The Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade in 2022. Here’s the state of abortion rights now in the US

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By GEOFF MULVIHILL (Associated Press)

Judges, state lawmakers and voters are deciding the future of abortion in the U.S. two years after the Supreme Court jolted the legal status quo with a ruling that overturned Roe v. Wade.

The June 24, 2022, ruling in Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization sparked legislative action, protest and numerous lawsuits — placing the issue at the center of politics across the country.

Abortion is now banned at all stages of pregnancy, with limited exceptions, in 14 Republican-controlled states. In three other states, it’s barred after about the first six weeks, which is before many know they are pregnant. Most Democratic-led states have taken actions to protect abortion rights, and become sanctuaries for out-of-state patients seeking care.

That’s changed the landscape of abortion access, making it more of a logistical and financial ordeal for many in conservative states. But it has not reduced the overall number of procedures done each month across the U.S.

Here’s what to know about the state of abortion rights in the U.S. now.

Bans in Republican-led states have prompted many people seeking abortions to travel to get care.

That translates into higher costs for gas or plane tickets, hotels and meals; more logistics to figure out, including child care; and more days off work.

A new study by the Guttmacher Institute, which advocates for abortion access, found that out of just over a million abortions provided in clinics, hospitals and doctors’ offices, more than 161,000 — or 16% — were for people who crossed state lines to get them.

More than two-thirds of abortions done in Kansas and New Mexico were for out-of-staters, particularly Texans.

Since Florida’s six-week abortion ban kicked in in May, many people had to travel farther than before, since throughout the Southeast, most states have bans.

Low-income patients and those lacking legal permission to be in the country are more likely to be unable to travel. There can be lasting costs for those who do.

In Alabama, the Yellowhammer Fund, which previously helped residents pay for the procedure has paused doing so since facing threats of litigation from the state.

Jenice Fountain, Yellowhammer’s executive director, said she met a woman recently who traveled from Alabama to neighboring Georgia for an abortion but found she couldn’t get one there because she was slightly too far into her pregnancy. So she then went to Virginia. The journey wiped out her rent money and she needed help to remain housed.

“We’re having people use every dime that they have to get out of state, or use every dime they have to have another child,” Fountain said.

Nearly two-thirds of known abortions last year were provided with pills rather than procedures.

One report found that pills are prescribed via telehealth and mailed to about 6,000 people a month who live in states with abortion bans. They’re sent by medical providers in states with laws intended to protect them from prosecution for those prescriptions. The laws in Colorado, Massachusetts, New York, Vermont and Washington specifically protect medical providers who prescribe the pills to patients in states with bans.

The growing prominence of pills, which were used in about half of all abortions just before the Dobbs ruling, is a frontier in the latest chapter of the legal fight.

The U.S. Supreme Court this month unanimously rejected an effort by abortion opponents who were seeking to overturn or roll back the U.S. Food and Drug Administration’s approval of mifepristone, one of two drugs usually used together for medication abortions. The issue is likely to return.

In this presidential election year, abortion is a key issue.

Protecting access has emerged as a key theme in the campaigns of Democrats, including President Joe Biden in his reelection bid. Former President Donald Trump, the presumptive Republican nominee, has said states should decide whether to restrict abortions. He also suggested states could limit contraception use but changed his tune on that.

“We recognize this could be the last Dobbs anniversary we celebrate,” Kelsey Pritchard, a spokesperson for Susan B. Anthony Pro-Life America said in an interview, noting that if Democrats win the presidency and regain control of both chambers of Congress, a right to abortion could be enshrined in the law.

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The issue will also be put directly before voters in at least four states. Colorado, Florida, Maryland and South Dakota have ballot measures this year asking voters to approve state constitutional amendments that would protect or expand access to abortion. A New York measure would bar discrimination against someone who has an abortion. There are attempts to put questions about abortion access on the ballots this year in Arkansas, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska and Nevada.

There’s also a push for a ballot measure in Arizona, where the state Supreme Court this year ruled that an 1864 abortion ban could be enforced. With the help of some Republicans — Democrats in the Legislature were able to repeal that law.

Generally, abortion rights expand when voters are deciding. In the seven statewide abortion policy-related votes since 2022, voters have sided with abortion rights advocates in every case.

The Dobbs ruling and its aftermath gave rise to a bevy of legal questions and lawsuits challenging nearly every ban and restriction.

Many of those questions deal with how exceptions — which come into play far more often when abortion is barred earlier in pregnancy — should apply. The issue is often raised by those who wanted to be pregnant but who experienced life-threatening complications.

A group of women who had serious pregnancy complications but were denied abortions in Texas sued, claiming the state’s ban is vague about which exceptions are allowed. The all-Republican Texas Supreme Court disagreed in a May ruling.

