Conservatives are having a meltdown over pro-choice demonstrators who descended on outside the homes of various Supreme Court justices this past weekend in protest of the court's impending rescission of Roe v. Wade, the landmark 1973 case establishing America's constitutional right to abortion.
About 100 protesters on Saturday evening appeared outside the homes of conservative Supreme Court Justices Brett Kavanaugh and John Roberts, hoisting pro-choice signs and chanting various slogans to express outrage over the court's direction on abortion.
"The whole world is watching!" the group chanted, according to a video posted online. "My body, my choice."
The protests come just days after a bombshell report by Politico, which published a leaked draft majority opinion indicating that the court already voted to overturn Roe back in February.
This weekend, hordes of online conservatives decried the demonstrations, arguing that the public is endangering the justices, whose jurisprudence, they say, must remain insulated from what they see as a left-wing public pressure campaign.
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WATCH → The White House refuses to condemn radical abortion groups posting maps with private home addresses of Supreme Court Justices for protestors to find.
— Steve Scalise (@SteveScalise) May 6, 2022
They know this is dangerous.
But they don't care. Because it benefits their agenda.
They're going to get someone hurt. pic.twitter.com/0zAPkCWYzH
Congressman Jim Banks lashed out at President Joe Biden for what he described as "harassment and intimidation of SCOTUS Justices in their own homes."
Joe Biden is turning a blind eye to the harassment and intimidation of SCOTUS Justices in their own homes.
— Jim Banks (@RepJimBanks) May 9, 2022
The most divisive and dishonest president of my lifetime! https://t.co/KfR8BX4qKI
"The whole point of the judiciary is that its holdings must be grounded in law and immune from public pressure," tweeted former Donald Trump aide Steven Miller. "Demonstrating outside an official's home is always wrong, but doing so for the purpose of physically intimidating and menacing a judge threatens our entire legal system."
The whole point of the judiciary is that its holdings must be grounded in law and immune from public pressure. Demonstrating outside an official’s home is always wrong, but doing so for the purpose of physically intimidating and menacing a judge threatens our entire legal system.
— Stephen Miller (@StephenM) May 8, 2022
Conservative political commentator Liz Wheeler called the left "evil" over the demonstrations, tarring the protesters as "mobs of angry leftists."
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"Imagine how scared [Brett Kavanaugh's] young daughters must be," she raged. "THAT is why the left is doing this - to scare Kavanaugh into fearing for his family so badly he caves to the rabid pro-abortion left. The left is evil."
RELATED: Will pro-choice protesters attack Catholic churches? The right seems to think so
Mobs of angry leftists outside Kavanaugh’s house. Man. Imagine how scared his young daughters must be. THAT is why the left is doing this - to scare Kavanaugh into fearing for his family so badly he caves to the rabid pro-abortion left. The left is evil.
— Liz Wheeler (@Liz_Wheeler) May 8, 2022
pic.twitter.com/XSRBJZQVeO
Stephen L. Miller, a contributing editor at the conservative magazine The Spectator, accused the media of hypocrisy. "Going to be fun comparing the media coverage and tone of screaming protestors outside SCOTUS justices homes to mothers at school board meetings," Miller wrote.
One Fox News host called for Biden's impeachment over the protests.
Newsmax columnist James Hirsen, meanwhile, went so far as to claim that the demonstrations were a "violation of federal law."
According to 18 U.S.C. 1507, anyone "with the intent of influencing any judge … in or near a building or residence occupied or used by such judge … shall be fined under this title or imprisoned not more than one year, or both." However, it's not apparent that the protesters were intent on changing the court's mind, given that Roberts has already confirmed the authenticity of the draft decision overturning Roe and subsequent reporting shows the conservatives unlikely to switch their votes. Furthemore, the First Amendment protects the right to peaceful assembly.
On Monday, the White House and a number of Democrats also came forward to express concern over the demonstrations, echoing the dubious right-wing framing of protesters being violent and threatening.
On Monday, White House Press Secretary Jenn Paski said that President Biden "strongly believes in the Constitutional right to protest. But that should never include violence, threats, or vandalism. Judges perform an incredibly important function in our society, and they must be able to do their jobs without concern for their personal safety."
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"This is wrong, stupid, potentially dangerous, and politically counterproductive," echoed Democratic commentator Paul Begala.
This is wrong, stupid, potentially dangerous, and politically counterproductive. https://t.co/NhwemyNJe3
— Paul Begala (@PaulBegala) May 9, 2022
Thus far, there have been no reports of violence or vandalism in connection with the recent pro-choice demonstrations.
