Abortion bill fails in U.S. Senate as Supreme Court weighs overturning Roe v. Wade

U.S. Vice President Kamala Harris presides over the U.S. Senate as the Senate declines by a vote of 51-49 to proceed with consideration of the Women's Health Protection Act of 2022, a bill attempting to codify the U.S. Supreme Court's landmark Roe v. Wade abortion rights decision. [U.S. Senate Pool TV via Reuters]

Legislation to make abortion legal throughout the United States was defeated in the U.S. Senate on Wednesday, amid solid Republican opposition.

Democrats had sought to head off an impending Supreme Court opinion that is expected to overturn the nearly 50-year-old Roe v. Wade decision that established the national right to abortion. Wednesday's effort was a protest gesture that never stood much chance of success.