Reverberations from the overturn of Roe v. Wade, new revelations from the U.S. House Jan. 6 committee and lots more: calling it a busy news week is a massive understatement.
James Barragán, political reporter for the Texas Tribune, is watching these stories, including the fallout from Roe’s overturn. Statements from Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton have some watchers concerned that after ending federal protections for abortion, other rights could be next.
“One of the main things that came out of the Roe v. Wade opinion was Clarence Thomas’s concurring opinion in which he pushed the court to go even further in restricting other unenumerated rights, such as same-sex marriage and same-sex intimacy, along with contraception,” Barragán said.
When asked in an interview if Texas – should the Supreme Court overturn the ruling that protected the right to same-sex intimacy – would pass updated legislation making that intimacy a crime, Paxton said “he would defend that state law – basically saying that that should be left up to the states. Which obviously brought on a lot of controversy.”
“Most of the court is saying that’s not really up for debate,” Barragán added. “But Clarence Thomas is saying that. And so if there’s one person on the court saying that, that obviously sparks debate about how many more other people feel that way … But currently it is not an imminent problem because there is no such law that anybody is pushing forward.”
For more from the week in state politics, including the Texas connection to former White House staffer Cassidy Hutchinson testimony before the Jan. 6 committee and Gov. Greg Abbott’s campaign ad spending, listen to the Q&A in the player above.
