‘Some will die.’ California officials, lawmakers react to leaked Roe v. Wade draft opinion

California state officials and lawmakers were quick to weigh in Monday night and Tuesday morning, following Monday night’s Politico report that the U.S. Supreme Court has ruled in a draft opinion to overturn a pair of landmark abortion rights rulings, including Roe v. Wade.

“We hold that Roe and Casey must be overruled,” Justice Samuel Alito wrote in the draft opinion, according to Politico. “It is time to heed the Constitution and return the issue of abortion to the people’s elected representatives.

California’s Democratic Gov. Gavin Newsom issued a statement Monday night, vowing to “fight like hell.”

On Monday night, Newsom, along with Senate President Pro Tem Toni Atkins, D-San Diego, and Assembly Speaker Anthony Rendon, D-Lakewood, announced that they intend to introduce a amendment to enshrine the right to an abortion in the California Constitution.

“California will not stand idly by as women across America are stripped of their rights and the progress so many have fought for gets erased. We will fight. California is proposing an amendment to enshrine the right to choose in our state constitution so that there is no doubt as to the right to abortion in this state. We know we can’t trust the Supreme Court to protect reproductive rights, so California will build a firewall around this right in our state constitution. Women will remain protected here,” the three said in a joint statement.

First Partner Jennifer Siebel Newsom issued her own statement via Twitter, writing in a tweet, “We won’t back down. We will stand and fight against this archaic effort to roll back basic reproductive rights.”

California’s Democratic Attorney General, Rob Bonta, wrote in a tweet that “California won’t go back. As our state’s chief law enforcement officer, I will use the full force of the law to defend your RIGHT to access safe and legal abortion. Reproductive freedom is non-negotiable. Our fight is just getting started.”

California’s U.S. Senate delegation also weighed in on the leaked draft decision, with U.S. Sen. Dianne Feinstein, a Democrat, saying in a statement, “Make no mistake, if Roe v. Wade is overturned, women will be harmed and some will die.”

“I remember the days when abortion was illegal, when we would pass the hat at Stanford to collect money so a classmate could go to Mexico for an abortion. Overturning Roe would return us to those dark ages where women don’t have safe, open access to reproductive care. This would be unconscionable,” Feinstein said.

U.S. Sen. Alex Padilla, also a Democrat, sent out a tweet Monday night following the breaking news.

“The freedom to choose is a fundamental right. Period. Now is the time to take the decisive action that a majority of Americans want to see. We must pass legislation to protect safe and legal access to abortion,” Padilla wrote in a tweet.

In the California Legislature, the Legislative Women’s Caucus issued a statement calling the draft decision “deplorable” and saying that it will lead to unsafe and deadly abortions, particularly for the most marginalized communities.

“Lack of access across the United States disproportionately affects communities of color, low-income communities, trans, and other marginalized communities. This fight is not just about a person’s right to control their own destiny, but about ensuring our most vulnerable community members have equal access. It’s about equity. This will be the first time my generation will lose a fundamental right — the right to choose, especially if you’re Black, Brown, LGBTQ, immigrant, or low-income,” said Caucus Chair Cristina Garcia, D-Bell Gardens.

State Sen. Scott Wiener, D-San Francisco, said in a tweet that the Supreme Court wouldn’t stop at abortion.

“Justice Alito’s draft opinion also advocated for erasure & criminalization of LGBTQ people — overturning marriage equality & reinstating anti-sodomy laws. They’re coming for us next. They’re trying to take our country back to the 1950s. We won’t let them,” Wiener wrote.

Legislative Republicans stayed largely quiet on the news, though State Sen. Melissa Melendez, R-Lake Elsinore, wrote in a tweet, “To combat the Roe v. Wade decision, democrats in CA have introduced SB 1142 which would invite women across the country to come to CA for an abortion, paid for by CA. Planned parenthood is salivating at the thought of all the $ they will make.”

Assemblyman Kevin Kiley, R-Rocklin, an outspoken critic of Gov. Newsom, blasted Newsom’s response in a tweet Monday night, writing, “The Governor of California is vowing to ‘fight like hell’ a leaked draft opinion of the Supreme Court. This is completely irresponsible.”

This story was originally published May 3, 2022 at 1:53 PM.