The Supreme Court handed down its decision in Roe v. Wade on January 22, 1973, the day LBJ died, finding that the “right of privacy . . . is broad enough to encompass a woman’s decision whether or not to terminate her pregnancy.”23 It would turn out to be a monumental decision, salvation to some, sin to others. In the White House, the casual viciousness of the president was caught on tape the next day, when Nixon shared his thoughts on the ruling with an aide. “There are times when abortions are necessary,” he said, casting aside, in private, his public invocation of the “sanctity of life.”
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