McConnell Blasts Leak of Abortion Draft Decision as Breach (1)

Senate minority leader Mitch McConnell called the leak of a draft Supreme Court decision overturning the landmark Roe v. Wade decision a “stunning breach” and an “attack on the independence” of the court.

“This lawless action should be investigated and punished as fully as possible,” the Kentucky Republican said in a scathing statement. “The Chief Justice must get to the bottom of it and the Department of Justice must pursue criminal charges if applicable.”

Other Republican senators, including John Kennedy of Louisiana and John Thune of South Dakota, demanded Justice Department and Supreme Court investigations into the matter.

Chief Justice John Roberts said Tuesday he has directed the Marshal of the Court to investigate the source of the leak.

Politico broke the news of the draft opinion late Monday without saying where it got the February document written by Justice Samuel Alito.

Politico said Justices Clarence Thomas, Neil Gorsuch, Brett Kavanaugh and Amy Coney Barrett voted with Alito in the private conference the court held after arguments in December. The publication said Roberts’ ultimate vote was unclear and the court’s three Democratic appointees were planning to dissent.

Abortion Rights to Reshape Election With Roe Precedent at Risk

“All nine Justices should tune out the bad-faith noise and feel totally free to do their jobs, following the facts and the law where they lead,” McConnell said.

McConnell’s statement comes as members of his party, many of whom have pushed to overturn the 50-year-old precedent, have focused on the highly unusual leak rather than the contents of Alito’s draft decision.

WATCH: The U.S. Supreme Court is set to overturn the Roe v. Wade decision that protects the constitutional right to abortion, according to a draft majority opinion circulated inside the court reported by Politico.

Source: Bloomberg

House minority leader Kevin McCarthy, GOP Whip Steve Scalise and Republican Conference Chair Elise Stefanik called the leak “an attempt to severely damage the Supreme Court.”

“This clearly coordinated campaign to intimidate and obstruct the Justices of the United States Supreme Court, and its independence in our political system, from upholding the Constitution must be immediately investigated by the court,” they said in a joint statement.

Biden Vows to Try to Codify Roe Into Law If Court Overturns

Democrats, including President Joe Biden, have used the news as a rallying cry to their base to elect more lawmakers who support abortion rights and end the Senate’s 60-vote filibuster rule to codify the right to abortion.

“The disgraceful statements by President Biden, Speaker Pelosi, and Leader Schumer refuse to defend judicial independence and the rule of law and instead play into this toxic spectacle,” McConnell said. “Real leaders should defend the Court’s independence unconditionally.”

(Adds Kennedy and Thune in third paragraph, Roberts asking investigation in fourth. An earlier version of the story corrected McConnell’s title in first paragraph)

To contact the reporter on this story:
Megan Scully in Washington at mscully32@bloomberg.net

To contact the editors responsible for this story:
Michael Shepard at mshepard7@bloomberg.net

Megan Scully, Joe Sobczyk

© 2022 Bloomberg L.P. All rights reserved. Used with permission.