The Senate will vote next week on legislation that would codify abortion rights into federal law as Democrats mount their response to the Supreme Court's leaked draft decision that would overturn the landmark Roe v. Wade ruling.
The procedural vote, scheduled for Wednesday, will mostly be symbolic and once again show the limits of the Democratic majority in the 50-50 Senate. Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., does not have the necessary 60 votes to overcome a Republican filibuster and move ahead with the bill, which means the effort is certain to fail. But he said members of both parties need to go on record about where they stand.
"Next week's vote will be one of the most important we ever take," Schumer said Thursday. "Because it deals with one of the most personal and difficult decisions a woman ever has to make in her life."
He insisted that bringing a bill to the Senate floor, after a similar measure failed in February, is "not an abstract exercise." The House passed legislation protecting abortion rights in September.
The Democratic leader is hoping to put every single member of his conference, as well as Republicans, on record on abortion rights as both parties deal with the political fallout from the leaked draft opinion that would overturn the 1973 ruling that legalized abortion nationwide. A final ruling, in a case from Mississippi, is expected this summer.
Democratic leaders, lacking the support needed to change Senate rules and pass an abortion bill on a majority vote, have signalled they intend to take the fight to voters during the campaign leading to the November election. Schumer noted that Republicans have been working for decades to bring about the end of Roe v. Wade.
"Come next week, Senate Republicans will have to answer for everything they've done over the years to embolden the hard right's hostility against a woman's choice," Schumer said. "The vote will tell next week, America will be watching."
Sen. Elizabeth Warren of Massachusetts, who joined pro-abortion activists in protest on the Supreme Court steps Tuesday, reiterated how crucial it was -- not just for her colleagues across the aisle, but for those in her party -- to face voters on whichever decision they choose to make next week.
"It's about pressing everyone at every level of government, federal, state and local, to acknowledge what it will mean if women have to resort to back-alley abortions or to taking off days off work that they can't afford to get access to a medical procedure that has been guaranteed as a matter of constitutional right for nearly half a century," Warren said Thursday.
Republican lawmakers have long been laser-focused on the high court, installing conservative justices intent on revisiting abortion and other social issues, including three ushered to confirmation by Senate GOP leader Mitch McConnell of Kentucky during Donald Trump's presidency to build the court's solid 6-3 majority.
GOP lawmakers have focused their ire on the rare leak of the draft opinion, calling it a brazen attempt to pressure the justices into changing the ruling.
Urging the justices to stick to their process, McConnell promised that senators would "have their backs, no matter what."
On Thursday, White House press secretary Jen Psaki said Biden was supportive of Democratic efforts to codify a right to abortion into federal law, but was pessimistic about its chances in the current Congress.
"He did not feel we had the votes at this point in time," Psaki said. "But certainly providing a moment for people to voice their view and voice their strong opposition to overturning Roe v. Wade is something we support Leader Schumer doing."
Strategies for mitigating the negative mental health effects of social media tend to focus on reducing time spent scrolling, according to a B.C. researcher, who says there may be a way to limit the harm without logging off.
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau says the federal government could have acted faster on reining in immigration programs, after blaming 'bad actors' for gaming the system.
Nick Arbuckle's first Grey Cup start was a victorious one.
Mounties in B.C. are asking the public for help locating a father and his two children who have not been seen since Friday.
New Orleans police were investigating after two people were killed and nine others were wounded in two separate shootings Sunday along a parade route, authorities said.
Prince Harry surprised football fans Sunday, appearing at the Grey Cup in Vancouver before the Toronto Argonauts took on the Winnipeg Blue Bombers.
U.S. President Joe Biden has authorized Ukraine to use U.S.-supplied long-range missiles to strike deeper inside Russia, easing limitations on the weapons.
The US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention is investigating an E. coli outbreak in at least 18 states linked to some organic carrots, which has led to at least one death.
An apparent scam allegedly targeting roughly four hundred people, many of whom based out of Burlington, Ont., claim to be out approximately $300,000 in total after believing they were purchasing Taylor Swift tickets in Toronto, but never receiving them.
Mounties in B.C. are asking the public for help locating a father and his two children who have not been seen since Friday.
A few weeks ago, they learned the tickets they booked last August were never real.
Ontario Provincial Police say an OC Transpo bus driver was charged with careless driving after a three-vehicle crash on Highway 417 in Ottawa.
OPP have confirmed that two people were pronounced dead at the scene of a single vessel collision, which took place at 5:55 p.m. Saturday evening.
