On Oct. 31, the 5th Circuit Court of Appeals in New Orleans reversed much of Judge Lee Yeakel’s ruling blocking sections of a tough Texas abortion law.

This will now allow many of the provisions of the Texas Abortion Law to go into effect immediately.

The appellate  judges ruled that the restrictions on doctors can take effect while the lawsuit challenging the law moves forward, according to the Associated Press.

In its 20-page ruling, the appeals court panel acknowledged that the provision “may increase the cost of accessing an abortion provider and decrease the number of physicians available to perform abortions.” However, the panel said that the U.S. Supreme Court has held that having “the incidental effect of making it more difficult or more expensive to procure an abortion cannot be enough to invalidate” a law that serves a valid purpose, “one not designed to strike at the right itself.”

Judge Yeakel’s ruling on preventing Texas from enforcing the U.S. Food and Drug Administration protocol on drugs in cases where the woman has been pregnant between 53 and 63 remains in place.  Doctors had testified that such protocols could be harmful towards women.

The abortion issue remains one of the most controversial and debated topics in American politics. What many on both sides of the issue failed to understand is that federal government doesn’t have the authority to force either position on the states. The people of the states are sovereign and never delegated authority over this issue to the federal government, as Tenth Amendment Center national communications director Mike Maharrey pointed out when Yeakel handed down his initial opinion. This issue needs to determined by the states for themselves.

Now, Pro-Choicers will cite the 14th Amendment as the linchpin of their argument. As the Tenth Amendment Center has address before, the 14th Amendment didn’t incorporate the Bill of Rights unto the states.

However, lets assume the Pro-Choicers are correct about protecting women’s 14th Amendment Rights.  The Pro-Lifers could argue that they value and are protecting the 14th Amendment rights of the unborn child.  Back to square one…

What many on both sides fail to understand that abortion really isn’t different from many other issues from health care, guns, marijuana, TSA, and hemp.  None of these were ever meant to be handled by the federal government with a one size fits all approach.  Neither side has the moral authority to force their view on people of sovereign states, who may disagree with them.

Some will argue that it is insane to have the states remain sovereign because they can go in all sorts of direction. The real insanity allowing Washington D.C. to direct more than 350 million people with a one-size-fits-all approach.

The 10th Amendment

“The powers not delegated to the United States by the Constitution, nor prohibited by it to the States, are reserved to the States respectively, or to the people.”

LEARN MORE

01

Featured Articles

On the Constitution, history, the founders, and analysis of current events.

featured articles

02

Tenther Blog and News

Nullification news, quick takes, history, interviews, podcasts and much more.

tenther blog

03

State of the Nullification Movement

232 pages. History, constitutionality, and application today.

get the report

01

Path to Liberty

Our flagship podcast. Michael Boldin on the constitution, history, and strategy for liberty today

path to liberty

02

Maharrey Minute

The title says it all. Mike Maharrey with a 1 minute take on issues under a 10th Amendment lens. maharrey minute

Tenther Essentials

2-4 minute videos on key Constitutional issues - history, and application today

TENTHER ESSENTIALS

Join TAC, Support Liberty!

Nothing helps us get the job done more than the financial support of our members, from just $2/month!

JOIN TAC

01

The 10th Amendment

History, meaning, and purpose - the "Foundation of the Constitution."

10th Amendment

03

Nullification

Get an overview of the principles, background, and application in history - and today.

nullification