Bad, but predictable, news from Texas: A federal appeals court has
upheld the sweeping anti-abortion law the state passed last summer over fierce opposition. Given the nature of the 5th Circuit Court of Appeals panel that heard the case, this is
no surprise:
The three-judge panel includes former Chief Justice Edith Jones, who authored the 2012 opinion affirming Texas' abortion sonogram law. The other justices, Jennifer Elrod and Catharina Haynes, served on another three-judge panel that reversed a lower court's injunction on the law in October, which allowed the rules to take effect.
Because this decision goes against other appeals court decisions, the fight over such laws is likely to reach the Supreme Court. For that matter, this law and therefore this decision go against previous Supreme Court decisions, but as we know, that's no guarantee the Roberts Court won't side with Texas Republicans.