Sanders: End filibuster to codify Roe v. Wade

Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) is urging Congress to pass legislation that codifies Roe v. Wade “as the law of the land,” adding that if there are not 60 votes in the Senate to successfully do so, then the upper chamber “must end the filibuster to pass it with 50 votes.”

The Vermont senator tweeted his reaction Thursday night after Politico published a draft majority opinion showing that the Supreme Court appears set to overturn the landmark 1973 Roe v. Wade decision that made abortion a constitutional right.

“Congress must pass legislation that codifies Roe v. Wade as the law of the land in this country NOW,” Sanders wrote. “And if there aren’t 60 votes in the Senate to do it, and there are not, we must end the filibuster to pass it with 50 votes.”

Republican Sen. Marco Rubio (Fla.) quickly shot back at Sanders, saying that the progressive senator wants to “change the rules of the Senate to pass a federal law legalizing the killing of unborn children right up to the day of delivery.”

A number of Senate Democrats have advocated for changing filibuster rules to get legislation passed in a 50-50 upper chamber.

In January, Democratic senators pressed to end the filibuster rule in an attempt to establish federal standards for voting access. The legislation died in the Senate after Democratic Sens. Joe Manchin (W.Va.) and Kyrsten Sinema (Ariz.) said they would not vote to change filibuster rules, a stance they have repeatedly taken publicly.