Until last week it was possible to hope that Donald Trump might actually support the twelve American States where assisted dying has been made legal.
Not any more. Commenting on the Terminally Ill Adults Bill that had just been passed by the House of Commons, he said Britain now stood for “surrender and death”. The US State Department went further. The United States “re-affirms the sanctity of life” it said, before adding that the British vote amounted to “state-subsidized suicide”.
It is unlikely that either President Trump of Marco Rubio are readers of this website. Most of our visitors are people genuinely seeking what assisted dying opportunities might be available to them in Switzerland. If any of their staff members come across us by accident, however, they might be interested to note that our “hits” from America in June were more than double those in January.
Is it foreseeable that the Supreme Court might take its cue from the President and seek to outlaw assisted dying even in places like Oregon, Vermont and Washington DC ? Unlikely, we think. It would seem bizarre for a Supreme Court that has decided to make abortion an issue for States rather than the Federal Government then to decide the opposite for assisted dying. But anything’s possible.
