Matt Yglesias raises a good point in response to Charles Krauthammer’s column today, in which Chuck asserts that overturning Roe v. Wade and determining abortion law legislatively would somehow “settle” the issue. It’s a bit of a looney idea:

Tax policy in the United States, for example, is entirely out of the hands of the courts. Nevertheless, the issue of tax rates hasn’t been “settled democratically.” Rather, it’s the subject of constant legislative and electoral dispute.

Abortion will remain politically contentious no matter what happens to Roe. As Matt points out, abortion is a “controversial issue anywhere you have large religious communities who strongly believe that fetuses have the moral standing of human persons.” That political reality certainly won’t change once Roe goes out the window.

What will change, however, is the scope of the abortion debate in the country, which will inevitably be pushed to the left.

Having legalized abortion rest solely on judicial decision—decisions legislators have no control over—naturally increases the number of staunchly pro-life politicians in public office. It’s Pascal’s Wager of culture-war politics: it’s best to pose as rabidly pro-life than naively pro-choice, as any pro-life candidate will be able to please their religious base (to whom opposition to abortion is the number one litmus test), while simultaneously avoiding to offend the pro-choice majority, who recognize that Senator JoeSchmo Christian has little to no bearing on abortion rights in this country, so long as Roe is in good standing.

Once Roe v. Wade is overturned, however, legislators will actually be held accountable for their abortion views and votes, an accountability that will result in a leftward shift in the political discourse on abortion, as the elected masses alter their views to be more in line with the American public.