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On Friday, June 24, the Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade, a decision that swiftly changed the course of history in America: There is no longer a federal constitutional right to an abortion. In the wake of the news, I’m sitting down with Nina Totenberg, an award-winning legal affairs correspondent for NPR who has spent more than half a century reporting on the Supreme Court, to discuss this monumental change.
No reporter understands the world of the Supreme Court quite like Totenberg. Among her many accolades and accomplishments, Totenberg notoriously broke the story of the University of Oklahoma law professor Anita Hill’s sexual harassment allegations against Justice Clarence Thomas, which subsequently led the Senate Judiciary Committee to reopen his confirmation hearings in order to hear the charges. She is also known for her decades-long friendship with Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, one that involved both their personal and professional lives.
How to Watch
Come back to this page today, June 27, at 5:30 pm EDT to watch our interview with Totenberg at the top of this article. Replays after the live premiere will be available exclusively to Oprah Daily Insiders.
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Tottenberg also covered the original Roe v. Wade decision back in 1973. She told NPR about the differences between now and then:
“They were very different times, and there were lots of conservatives who were supporters of abortion rights, like Barry Goldwater, for instance. It’s also worth noting that the original decision was 7-2, and the court was, even then, mainly Republican appointees. They were just a different kind of Republican appointees. Even though they were conservatives, it was a much more centrist conservatism. And that was slowly eroded, “she said. “Today, we have a court with three Trump appointees and no Justice Merrick Garland, who would have been easily confirmed, but for the fact that Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell blocked any consideration of his nomination. And, of course, those are hardball tactics , but much more the norm now in the Senate, the House, and it appears even on the court. ”
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