Current:Home > MyFormer Arizona Gov. Doug Ducey says the abortion ruling from justices he chose goes too far -ApexWealth
Former Arizona Gov. Doug Ducey says the abortion ruling from justices he chose goes too far
View
Date:2025-04-12 20:27:49
A ban on nearly all abortions in Arizona doesn’t sit well with the Republican former governor whose expansion of the state Supreme Court allowed him to appoint the four conservative justices whose ruling cleared the way for it.
Doug Ducey is among Republicans in several states who are wrestling with the consequences of their opposition to abortion since the U.S. Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade in 2022. He expanded the state court in 2016, but thinks its ruling this week went too far.
After the Arizona court ruled 4-2 on Monday to revive an 1864 law that criminalizes abortion throughout pregnancy unless a woman’s life is at risk, Ducey posted on the platform X that it was “not the outcome I would have preferred.” He said a law he signed in 2022 banning abortions after 15 weeks of pregnancy was more in line with what voters want.
In Virginia, Kentucky and Ohio, where an abortion ban signed into law by Republican Gov. Mike DeWine got overturned in a referendum that enshrined the right to an abortion in the state constitution, the issue has helped Democrats win races and in some cases begin to reverse Republican-led bans.
More may be in store. In Florida, the state’s high court cleared the way for a six-week ban that Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis signed while also allowing an abortion-rights referendum go before the state’s voters this November.
Abortion also is a major feature in the presidential race, potentially boosting turnout for Democrats and putting down-ballot Republicans on a back foot. Polls show most U.S. adults don’t support tough restrictions.
Donald Trump, who recently opined that abortion’s legality should be left to individual states, has called DeSantis’ approval of Florida’s ban a “terrible mistake. " The former president who appointed three of the U.S. Supreme Court justices who overturned Roe v. Wade also said the Arizona Supreme Court ruling went too far.
Ducey said in his post on X that the ban he signed was “thoughtful conservative policy, and an approach to this very sensitive issue that Arizonans can actually agree on.”
His comment followed the better part of two years of legal wrangling over the 1864 Arizona law.
The Supreme Court ruling took a fair amount of time, four months after arguments before the court and longer than some expected, said Barbara Atwood, professor emerita at the University of Arizona law school.
“Frankly, I think they struggled,” she said of the justices.
Besides Ducey’s five appointees, one of whom abstained from the ruling, two are appointees of Jan Brewer, Arizona’s Republican governor from 2009-2015.
Ducey had defended his expansion of the court from five to seven justices. He said the state had outgrown the smaller court and an expansion was long expected. The justices at the time said their workload was manageable and opposed the move.
The crux of the abortion case was whether Arizona’s 2022 or 1864 ban applied after Roe v. Wade was overturned. In late 2022, an appeals court rejected the argument of the state’s elected Republican attorney general, Mark Brnovich, that the 1864 law held sway.
Days later, Democratic Gov. Katie Hobbs and Attorney General Kris Mayes took office, but the case remained alive through the efforts of an anti-abortion intervener.
The legal uncertainty was written into the law outlawing abortion after 15 weeks. It stated that the state’s much stricter 1864 law was not being repealed “by implication or otherwise.”
But even Republicans disagreed over which law would take precedent. In their ruling, the majority justices noted Ducey thought the ban he signed should take effect.
“It’s just interesting that justices who he appointed have reached a point that is at odds with his own understanding,” said Atwood. “It contributed to the general uncertainty about this whole topic.”
___
Gruver reported from Cheyenne, Wyoming. J.J. Cooper and Jacques Billeaud in Phoenix contributed to this report.
veryGood! (51445)
Related
- Elon Musk's skyrocketing net worth: He's the first person with over $400 billion
- Read the full text of the Trump indictment for details on the charges against him
- The Bear's Jeremy Allen White and Wife Addison Timlin Break Up After 3 Years of Marriage
- COVID spreading faster than ever in China. 800 million could be infected this winter
- McKinsey to pay $650 million after advising opioid maker on how to 'turbocharge' sales
- FDA changes Plan B label to clarify 'morning-after' pill doesn't cause abortion
- Shop the Best Lululemon Deals: $78 Tank Tops for $29, $39 Biker Shorts & More
- Summer House Preview: Paige DeSorbo and Craig Conover Have Their Most Confusing Fight Yet
- Sarah J. Maas books explained: How to read 'ACOTAR,' 'Throne of Glass' in order.
- A major drugmaker plans to sell overdose-reversal nasal spray Narcan over the counter
Ranking
- The 401(k) millionaires club keeps growing. We'll tell you how to join.
- UN Climate Talks Stymied by Carbon Markets’ ‘Ghost from the Past’
- 90 Day Fiancé: The Other Way Finale Sees Gabe Break Down in Tears During Wedding With Isabel
- Get 2 MAC Setting Sprays for the Price of 1 and Your Makeup Will Last All Day Long Without Smudging
- Moving abroad can be expensive: These 5 countries will 'pay' you to move there
- Why Adam Levine is Temporarily Returning to The Voice 4 Years After His Exit
- American life expectancy is now at its lowest in nearly two decades
- Fewer abortions, more vasectomies: Why the procedure may be getting more popular
Recommendation
Why members of two of EPA's influential science advisory committees were let go
Elon Musk Reveals New Twitter CEO: Meet Linda Yaccarino
How Dolly Parton Honored Naomi Judd and Loretta Lynn at ACM Awards 2023
Editors' pick: 8 great global stories from 2022 you might have missed
Pregnant Kylie Kelce Shares Hilarious Question Her Daughter Asked Jason Kelce Amid Rising Fame
Sen. Marco Rubio: Trump's indictment is political in nature, will bring more harm to the country
Bleeding and in pain, she couldn't get 2 Louisiana ERs to answer: Is it a miscarriage?
90 Day Fiancé: The Other Way Finale Sees Gabe Break Down in Tears During Wedding With Isabel