What just happened is that the U.S. Supreme Court has released itself from a prison of its own making.  And, of course, the consequences of this decision are being grotesquely exaggerated.

All that has really happened is that SCOTUS has determined that the federal government has no responsibility regarding the regulation of medical practice.  Period.  In all other aspects of medical practice, the several states have always done all the licensing and regulation.

Pro-choice partisans, however, are now claiming that gay marriage and even "interracial" marriage are next in the crosshairs.  I figure that by tonight's ten o'clock news, a return to Jim Crow will be described as being just around the corner.  But, then, the race card is just about the only card they know how to play.

And whose crosshairs are we talking about?  Is there some fiendish right-wing cabal that has been checking off items on a "to-do" list?  Of course not.  But, in order for the progressive militants to bother crawling out of their mothers' basements, they have to be scared of horrifying threats…that are usually imaginary.

Back in the days just before Roe was handed down, there was widespread expectation of its arrival.  Various states had been loosening up their rules, which created a kind of patchwork.  In order to deliver the goods, SCOTUS had to get really creative.  In the subsequent years, the issue of abortion remained as a curse upon our political discourse… since there was still no clear answer as to how America should deal with it.

I expect the patchwork to re-emerge… but women will not be nearly as disadvantaged as they were fifty years ago.  And thus, the militancy will be seriously dialed down on both sides of the issue.  Why?  Because state and local politicians will respond to the wishes of their constituents, who will no longer be ruled by nine distant life-appointees in black robes.

It will also be interesting to see what happens the next time a SCOTUS vacancy needs to be filled.  The progressive Left has long relied on judicial fiat to get a lot of its agenda enacted… because many of the details would nauseate most voters.  Partisans on the right, however, see the return of authority back to the states as a conclusion of their struggle. 

This would be an appropriate moment to give well-deserved credit to George H.W. Bush, 41.  Though not a particular hero of grassroots conservatives, he went way out of his way to get Clarence Thomas on the court.  He could have easily pulled the plug, but he stuck to his guns and the nation has been much better off as a result.

Image: Max Pixel.