Supreme Court abortion ruling updates: WH warns of ‘nightmare scenarios’

The Supreme Court voted to overrule the decisions of Roe and Casey.

ByMeredith Deliso, Mark Osborne, Nadine El-Bawab, Mary Kekatos, Alexandra Svokos, Kate Pastor, Haley Yamada, Stephanie Guerilus , and Melissa Gaffney
Last Updated: June 29, 2022, 4:29 PM EDT

The U.S. Supreme Court has overturned the landmark Roe v. Wade decision in a much-anticipated ruling Friday in one of its biggest decisions this term.

The court voted 5-4, largely along party lines, to overturn Roe and 6-3, in the case of Dobbs v. Jackson Women's Health Organization, which involved Mississippi's ban on abortions after 15 weeks of pregnancy.

Abortion rights supporters react to the overturning of Roe v Wade outside the United States Supreme Court in Washington, June 24, 2022.
Mary F. Calvert/Reuters

It appeared that the panel's conservative majority of justices was ready to overturn nearly 50 years of established abortion rights after last month's leaked draft decision indicated as much.

Top headlines:

Here's how the news is developing. All times Eastern.
Jun 24, 2022, 11:10 AM EDT

Michelle Obama, Hillary Clinton react to decision

Former first ladies Michelle Obama and Hillary Clinton reacted to the Supreme Court decision, both condemning it.

Obama, in her statement, said repeatedly that she is "heartbroken," including "for people around this country who just lost the fundamental right to make informed decisions about their own bodies."

Clinton, who also served as secretary of state, said, "Today's Supreme Court opinion will live in infamy as a step backward for women's rights and human rights."

"This horrifying decision will have devastating consequences," Obama wrote in her full statement.

Jun 24, 2022, 10:55 AM EDT

Pelosi condemns Trump, Republicans in response

Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi speaks to reporters minutes after the U.S. Supreme Court struck down Roe v Wade, which guaranteed a woman's right to an abortion, in the U.S. Capitol Visitors Center on June 24, 2022 in Washington.
Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi condemned Republicans in response to the Supreme Court decision, saying in a statement, "Because of Donald Trump, Mitch McConnell, the Republican Party and their supermajority on the Supreme Court, American women today have less freedom than their mothers."

Pelosi further said there would be more restrictions on reproductive health care, claiming, "Republicans want to arrest doctors for offering reproductive care and women for terminating a pregnancy. GOP extremists are even threatening to criminalize contraception, as well as in-vitro fertilization and post-miscarriage care."

She called the ruling "outrageous and heart-wrenching."

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi condemned Republicans in response to the Supreme Court decision.
4:05

Pelosi on Supreme Court abortion ruling: ‘The harm is endless’

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi condemned Republicans in response to the Supreme Court decision.
ABCNews.com

Jun 24, 2022, 11:02 AM EDT

March for Life says court decision is just the beginning of work to 'protect life'

A celebration outside the U.S. Supreme Court, June 24, 2022, in Washington after the court ended constitutional protections for abortion.
Steve Helber/AP

Anti-abortion group March for Life praised the Supreme Court's decision to overturn Roe v. Wade, overturning federal protections for abortion.

"Today, the ability to determine whether and when to limit abortion was returned to the American people who have every right to enact laws like Mississippi's which protect mothers and unborn babies after 15 weeks," March for Life said in a statement.

The group called Roe v. Wade an "unpopular and extreme" abortion policy that had been imposed on the U.S. Polling shows 58% of Americans say abortion should be legal in all or most cases.

"We are so grateful to the countless pro-life people of goodwill who contributed and sacrificed to make today possible – including the millions of those who have marched for life over the years - and we recognize that this is just the beginning of our work to advance policies that protect life. We will continue to march until abortion is unthinkable because equality begins in the womb," March for Life said.

Jun 24, 2022, 10:54 AM EDT

Schumer calls today 'one of darkest days our country has ever seen'

Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, in a statement following the Dobbs decision, called Friday one of the "darkest days our country has ever seen" and directly blamed "MAGA Republicans" for the decision.

"These justices were intentionally appointed by Republicans to overturn Roe v. Wade and every Republican Senator knew this would happen if they voted to confirm these radical justices," Schumer said in a statement. "These MAGA Republicans are all complicit in today’s decision and all of its consequences for women and families in this country."

He pointed to the upcoming midterm elections and called on voters to support Democratic causes.

"Today's decision makes crystal clear the contrast as we approach the November elections: elect more MAGA Republicans if you want nationwide abortion bans, the jailing of women and doctors and no exemptions for rape or incest. Or, elect more pro-choice Democrats to save Roe and protect a woman’s right to make their own decisions about their body, not politicians."

-ABC News' Allison Pecorin