Working on a military truck, within the logistics squadron of CFB Kingston, Private Charlotte Schnubb is elbows deep into an engine with a huge smile on her face.
Winnipeg police have charged a man after an officer was bit during an investigation earlier this year.
U.S. President-elect Donald Trump on Sunday named Brendan Carr, the senior Republican on the Federal Communications Commission, as the new chairman of the agency tasked with regulating broadcasting, telecommunications and broadband.
New Orleans police were investigating after two people were killed and nine others were wounded in two separate shootings Sunday along a parade route, authorities said.
U.S. President Joe Biden has authorized Ukraine to use U.S.-supplied long-range missiles to strike deeper inside Russia, easing limitations on the weapons.
Pete Hegseth, U.S. president-elect Donald Trump's pick for defense secretary, paid a woman who accused him of sexual assault to head off the threat of a baseless lawsuit, according to Hegseth's lawyer.
A gold pocket watch given to the ship captain who rescued 700 survivors from the Titanic sold at auction for nearly US$2 million, setting a record for memorabilia from the ship wreck.
Joe Biden toured the drought-shrunken waters of the Amazon River’s greatest tributary Sunday as the first sitting American president to set foot in the legendary rainforest.
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau says the federal government could have acted faster on reining in immigration programs, after blaming 'bad actors' for gaming the system.
Alberta Premier Danielle Smith says she agrees it could be time to cut Mexico out of the trilateral free trade agreement with Canada and the United States.
If no political party is willing to say uncle, the drawn-out stalemate in the House of Commons is heading for an unprecedented situation that could amount to a tacit lack of confidence in the government, without anyone in Parliament casting a vote.
The US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention is investigating an E. coli outbreak in at least 18 states linked to some organic carrots, which has led to at least one death.
Robert F. Kennedy Jr. has pledged to tackle high rates of chronic diseases such as diabetes and obesity as President-elect Donald Trump's pick to lead the US Department of Health and Human Services. They’re goals that many in the public health world find themselves agreeing with — despite fearing what else the infamous anti-vaccine activist may do in the post.
Mary Kellerman, a 12-year-old girl from Illinois, told her parents she was feeling sick on the morning of Sept. 29, 1982. She wanted to stay home from school. After taking one Tylenol capsule, Mary collapsed on the bathroom floor. She died shortly after.
Strategies for mitigating the negative mental health effects of social media tend to focus on reducing time spent scrolling, according to a B.C. researcher, who says there may be a way to limit the harm without logging off.
While it remains small compared to established online spaces such as X, Bluesky has emerged as an alternative for those looking for a different mood, lighter and friendlier and less influenced by Musk.
A species of marine worm that scientists lost sight of for almost 70 years has finally resurfaced, thanks to some eagle-eyed sleuthing and a seahorse less than an inch long. When researchers analyzed images of tiny seahorses taken by scuba divers, they found evidence of photobombing worms in the hundreds, living alongside the seahorses in coral colonies from Japan to Australia.
Actor Taylor Lautner is reviving the 'Twilight' saga love triangle debate of the late aughts in a very 2024 way.
An apparent scam allegedly targeting roughly four hundred people, many of whom based out of Burlington, Ont., claim to be out approximately $300,000 in total after believing they were purchasing Taylor Swift tickets in Toronto, but never receiving them.
Moviegoers were not exactly feeling the Christmas spirit this weekend, or at least what 'Red One' was offering. The big budget, star-driven action comedy with Dwayne Johnson and Chris Evans sold US$34.1 million in tickets in its first weekend in theaters, according to studio estimates Sunday. It easily topped a box office populated mostly by holdovers.
In June of this year, a new company called Nations Royalty Corp. began trading on the TSX Venture Exchange.
The latest inflation reading due out Tuesday from Statistics Canada is expected to show a slight uptick for the month of October — but economists say the measure is still on a longer-term downward trend.
Boeing has delivered layoff notices to more than 400 members of its professional aerospace labor union, part of thousands of cuts planned.
Hundreds of organic baby- and toddler-sized rompers sold by an Ontario-based sustainable clothing company have been recalled over concerns they could catch fire and injure children, according to Health Canada.
A piece of national park history surfaced at Point Pelee National Park this week – a pair of parks badges from 1939 and 1940.
The four women sipping tea around an antique wooden table in rural Newfoundland said they weren't looking for much in a mate: kindness, humour, a good sense of fun and, ideally, a full set of teeth.
Nick Arbuckle's first Grey Cup start was a victorious one.
Prince Harry surprised football fans Sunday, appearing at the Grey Cup in Vancouver before the Toronto Argonauts took on the Winnipeg Blue Bombers.
