Former US President Donald Trump has praised the US Supreme Court's ruling to overturn the landmark Roe v. Wade, saying that states had been given back the rights that should have been returned to them a long time ago.
"This is following the Constitution, and giving rights back when they should have been given long ago", Trump said.
The ex-POTUS further dismissed the concerns of pro-choice Americans, alleging that the 24 June Supreme Court ruling "will work out for everybody" without elaborating further.
Trump went on to diminish his personal input in this major turn in the US abortion rights struggle when asked if he felt that he had played a role in the 24 July Supreme Court ruling, replying that "God made the decision".
The former president appointed three out of five justices that voted in favor of abolishing Roe v. Wade - Neil Gorsuch, Brett Kavanaugh and Amy Coney Barrett. The other two, Clarence Thomas and Samuel Alito, were appointed by George H. W. Bush and George W. Bush, respectively. Chief Justice John Roberts refrained from taking either side, while "liberal" justices, Stephen Breyer, Sonia Sotomayor and Elena Kagan, who were appointed by Democratic presidents, voted against the decision.
"With sorrow - for this Court, but more, for the many millions of American women who have today lost a fundamental constitutional protection - we dissent", the three justices' written opinion said.
Justice Samuel Alito wrote in his opinion, which was supported by the majority of the nine-justice court, that, "Roe was egregiously wrong from the start", dismissing the reasoning as "weak". The justice further argued that the 1973 ruling had "damaging consequences" and "enflamed debate and deepened division".
Alito further stated that the US Constitution "does not confer a right to abortion" and makes no mention that higher authorities should strip US citizens of the right to select their own policies based on elected officials.
The original Roe v. Wade Supreme Court ruling from 1973 effectively barred individual states from imposing bans or other limits on abortion, making it US women's constitutional right. In its absence, some of the US states dominated by conservative lawmakers, have already restarted efforts to limit abortion rights. Unless the US Congress enshrines the right on a federal level, they are likely to succeed.