The Debate on Abortion Rights and State Authority

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The chapter explores the ongoing debate about whether abortion should be a state's right or a federal issue. It discusses the implications of defining the beginning and end of life in relation to abortion, as well as the potential consequences of recent measures like the one proposed in South Carolina to impose the death penalty on women for having an abortion. The chapter also questions the scientific basis for the 15-week cut off point for abortions and reflects on the historical context and influences surrounding the abortion debate.

Shermer and Tabash discuss: the history of the relationship between church and state • the founding framers of the U.S. Constitution and their arguments for separating church and state • Madison and Jefferson • how most of the 13 colonies had government-sanctioned religions and religious tests for office • the Constitutional Convention and the First Amendment • the push by some Republicans to hold a new Constitutional Convention and redesign the entire U.S. Constitution • the religious beliefs and attitudes of the current SCOTUS.

Eddie Tabash is a constitutional lawyer in Los Angeles. He graduated magna cum laude from UCLA in 1973. He graduated from Loyola Law School of Los Angeles in 1976. He is known for his expertise in demonstrating how the religion clauses of the First Amendment require the separation of church and state, which includes equality before the law for nonbelievers. He is an atheist who endeavors to secure a society in which no branch of government can treat people differently because of either accepting or rejecting any tenet of religious belief.