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Watch: Lindsey Graham turns the tables on Democrats’ pro-abortion scare tactics in judicial confirmation hearing

Conservative Review

In a hearing of the Senate Judiciary Committee, Chairman Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., turned some pro-abortion questions around on committee Democrats by asking two judicial nominees about one of the Left’s most hated Supreme Court cases.

Following a line of questions about abortion and the future of Roe v. Wade by Sen. Richard Blumenthal, D-Conn., Chairman Graham took it upon himself to put things into context. One of the most common Democratic tactics in judicial confirmation hearings is to gin up fear about the future of Roe v. Wade by going after judges’ personal pro-life or religious views.

Graham asked Ninth Circuit nominees Kenneth Lee and Daniel Collins whether they as lower-court judges would be equally bound to abide by the Supreme Court precedent in Citizens United as well as that of Roe v. Wade when the case was “on point” or related to that issue. They said they would rule with the precedent set by the Supreme Court.

Afterwards, the chairman threw a little shade at his Democratic colleagues when he launched into an explanation of how things work between lower courts and the Supreme Court.

“I want the whole country to know that there is a system in place,” Graham said. “If you have a problem with the way the law is written statutorily or if you have a problem with a constitutional precedent, if you think Citizens United was wrong, there may be a day where the court will revisit that.”

“There are people believing that Roe v. Wade needs to be revisited, that it was wrong,” Graham continued. “They’re advocates. They have a right to make the case.”

“Judges will decide at the Supreme Court level whether or not to revisit Citizens United, Roe v. Wade, or anything else,” Graham said. “And when there’s a precedent on point whether you like it or not. You’re going to apply it, right?” Both nominees answered in the affirmative.

Graham’s comparison here is pointed. The Citizens United decision is to the Left what the Roe v. Wade decision is to the pro-life Right. Incorrectly ruled cases have been overturned in the past. Most famously, Dred Scott v. Sandford was overturned in the Brown v. Board of Education decision.

Decisions to revisit and overrule precedent, however, are ultimately up to the Supreme Court itself.

The relevant section of the answer is below, and video of the full committee hearing is here.

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