The Supreme Court also heard arguments in April on the federal government’s lawsuit against Idaho, which says its ban on abortions at all stages of pregnancy can extend to women in medical emergencies. The Biden administration says that violates federal law. A ruling on that case could be issued at any time.

Meanwhile, bans have been put on hold by judges in Iowa, Montana, Utah and Wyoming.

Lake Superior lighthouse back on the market after deal falls through

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SUPERIOR, Wis. — A historic landmark on Wisconsin Point is once again seeking a caretaker. The Superior Entry Lighthouse, built in 1913, is being offered at no cost to government agencies, nonprofits or educational groups.

The city of Superior won’t be in the running.

“I don’t know a lot about the interior of the lighthouse or any terms of its sale, but I don’t think the city is currently interested in operating it,” said Superior Mayor Jim Paine. “While I want to see it preserved, and it would be fun to create some public access, it looks like a fairly substantial project and we’d have a tough time managing it right now. If the state or federal government provided some assistance to repair and operate the lighthouse, we would certainly consider it. For now, however, I think we’ll just wait and see what happens.”

The building has been on and off the market for more than a decade. The search for a caretaker began in 2013, when the lighthouse was offered for free to government agencies and nonprofits. There were no takers for the 100-year-old building. The property went up for public auction in 2019. It was purchased by tech executive Steven Broudy of San Francisco with a high bid of $159,000.

The U.S. General Services Administration reissued its call for a nonprofit or government agency to take over the lighthouse on June 3. According to Minnesota Public Radio News, the limitations on what could be done with the property played a role in Broudy’s decision to return the lighthouse to the government.

The 56-foot-tall lighthouse encompasses five stories — a basement, a two-story main area with living quarters and a light tower surmounted by a lantern. The light would continue to serve as an active navigation aid and remain the property of the U.S. Coast Guard, which will maintain an easement to service it.

Because the lighthouse sits at the end of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers breakwater, a lease from the corps would be required to determine what can and can’t be transported to the structure, as well.

Eligible entities have until Aug. 5 to submit a letter of intent for the lighthouse.

Offering the Wisconsin Point icon to nonprofits is the first step in the process of disposing of a lighthouse under the National Historic Lighthouse Preservation Act. If no eligible entity comes forward, the property will be put up for sale to the general public.

Rethos, a St. Paul-based historic preservation nonprofit, was awarded the Duluth Harbor North Pier Light by the National Park Service in 2023 . The group planned to install interpretive signs and open the 43-foot-tall structure for tours.

Visit the GSA property disposition site or the National Historic Lighthouse Preservation Act page of the National Park Service for more information.

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Wild trade prospect Adam Beckman for AHL all-star Graeme Clarke

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The Wild have acquired Graeme Clarke from New Jersey in a swap of prospects, sending forward Adam Beckman to the Devils. Both were third-round picks in the 2019 entry draft and are restricted free agents.

An American Hockey League all-star last season, Clarke, 23, scored 25 goals among 49 points, plus eight game-winning goals, in 67 games with the Utica Comets in 2023-24.

The Waconia, Minn., native played three games with the Devils last season. He didn’t register a point. He led the Comets in goals, game-winning goals, shots (202) and tied for third with four power-play goals.

Beckman, 23, played in 11 games with Minnesota last season and recorded two assists. In four seasons with the Wild’s AHL club in Des Moines, he had 57 goals and 108 points. In 23 career NHL games, he had three assists.

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How Biden and Trump are taking very different approaches to preparing for next week’s debate

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By STEVE PEOPLES (AP National Political Writer)

NEW YORK (AP) — President Joe Biden begins an intense period of private preparations Friday at Camp David for what may be the most consequential presidential debate in decades.

The 81-year-old Democrat’s team is aware he cannot afford an underwhelming performance when he faces Republican rival Donald Trump for 90 minutes on live television June 27. Biden’s team expects aggressive attacks on his physical and mental strength, his record on the economy and immigration and even his family.

Trump, 78 and ever confident, will stay on the campaign trail before going to his Florida estate next week for two days of private meetings as part of an informal prep process.

The ex-president’s allies are pushing him to stay focused on his governing plans but expect him to be tested by pointed questions about his unrelenting focus on election fraud, his role in the erosion of abortion rights and his unprecedented legal baggage.

The CNN debate will be full of firsts, with the potential to reshape the presidential race. Never before in the modern era have two presumptive nominees met on the debate stage so early in the general election season. Never before have two White House contenders faced off at such advanced ages, with widespread questions about their readiness.

And never before has a general election debate participant been saddled with a felony conviction. The debate stage meeting comes just two weeks before Trump is scheduled to be sentenced on 34 felony counts in his New York hush money trial.

“You can argue this will be the most important debate, at least in my lifetime,” said Democratic strategist Jim Messina, a 54-year-old who managed President Barack Obama’s 2012 campaign.

