Strib carrying a WaPo feed-
Democrats across the country are seizing on the Supreme Court ruling overturning Roe v. Wade, with state and federal candidates seeking to turn anger about the decision into support at the ballot box, even as Republicans aim to keep attention on rising prices and crime less than five months before the midterms.
Led by President Biden, who declared Friday that "Roe is on the ballot" and "personal freedoms are on the ballot," Democrats on the front lines of the fight to keep the party's slim congressional majorities have cast their campaigns as key parts of a larger battle to restore abortion rights and prevent the rollback of other liberties. Democratic candidates for governor, attorney general and offices at the state level, where abortion laws will now be fully determined, pledged to put the issue at the forefront of their campaigns.
"We are facing a watershed moment for our constitutional rights," said Cheri Beasley, the Democratic Senate nominee in North Carolina, a key battleground and a state that could draw more women seeking abortions from nearby states barring the procedure. Speaking on Friday at a park in the capital of Raleigh, Beasley warned, "I hope you all know that this doesn't end this, that the threats don't stop here." She urged supporters, "This November let us run, not walk, to the polls."
Republicans have largely praised the ruling, but some suggested different matters, such as the economic challenges confronting Americans, should take precedence, while others cheered the power of states and lawmakers to decide the future of abortion laws, amounting to a wider range of responses than Democrats, more united in their anger, have offered.
"Roe doesn't change settled law, and it won't distract voters from unaffordable prices, rising crime or the border crisis," said Adam Laxalt, the Republican Senate nominee in Nevada, which has a state law legalizing abortion.
The contrasting reactions reflect the broader midterm calculations of each party. Democrats trying to overcome Biden's low approval ratings as well as high gas prices and violent crime have been searching for ways to shift the focus to other issues and give voters second thoughts about replacing them with Republicans. Republican leaders, who have long felt well-positioned to make gains, are wary of refocusing on topics that could diminish their advantage.
While it is unclear whether the ruling will change the contours of the midterms, the Friday decision that overturned the constitutional right to abortion established nearly 50 years ago has added a new element to some of the biggest races across the country.
[...] Senate Democrats saw a significant spike in grassroots fundraising immediately following the Supreme Court ruling, making for the best day of online fundraising to date this cycle, said an aide to the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee, who spoke on the condition of anonymity to disclose internal fundraising trends.
Biden on Friday urged voters to elect more members of Congress so that abortion rights can be codified in federal law. But unless that happens, abortion laws will be decided by each state, giving greater significance to races there this year.
Strib adds a separate post, local content - that story playing out in Minnesota -
"There is a route to protect access to safe and legal abortions, and that is through elections," said Sarah Stoesz, the longtime CEO of Planned Parenthood North Central States. "We need to act swiftly to elect leaders who will protect those rights."
Minnesota's state Supreme Court established its own constitutional right to abortion in the 1995 Doe v. Gomez ruling, so the U.S. Supreme Court's decision won't immediately change abortion access in the state. In St. Paul, abortion agendas have sat stagnant under divided government, but that could change if either side holds all the levers of power after the election.
"We believe we'll see New York-style reproductive rights legislation or a codification in law of Doe v. Gomez if we lose the House and the Senate and the governor," said Scott Fischbach, executive director of Minnesota Citizens Concerned for Life. "It could be devastating for us if we don't have one of those three, and of course the reverse could happen."
Democrats are worried about the opposite — GOP control of government — in a year where their party is facing stiff headwinds at the national level. All 201 seats in the Legislature are on the ballot this fall in Minnesota and first-term DFL Gov. Tim Walz is facing GOP challenger and former state Sen. Scott Jensen. While Walz has said he will defend the right to abortion in Minnesota, Jensen has said he'll work to ban abortion if elected.
It is June. Before the August primary in Minnesota. The immediate focus should be wherever a primary choice for a more progressive candidate exists, go for it.
See how the single focus idea plays out between now and later August, once any primary doubts are resolved. Between then and November, product differentiation will continue, details to be determined.
_________UPDATED_________
"As states ban abortion, Minnesota's employers weigh medical travel benefits - After the Supreme Court's decision, state's largest companies with operations in multiple states — such as Medtronic, 3M and Ecolab — face decisions on health plans.
By Christopher Snowbeck and Dee DePass Star Tribune June 27, 2022"
Missing from that list is the 800 pound gorilla, UnitedHealthcare; or do I misread the article as of the below time stamp?