In a banner year for women's professional sports, athletes who dominate their game are reaping the financial benefits.
In part two of a three-part series into how thieves are able to drive off with modern vehicles so easily, CTV W5 correspondent Jon Woodward uses a device flagged by police to easily clone a car key.
When a Tesla crashed on Lakeshore Boulevard in Toronto last month, the first people on scene knew there were occupants inside but couldn't immediately get them out.
Almost four out of five Canadian drivers switch to winter tires when the weather calls for them, according to a new survey.
When he first moved to his urban neighbourhood, Barry Devonald was surprised to be welcomed by a whole flock of new neighbours.
When George Arcioni began renovating his kitchen last summer, he didn’t expect to find a stack of letters hidden in the wall behind his oven.
A Nova Scotia couple fulfilled their wildest dreams Thursday night when they got engaged at Taylor Swift’s Eras Tour in Toronto.
Some Calgary residents caught what appeared to be a meteor streaking across the sky early on Wednesday morning.
Four years ago, Phill Hebb started up 'Phil’s Unique Birdhouses' and since then, they’ve made their way all across Canada and into the United States.
A New Brunswick fashion designer recently won the top prize at a national event for a dress she made using an unconventional material.
Dr. Ronald Weiss, who performed nearly 60,000 vasectomies on Ottawa men, establishing him as the "Wayne Gretzky" of the procedure, has died.
A congestion crisis, a traffic nightmare, or unrelenting gridlock -- whatever you call it, most agree that Toronto has a congestion problem. To alleviate some of the gridlock, the Ontario government has announced it plans to remove bike lanes from three major roadways.
For the second year in a row, the ‘Gift-a-Family’ campaign is hoping to make the holidays happier for children and families in need throughout Barrie.
Stretching 3,000 kilometres from the tip of New Zealand to its southernmost point, with just a bicycle for transport and a tent to call home, bikepacking event Tour Aotearoa is not for the faint of heart.
Mounties in B.C. are asking the public for help locating a father and his two children who have not been seen since Friday.
Prince Harry surprised football fans Sunday, appearing at the Grey Cup in Vancouver before the Toronto Argonauts took on the Winnipeg Blue Bombers.
Calgarians enjoyed another warm weekend as temperatures hovered above six degrees, prompting one climatologist to look to the record books.
Pacey Strangling Wolf was crowned 2025 Calgary Stampede First Nations Princess at the BMO Centre Sunday afternoon.
The Boss had a few warm words for the Saddledome Saturday night right before signing off on a two-and-a-half hour concert that left around 19,000 fans wondering how a 75-year-old superstar can still be firing on all cylinders at this stage of his career.
A few weeks ago, they learned the tickets they booked last August were never real.
Ontario Provincial Police say an OC Transpo bus driver was charged with careless driving after a three-vehicle crash on Highway 417 in Ottawa.
A pair of rallies both in support of and against a proposal to build tent-like structures for asylum seekers took place just down the street from one another on Sunday afternoon.
A PQ government could abolish the Santé Québec agency, which the Coalition Avenir Québec (CAQ) will set up on Dec. 1.
Montreal is considering banning cars from certain parts of Sainte-Catherine Street, but the Opposition said the plan lacked public consultation and is calling for a referendum.
Alberta Premier Danielle Smith is echoing concerns about Mexico that were expressed earlier this week by Ontario's premier, saying she hopes Canada can get a "carve-out" from import tariffs that president-elect Donald Trump is promising.
Nick Arbuckle's first Grey Cup start was a victorious one.
Edmonton has seen a warmer-than-average fall this year, but while some residents might be enjoying it, others might wonder what our winter will feel like.
A new project mapping Halifax's architectural heritage shows the city has lost most of its historical structures.
Tom Forrestall, a celebrated Nova Scotia artist remembered for pioneering the Atlantic realism tradition, died at the age of 88 on Friday.
Colchester County RCMP is looking for information related to the suspicious disappearance of 32-year-old Keleana Trask.
As the Winnipeg Blue Bombers kick off their fifth consecutive appearance in the Grey Cup final, they’re garnering support from celebrities and fans alike.
Two men are to stand trial on human smuggling charges this week, almost three years after a family from India was found frozen to death on the border between Manitoba and Minnesota.
A 16-year-old boy has been charged with possessing a weapon after he was seen carrying a machete early Saturday morning.
Environment and Climate Change Canada (ECCC) has issued a winter storm watch covering a large swath of eastern Saskatchewan.
Nick Arbuckle's first Grey Cup start was a victorious one.