The ground rules for the June 27 debate, the first of two scheduled meetings, are unusual.

The candidates agreed to meet at a CNN studio in Atlanta with no audience. Each candidate’s microphone will be muted, except when it’s his turn to speak. No props or prewritten notes will be allowed onstage. The candidates will be given only a pen, a pad of paper and a bottle of water.

There will be no opening statements. A coin flip determined Biden would stand at the podium to the viewer’s right, while Trump would deliver the final closing statement.

The next debate won’t be until September. Any stumbles June 27 will be hard to erase or replace quickly.

Biden arrived at Camp David on Thursday night and is expected to hunker down with senior campaign aides until the debate. While traveling to the mountainside retreat, he gave a thumbs up to reporters when asked how debate prep was going.

The president’s aides have been reluctant to share details about his preparations, run by former chief of staff Ron Klain. But they’ve signaled he’s preparing to be aggressive and wouldn’t shy away from using the term “convicted felon” to describe his opponent.

One adviser not authorized to speak publicly about debate strategy noted Biden has been increasingly punchier in recent remarks about Trump and plans to carry that theme through to the debate. That’s still while trying to project himself as “the wise and steady leader” in contrast with Trump, the adviser said.

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Robert F. Kennedy Jr. fails to qualify for CNN’s debate. It’ll be a showdown between Biden and Trump.

Among some political operatives, there’s the sense Biden may have more to lose given his struggle to generate momentum amid signs of weakness within his political coalition. Trump and his allies have set an extraordinarily low bar, however, by suggesting for months Biden is contending with serious physical limitations that make it difficult for him to stand for 90 minutes or string together two sentences.

“It’s like the mirror test. Put a mirror under Biden’s nose, and if it fogs it up, he wins, right? That’s about what the threshold is for Biden,” Republican strategist and Trump ally David Urban said with a laugh. “Can Biden demonstrate that he’s mentally nimble? That’s the big question.”

Yet Trump sought to shift expectations in a Thursday interview with the “The All-In Podcast” in which he veered sharply away from his typical Biden taunts. He said Biden “destroyed” vice presidential nominee Paul Ryan in their 2012 debate.

“I assume he’s going to be somebody that will be a worthy debater,” Trump said of Biden. “I don’t want to underestimate him.”

Biden’s aides have dismissed concerns about his age and mental readiness. They’re fighting against what they allege is deceptive editing of video clips to suggest he’s confused.

But while some Democrats project confidence, Biden’s allies also say he has spent much of the last two weeks traveling — in Europe and on the West Coast — limiting his ability to prepare. Others note incumbent presidents typically struggle in the season’s opening general election debate.

Messina made both points even as he sought to play up the political stakes for Trump. He suggested Trump was taking an unnecessary political risk by debating Biden.

“I wouldn’t have done the debate if I was him,” Messina said of Trump. The strategist added, “Why would you want to give him this air? He decided he wanted to do this to knock him out, and if he doesn’t, then I think he’s in real trouble.”

Trump’s team sees the faceoff as an opportunity to demonstrate a clear contrast with Biden’s leadership ability and governing record.

And while downplaying his preparations, Trump aides have a pattern of insisting he doesn’t prepare for debates when, in fact, he does — in his own way. Instead of mock debates with lecterns and stand-ins or hours spent poring over policy books, the ex-president is expected to rely on a series of conversations about policy and strategy with aides and political allies.

Trump will also make public appearances over the coming days.

On Saturday, he’s set to host a rally in Philadelphia and deliver a keynote address to a conference of Christian conservatives in Washington. He also has a fundraiser in New Orleans on Monday before going to his Florida estate for meetings.

“Biden needs rehearsals with handlers to find some way to explain this mess he’s made of our nation,” Trump spokesman Brian Hughes said. “President Trump is always prepared to present to Americans his record of success and Biden’s weakness and failures.”

Biden’s camp is aware Trump will likely focus on his son Hunter, as the then-president did on the debate stage four years ago. Hunter Biden was recently convicted on three felony charges related to the purchase of a gun while allegedly being addicted to drugs. Republicans have also criticized Hunter Biden’s foreign business dealings when Joe Biden was vice president.

Biden’s allies are also concerned, however, their famously combative rival might be on good behavior.

“For both campaigns, the goal here is reaching an audience of moderate, independent, swing voters in swing states who will, in many ways, be the deciding factor in this election,” said former Biden administration official Bill Russo.

“Trump has kind of a golden opportunity here. If he can pretend that he’s a reasonable human being for 90 minutes while he’s in the spotlight, he’s got a lot to gain,” Russo added. “The real key here is which Trump shows up.”

Associated Press writers Michelle L. Price and Jill Colvin in New York and Seung Min Kim, Zeke Miller and Will Weissert in Washington contributed.