Pence calls for Supreme Court to expand ‘protections for the unborn’

by Jacqueline Thomsen - 05/28/19 2:44 PM ET

Vice President Pence on Tuesday applauded the Supreme Court for upholding an Indiana law on the disposal of fetal remains that he signed in 2014 and said he’s “hopeful” the court will in the future rule in favor of abortion restrictions.

Pence tweeted he was “proud” to have signed the law requiring that fetal remains be buried or cremated after abortions, calling the ruling that upheld the law “a victory for life.”

{mosads}Pence had also signed into law another Indiana measure that blocked abortions on the basis of the sex, disability or race of the fetus. The Supreme Court on Tuesday ruled in favor of an appeals court decision that struck down that law.

But Pence, like other conservatives, seized on a concurring opinion authored by Justice Clarence Thomas that cited eugenics being a possible motivation behind abortions as a reason to rule in favor of further restrictions on the medical procedures.

“Today, Justice Thomas wrote: SCOTUS has been zealous in the past in barring discrimination based on sex, race, & disability,” Pence tweeted. “Hopeful someday soon SCOTUS will recognize the same protections for the unborn when they rule on future appeals of pro-life legislation.”

Today, Justice Thomas wrote: SCOTUS has been zealous in the past in barring discrimination based on sex, race, & disability. Hopeful someday soon SCOTUS will recognize the same protections for the unborn when they rule on future appeals of pro-life legislation.

— Vice President Mike Pence (@VP) May 28, 2019

Justices Sonia Sotomayor and Ruth Bader Ginsburg said that they would have allowed both laws to remain invalidated.

But Thomas, in a 20-page concurring opinion, raised concerns about eugenics in arguing that the Supreme Court will have to rule on abortion laws in the near future.

“Although the court declines to wade into these issues today, we cannot avoid them forever. Having created the constitutional right to an abortion, this court is dutybound to address its scope,” the justice wrote.

Tags Abortion Clarence Thomas Mike Pence Ruth Bader Ginsburg SCOTUS Sonia Sotomayor Supreme Court