The Regina Police Service (RPS) is reporting that officers used a taser during the arrest of a break-in suspect, after the man allegedly attacked an officer during the encounter.
The Waterloo Regional Police Service (WRPS) launched their Festive RIDE program on Friday, which continued through the weekend.
Kids and the young-at-heart lined Weber Street to catch a glimpse at old saint nick as the Lions Club of Kitchener held it’s annual Santa Claus Parade Saturday morning.
Police say that at roughly 1:00 a.m. Sunday morning, they were called to an address on Dogwood Drive in Tillsonburg for report of an assault.
It was a month before Christmas, and ten thousand gathered round, as Santa and his parade made their way to Midtown.
Saskatoon police say the sudden death reported Friday evening is now deemed as the city’s 13th homicide.
Saskatoon police responded to several collisions involving multiple vehicles Saturday morning following freezing rain and icy road conditions in Saskatoon.
An apparent scam allegedly targeting roughly four hundred people, many of whom based out of Burlington, Ont., claim to be out approximately $300,000 in total after believing they were purchasing Taylor Swift tickets in Toronto, but never receiving them.
A motorcycle driver who sustained serious injuries in a crash on Manitoulin Island on Thursday evening was airlifted to Sudbury hospital.
Newly released documents show the Royal Canadian Mounted Police collected wreckage after an unidentified object was shot down over Lake Huron in February of last year.
With a dream of bringing a wheelchair-accessible swing to Poplar Hill, Rick Castle started collecting bottles and cans.
Police say that at roughly 1:00 a.m. Sunday morning, they were called to an address on Dogwood Drive in Tillsonburg for report of an assault.
OPP have confirmed that two people were pronounced dead at the scene of a single vessel collision, which took place at 5:55 p.m. Saturday evening.
Police in Barrie are investigating what is being described as a series of ‘violent’ incidents that occurred early Saturday morning.
A driver is facing impaired driving charges after allegedly driving across the Southern Georgian Bay OPP detachment’s lawn in Midland Saturday evening.
The energetic movements of Bhangra and the Windsor Symphony Orchestra collided on Sunday afternoon.
OPP have confirmed that two people were pronounced dead at the scene of a single vessel collision, which took place at 5:55 p.m. Saturday evening.
A pair of games on Saturday afternoon between Windsor and London’s college basketball teams saw each school walking home with a victory and a loss under their belt.
Strategies for mitigating the negative mental health effects of social media tend to focus on reducing time spent scrolling, according to a B.C. researcher, who says there may be a way to limit the harm without logging off.
Premier David Eby says the British Columbia cabinet he introduces Monday will be tasked with focusing on issues voters strongly told the government they are most concerned about: affordability, health care, community safety, housing and the economy.
A former couple who bought a boat together took their post-breakup fight over its expenses to B.C.'s small claims tribunal.
Police are appealing for information on a targeted shooting that resulted in the hospitalization of a man in Kamloops.
British Columbia's independent police watchdog has cleared officers of wrongdoing in a crash where three people were killed south of Kamloops in July of last year.
A B.C. woman who stole more than $14,000 in volunteer-raised funds that were supposed to be spent on school supplies and programs – including hot meals for vulnerable kids – won't spend any time in jail.
Protesters against the proposed Grassy Mountain coal mining project demonstrated in downtown Calgary Friday.
Early Friday morning, the union representing Canada Post workers officially went on strike. The strike will have a wide-reaching impact on many Canadians, and it comes at a difficult time for charities.
A back-and-forth question between Alberta Premier Danielle Smith and Alberta NDP Leader Naheed Nenshi when it comes to calling a Lethbridge-West byelection has no distinct answer nearly five months later.
A Sault Ste. Marie program that gives people on social housing the opportunity to purchase a newly renovated home has just changed the lives of another local family.
About 700 Canada Post workers are walking the picket lines in communities across northeastern Ontario.
After receiving reports of a dangerous and erratic driver, police in Sault Ste. Marie charged the driver of a vehicle on Highway 17 this week.
The four women sipping tea around an antique wooden table in rural Newfoundland said they weren't looking for much in a mate: kindness, humour, a good sense of fun and, ideally, a full set of teeth.
Newfoundland and Labrador's return on investment for sponsoring a professional English soccer team was not quite as rosy as previously claimed.
Police in Newfoundland say a man was electrocuted Saturday by a downed power wire about 10 kilometres north of St. John's, N.L.
The Shopping Trends team is independent of the journalists at CTV News. We may earn a commission when you use our links to shop. Read about us.
