When Roe v. Wade was overturned in the United States on June 24, much of the ensuing commentary expressed at least grudging respect for the Republican Party’s skill at playing “the long game.” The constitutional right to abortion, after all, was something conservatives had been chipping away at since Roe was decided back in 1973; securing its overturn, nearly five decades later, was testament to the power of staying stubbornly fixated on a political goal.
