Reliably Pro-Choice 9th Circuit Has Now Been Flipped By President Trump

The 9th Circuit has ruled in favor of abortion and against pro-life laws, but now that trend may be changing after a number of successful confirmations of Trump-appointed judges.

The Los Angeles Times writes, “When President Trump ticks off his accomplishments since taking office, he frequently mentions his aggressive makeover of a key sector of the federal judiciary — the circuit courts of appeal, where he has appointed 51 judges to lifetime jobs in three years.

In few places has the effect been felt more powerfully than in the sprawling 9th Circuit, which covers California and eight other states. Because of Trump’s success in filling vacancies, the San Francisco-based circuit, long dominated by Democratic appointees, has suddenly shifted to the right, with an even more pronounced tilt expected in the years ahead.”

In 2014, for example, the 9th Circuit ruled that an Arizona law regulating RU-486 chemical abortion drugs is unconstitutional.  However, in June 2019, the 9th Circuit issued a ruling allowing President Trump’s “Protect Life Rule”, barring Title X recipients from committing abortions or referring patients for abortions.

In 2016, President Trump won his race partially on the message that he would appoint pro-life federal judges to the judiciary.  He particularly made it an issue after the death of Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia in February 2016.

Vox.com reported on the importance of judges on Trump voters. They wrote in 2018, “One of the most underappreciated reasons that Donald Trump won the 2016 election was voters motivated by a vacancy on the Supreme Court. One in five voters told CNN in an exit poll that the Supreme Court was one reason they had cast a ballot. Of the voters who said it was the “most important factor” in their decision, 56 percent voted for Trump. According to the Washington Post, 26 percent of all Trump voters polled said that the Supreme Court was the basis of their decision.”

You can read their full article here.