The "San Francisco Chronicle" quotes Professor Deborah Rhode on the Alito confirmation hearings:

It has been 33 years since Roe vs. Wade legalized abortion, yet the issue remains as divisive as ever. And it is likely to play a significant role in the Senate confirmation hearings of Supreme Court nominee Samuel Alito.

Stanford law Professor Deborah Rhode noted that "leaving the issue up to state legislators would have produced backlash, and would have an extremely expensive, time-consuming process. It would have exacerbated inequities in the way abortion laws worked out in practice."