Now nothing will stop the Supreme Court from overturning Roe v. Wade

When the history of how American women lost their reproductive rights is written, the bill-signing that took place in Oklahoma City on Tuesday should be acknowledged as a key moment when the shrinking window of possibility that the Supreme Court might hold back from overturning Roe v. Wade essentially closed forever.

The occasion was Gov. Kevin Stitt (R) signing a bill outlawing almost all abortions in the state, a move that is as plainly unconstitutional as it would be for the state to make it illegal to practice Judaism or criticize the president.

Why is this one bill in this one state so meaningful? Because it makes the death of Roe almost inevitable, and because it highlights Democrats’ impotence in the face of an assault on women’s fundamental rights.

Sometime soon, the court will issue its ruling in Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization, a case that concerns Mississippi’s ban on most abortions after the 15th week of pregnancy. Over the past year or so, there has been a steady shift in what advocates and analysts think the court will decide. At first, many believed the justices would find some clever way to undermine abortion rights without issuing a ruling explicitly overturning Roe. The theory was that, because the issue is so politically volatile and carries risks for the Republican Party, the justices would be hesitant to do it all in one fell swoop. While the court’s most conservative members (particularly Justices Clarence Thomas and Samuel A. Alito Jr.) have made their desire to do so clear, the more incrementalist conservatives, particularly Chief Justice John G. Roberts Jr., would want to proceed carefully even if they shared the same ultimate goal.