Gov. Newsom Says California Will 'Fight Like Hell' After Report Suggests U.S. Supreme Court Privately Voted To Overturn Abortion Rights

WASHINGTON (AP/CBS13) — Gov. Gavin Newsom said "California will not sit back" after a Politico report Monday evening of a leaked draft opinion that suggested the U.S. Supreme Court privately voted to overturn the 1973 case Roe v. Wade that legalized abortion nationwide.

It's unclear if the draft represents the court's final word on the matter.

"Our daughters, sisters, mothers, and grandmothers will not be silenced," Newsom tweeted. "The world is about to hear their fury. California will not sit back. We are going to fight like hell."

If verified, the report marks a shocking revelation of the high court's secretive deliberation process, particularly before a case is formally decided. Politico published what was labeled as a "1st Draft" of the "Opinion of the Court" in a case challenging Mississippi's ban on abortion after 15 weeks, a case known as Dobbs v. Jackson Women's Health Organization.

Back in January, Gov. Newsom and First Partner Jennifer Siebel Newsom emphasized California's commitment to preserving access to reproductive health care services in the face of national challenges to reproductive rights.

"At a time when some across our nation are purposefully and deliberately choosing to attack women's reproductive rights, California will continue to be a beacon of light – expanding access to abortion and reproductive care, and ensuring our state is a place where people receive critical reproductive health care services quickly and safely," said Governor Newsom and First Partner Siebel Newsom.

The Supreme Court has yet to issue a ruling in the case, and opinions — and even justices' votes — have been known to change during the drafting process. The court is expected to rule on the case before its term is up in late June or early July.

The draft is signed by Justice Samuel Alito, a member of the court's 6-3 conservative majority, who was appointed by former President George W. Bush.

"Roe was egregiously wrong from the start," the draft opinion states.

"We hold that Roe and Casey must be overruled," it adds, referencing the 1992 case Planned Parenthood v. Casey that affirmed Roe's finding of a Constitutional right to abortion services but allowed states to place some constraints on the practice. "It is time to heed the Constitution and return the issue of abortion to the people's elected representatives."

The draft opinion in effect states there is no Constitutional right to abortion services and would allow individual states to more heavily regulate or outright ban the procedure.

Politico said only that it received "a copy of the draft opinion from a person familiar with the court's proceedings in the Mississippi case along with other details supporting the authenticity of the document."

In a full statement Monday evening, Gov. Newsom said:

"This draft opinion is an appalling attack on the rights of women across this country and if it stands, it will destroy lives and put countless women in danger. It will be the end of fundamental constitutional rights that American women have had for nearly 50 years.

"This is not an isolated incident, and it is not the end. We have a Supreme Court that does not value the rights of women, and a political minority that will stop at nothing to take those rights away. This won't stop with choice and the right to privacy. They are undermining progress, and erasing the civil protections and rights so many have fought for over the last half century.

"I'm furious that my own daughters and sons could grow up in an America that is less free than the one they were born into. We have to wake up. We have to fight like hell. We will not be silenced."

Copyright 2022 CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved. The Associated Press contributed to this report.

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