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Professor Tribe has argued that the right to privacy (including the right to abort) is fundamental because of the great impact that pregnancy has on women's lives.

He points out, for example, that pregnancy restricts a woman's "physical liberty." It "entails unique physical invasion and risk." Being forced to proceed to childbirth "does extreme and unique psychological violence to a woman." Laws prohibiting abortion "deprive her of the very core of liberty and privacy."

Everyone would agree that these concerns are relevant to determining legal policy about abortion. But do they establish it as a fundamental constitutional right? Look back at your definition of 'fundamental' to decide. You might also ask whether these concerns have a connection with a set of interpretative principles that can be applied to the Constitution? What are the principles in that set?

Reference: For Tribe's argument, see Abortion: The Clash of Absolutes, pages 101-104. Compare Tribe's view with Ely's. Ely believes that the considerations Tribe raises are relevant to deciding policy (i.e., legislation) but not to the question of constitutionality.