joined Cheddar Politics to discuss Wednesday's hearing.
Michael Cohen, Donald Trump's former personal lawyer, has been busy since completing his prison sentence in November. He's getting into the NFT space, selling his federal prison badge and the original manuscript of his book "Disloyal" as NFTs. Cohen joined Cheddar to discuss his latest venture and why he thinks there is still much to be revealed about his case.
Jonathan Adler, Law Professor at Case Western Reserve University, joined Wake Up With Cheddar to discuss Tuesday's ruling and provide legal context to recent battles over vaccine mandates.
Carlo and Baker wrap up the week talking about the Biden economic boom that no one seems to notice, a verdict in the Jussie Smollett case, the first Starbucks union in America and the pleasures of the "dude nod."
A new bill in Congress shows just how bipartisan cannabis really is. Rep. David Joyce, a Republican from Ohio, teamed up with progressive Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez on a cannabis expungement bill. Cheddar cannabis reporter Chloe Aiello spoke with the congressman about the legislation.
The Congressional Progressive Caucus have lined up to support the Thirty-Two Hour Workweek Act introduced by Rep. Mark Takano (D-Calif. 41st District). The representative joined Cheddar to discuss how instituting a four-day workweek in the United States can be beneficial for both employees with the need of a work-life balance and employers looking both to retain talent amid a labor shortage and improve efficiency in their workforces. "We live in a different time than 90 years ago when we established a 40-hour workweek," he said. "We've had a lot of technological changes, the American worker is exponentially more productive than previous generations, so it's time to reexamine Americans and the way in which they relate to work."
