Lawmakers remain divided as Roe v. Wade hangs in the balance at Supreme Court

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WATCH: Pro and anti-abortion activists gather outside Supreme Court

Lawmakers on the Hill remain divided after the Supreme Court heard arguments Wednesday in a case that questions a near 50-year precedent set under Roe v Wade. 

Congressional leaders have dubbed the case – Dobbs v. Jackson Women's Health –  the "most consequential abortion case in decades."

"If SCOTUS overturns Roe v. Wade millions will lose access to abortion care & decades of precedent will be overturned," Sen. Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass., tweeted. 

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The arguments heard Wednesday left Republicans feeling emboldened that the high court will not only uphold the constitutionality of the 2018 Mississippi law that banned abortion after 15 weeks of pregnancy – but overturn Roe v. Wade altogether. 

"There seems to be a majority of justices who are ready to uphold Mississippi’s law," Sen. Josh Hawley, R-Mo., told Fox News. "I think that in of itself is quite significant."

"I also thought that in listening to the arguments that Roe itself is very much in play," he added. "I think there’s a distinct possibility now that the court will overturn Roe."

Critics of repealing protections for the right to an abortion under the 1973 Supreme Court decision have argued it goes against fundamental precedent traditionally held in rulings made by the high court. 

"The constitutional right to an abortion has been repeatedly affirmed," Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi said Wednesday. "Any failure to fully strike down the Mississippi ban would seriously erode the legitimacy of the Court, as the Court itself warned in its ruling in Casey, and question its commitment to the rule of law itself."

But Justice Brett Kavanaugh pushed back against this argument during the day’s hearings. "If you think about some of the most important cases in this court's history…there's a string of them where the cases overruled precedent," he said, referring to cases like Brown v. Board of Education and Miranda v. Arizona.

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"This is a watershed moment for our nation," Sen. Steve Daines, R-Mont., told Fox News. "I thought the questioning during the oral drawings by the justices was very informative. And I'm cautiously optimistic.

"We’re going to repeal Roe v. Wade and return the decision and the lawmaking on abortion back to the states because that’s where it belongs," he added. 

Rep. Jaime Herrera Beutler, R-Wash., mother to daughter Abigail who was born three months early without either kidney, called the day's events "significant."

"This was a very significant day in our journey to protect the lives of the unborn. My hope and prayer is that we have a good outcome that allows pro-life legislators across the country to implement laws that save lives," she said in a statement to Fox News. "I want to see all children – even and especially those who face adverse circumstances – get a shot at reaching their true potential."

"This is a part of the reason we worked so hard for three of Donald Trump’s Supreme Court nominees," Sen. Roger Wicker, R-Miss., told Fox News. "So I have every hope. But I think I would say that we have a realistic chance of success."

Democrats have threatened swift action should the Supreme Court repeal the decision that allows women the right to choose whether to terminate a pregnancy. 

"A ‘conservative’ court would uphold precedent. But a ‘partisan’ court may not — and this may be the most partisan court in history. We must protect a woman’s right to choose," Rep. Adam Schiff, D-Calif., said in reference to Democratic demands to expand the Supreme Court. 

The fact that Trump was able to name three justices to the high court has resulted in calls from Democrats to remove the filibuster and add seats to the court.

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This is a strategy Democrats argue will balance the Supreme Court as there are currently six GOP-appointed justices and just three Democrat-appointed justices. 

"A reminder that 2 of the 6 far-right justices preparing to overturn Roe v. Wade are sitting in stolen seats," Rep. Mondaire Jones,  D-N.Y., said in reference to the controversial seating of Justices Neil Gorsuch and Amy Coney Barrett.

"Abortion is health care. We must expand the court," he added.