(Pamela Cosel, Headline USA) U.S. Senators are taking steps to protect Supreme Court justices after chaos erupted last week over the leaked draft opinion that could potentially overturn Roe v. Wade.
Legislation was passed Monday to increase security for the justices, some of whose homes were targeted by activists protesting the news of a potential changed abortion stance.
There were no objections to the voice vote, the Associated Press reported. The bill now goes to the House of Representatives for its consideration.
“Trying to scare federal judges into ruling a certain way is far outside the bounds of normal First Amendment speech or protest,” said Republican Senate leader Mitch McConnell.
Justice Samuel Alito on Monday had to leave his home for safety after reports indicated protestors would be there that evening, incited by a Twitter post made by the radical, pro-abortion group Ruth Sent Us, which had doxxed the justices.
The justices’ security bill, called the Supreme Court Police Parity Act, was introduced by Sens. John Cornyn, R-Texas, and Chris Coons, D-Del. If passed by the House, it will allow law enforcement officers to provide 24-hour-a-day protection for the justices’ immediate family members. Cornyn and Coons released statements after the Senate vote.
Joe Biden has kept quiet about the entire situation, having White House press secretary Jen Psaki speak for him. Psaki backtracked this week to now agree the justices should not have to be in fear for their safety.
Vice President Kamala Harris has been silent, except to encourage people via a Twitter post to “fight for women.”
Democrats who are backing the justices’ security bill, while often inciting their activist abortion base to mob protest, might have taken note of public sentiment decidedly critical of radical protest.
A nationwide survey conducted over two days by the Trafalgar Group showed that 75.8% of Democrats and Republicans said it was unacceptable to protest by publishing the home addresses of the five Supreme Court conservative justices. Just 15.9% said it was acceptable, while 8.3% of respondents were “not sure.”
When asked if respondents thought the Biden administration was encouraging protests to become potentially unlawful or violent, 52.3% agreed it was. The majority of those responding to the survey were between the ages of 45 and 64, with those older than 65 years in the second-largest group.
