On his show Last Week Tonight, comedian John Oliver recently called out Alabama and many other states for placing “unreasonable” regulations on women seeking abortions. Oliver cites “frivolous” regulation after regulation that he believes make it unnecessarily difficult for women to have an abortion.
Oliver’s position is nothing new: it is the standard position of the left that takes no regard for unborn human life. But what no one ever addresses is how the official “pro-choice” position of liberals like Oliver and his fellow ideologues in the Democratic Party is hypocritical and runs counter to everything they claim to stand for.
Although the Supreme Court upheld the right to receive an abortion in Roe v. Wade, the court has since backtracked and allowed states to create regulations surrounding the practice. Planned Parenthood v. Casey allows states to heavily regulate abortion as long as it does not create an “undue burden”. Since 1992, requirements for parental consent, informed consent, and 24-hour waiting period have all been determined to be constitutionally valid regulations.
Alabama, to Mr. Oliver’s chagrin, has taken full advantage of its Tenth Amendment ability to implement such restraints. The Yellowhammer State has some of the most pro-life laws in the United States, including parental notification requirements that mandate court hearings if a minor does not wish to get parental permission.
However, the left still believes that notification requirements and parental consent present “undue burdens” and fall outside of the legal restrictions allowed. But, it is clear that many of these regulations are instituted in order to protect the health and safety of women who are minors. The Supreme Court has said that safety must be paramount in the debate on abortion.
The State has a legitimate interest in seeing to it that abortion, like any other medical procedure, is performed under circumstances that insure maximum safety for the patient. This interest obviously extends at least to the performing physician and his staff, to the facilities involved, to the availability of after-care, and to adequate provision for any complication or emergency that might arise.
No, the above quote did not come from a conservative jurist. In fact, that is an exact quote from Roe v. Wade. Oliver correlates many of these regulations to the shutting down of abortion clinics, but that could have more to do with decreasing demand for it.
This summer, the Associated Press found that there has been a nationwide decrease in abortions of about twelve percent since 2010.
One major factor has been a decline in the teen pregnancy rate, which in 2010 reached its lowest level in decades. There’s been no official update since then, but the teen birth rate has continued to drop, which experts say signals a similar trend for teen pregnancies. Fewer teen pregnancies, naturally, leads to fewer abortions.
Perhaps what’s most mind boggling is that liberals are usually the best friend of a regulatory state. It’s only for unborn children that they suddenly want the government to “butt out.” Recently, many on the left rushed to the defense of Planned Parenthood, a company caught in the act of selling fetal tissue.
Oliver himself has lobbied for regulation on sports gambling (here), healthcare (here), and the internet (here). Yet, conveniently, when it comes to regulation on the practice of abortion, he turns into a staunch opponent of government interference.
Liberals are all about providing government care from cradle to grave; but their record shows they could not care less about anyone too young for the cradle.
