Assume, for purposes of argument, that pro- and anti-abortion figures in Congress negotiate in good faith and reach agreement on a national standard (i.e., a floor as well as a ceiling) of 15 weeks for an abortion. How would this work in practice?
There would be two very serious problems:
- Enforcement in the blue states would be spotty at best, as the federal government would be in no position to hire enough employees to do the job, and outraged state officials would view the new legislation as the 21st century equivalent of the Fugitive Slave Act.
- For their part, the red states would try to use the same kind of bogus health and safety regulations they have adopted for the last 50 years to make the practical exercise of reproductive rights impossible. Some of these could be preempted in the national legislation, but don’t underestimate the ability of red state officials to get around federal rules.
The bottom line here is that national legislation won’t work without the support of a national consensus, which, in my opinion, would be best obtained through a referendum. Barring that, the best available “solution” under current law is to leave the issue to the states, but to prohibit red states from using vigilante laws, violating First Amendment rights, and attempting to impose their requirements on citizens of other states.