The Pentagon faced its own dilemma with the Supreme Court’s landmark decision to overturn Roe v. Wade Friday, scrambling to determine what impact an abortion ban could have on thousands of women assigned to military bases in states where the practice may soon be illegal or sharply restricted.
Texas, for example, is one of more than a dozen states with so-called “trigger laws” already on the books to declare abortion illegal in the event of a Supreme Court ruling. It is also home to 15 active-duty posts including Fort Hood, where 40,000 Army soldiers are stationed.
The Pentagon oversees branches of service with personnel in every state, with the vast majority of its female soldiers, sailors and Marines of child-bearing age.