House Democrats are blocking a Senate-passed bill to provide security protection for members of the Supreme Court who are facing pro-abortion violence and intimidation.
Since a leaked draft of a Supreme Court ruling that could return decision making for the legalization of abortion to the states, pro-choice protesters are targeting pro-life ministries and churches with violence, disruption and firebombing. It is forcing pregnancy centers to close while Supreme Court justices have been forced leave their homes or have security at their own expense.
The Senate-passed measure, dubbed the Supreme Court Police Parity Act, was introduced by Sen. John Cornyn, R-Texas, and Sen. Chris Coons, D-Del., amid ongoing protests following a leaked draft opinion from the Supreme Court which signaled federal protections for abortion granted under Roe v. Wade could soon be overturned.
The measure would provide Supreme Court justices and members of their families around-the-clock security protection. The legislation also allows Supreme Court police to arrest individuals who interfere with the court’s ability to perform its duties and creates a criminal penalty for individuals who impede or obstruct those duties.
But Democrats are opposed because it is limited to the court’s nine justices.
Speaking to Fox News Digital Thursday, Cornyn said House Democrats are making the “unnecessary” additions to the measure to include individuals who are “not highly visible or recognizable like the justices are.”
“Now the House wants to do things like add law clerks and other staff to this, which is really unnecessary because virtually all the law clerks are anonymous,” he said. “They’re not highly visible or recognizable like the justices are, so they’re unlikely to need that kind of protection. Plus, our staff here even in Congress is not provided that sort of protection.”
Cornyn said he believes the stall in progress on the measure from House Democrats is “just a case of people trying to take something that is a good bill that can pass quickly and make it more complicated and to delay its ultimate consideration.”
An arsonist firebombed this pro-life women’s clinic in Madison, Wisconsin.
Whether they get additional security or not, Justice Samuel Alito, author of the draft opinion overturning Roe v. Wade, says he and his colleagues will not be intimidated. Alito said the members of the high court were focusing on their work despite the intimidation tactics.
“This is a subject I told myself I wasn’t going to talk about today regarding, you know — given all the circumstances,” Alito replied. After a pause, he added: “The court right now, we had our conference this morning, we’re doing our work. We’re taking new cases, we’re headed toward the end of the term, which is always a frenetic time as we get our opinions out.”
On Thursday, the U.S. Marshall’s office belatedly announced it will provide additional security and protection for the justices. The order came from Attorney General Merrick Garland in response to demands that his office stop illegal intimidation and protests outside the justices’ homes after news broke last week about a leaked U.S. Supreme Court draft ruling that overturns Roe v. Wade.
Several churches have been vandalized with pro-abortion graffiti since the Supreme Court leak, including a Catholic church in Boulder, Colorado, another in Fort Collins, Colorado, the Catholic News Agency reports; and a third, the Holy Rosary Catholic Church in Houston, Texas. A Tabernacle also was stolen from Saint Bartholomew Catholic Church in Katy, Texas.
Police are investigating arson at two pro-life organizations in Wisconsin and Oregon, as well as vandalism at several pro-life pregnancy centers. Pro-life advocates also have shared videos and reports of being assaulted by abortion activists at rallies and events. And abortion advocates have threatened to bomb a church in New York City.
Senators Tom Cotton and Marco Rubio say that’s not enough and that the leftists engaging in harassing and threatening protests outside the homes of justices like Brett Kavanaugh and Samuel Altio are doing so illegally.
Cotton blasted Attorney General Merrick Garland for the Justice Department not arresting the leftist protestors. In a letter to Garland, Cotton threatened impeachment proceedings if the attorney general didn’t “take immediate action to enforce the law even-handedly against your party’s political opponents.”
“Please explain why you have refused to enforce the federal law against picketing and protesting at the homes of Supreme Court Justices,” Cotton wrote Garland. “Left-wing mobs have recently targeted the homes of Justices (John) Roberts, (Samuel) Alito, (Clarence) Thomas, (Neil) Gorsuch, (Amy Coney) Barrett, and (Brett) Kavanaugh, a blatant and obvious violation of 18 USC § 1507.
“These unlawful protestors widely publicized their plans, yet it appears that no federal law-enforcement officers were present to arrest the lawbreakers and no investigation is ongoing. Further, President Biden’s own press secretary announced this week that the Biden administration ‘certainly continue[s] to encourage (protests) outside of judges’ homes, and that’s the president’s position.’”
–Lifesitenews and Metro Voice
