The oral arguments before the Supreme Court in Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization, which involves a Mississippi law that bans nearly all abortions after 15 weeks of pregnancy, may give an indication of the future for access to the procedure, and for national politics. The Times columnists Michelle Goldberg, Charles M. Blow and Ross Douthat and the Times Opinion podcast host Lulu Garcia-Navarro gathered to discuss what they heard at the court on Wednesday, where they see it heading and how they, and the country, will continue to wrestle with the issue of abortion.

Michelle Goldberg: I don’t think there’s any doubt that this court is going to uphold the Mississippi law. To me the only question is whether it overturns Roe v. Wade altogether, or comes up with some new standard to replace viability, an outcome Chief Justice John Roberts seemed to be groping toward. My guess is it overturns. What do you all think?

Lulu Garcia-Navarro: I agree, all the justices showed their cards and their thinking on this issue. What fascinated me was how plainly the liberal justices — mainly Stephen Breyer and Sonia Sotomayor — spoke about the politics of this issue. Justice Sotomayor’s comment about whether the court can “survive the stench” of overturning Roe was almost a direct appeal to Chief Justice Roberts, who has been vocally worried about how the court is viewed since the conservative majority has taken over.