It’s Been a Rough Week for Abortionists
Three states passed laws restricting abortion this past week, Arizona took a big step toward defunding Planned Parenthood, and House Democrats failed to shut down a House panel investigating the fetal tissue industry.
Early in the week, the Louisiana legislature voted to ban “dismemberment” abortions. That’s a procedure typically used in the second trimester in which an abortionist pulls a living fetus out of the womb piece by piece with a metal tool, after dilating the woman’s cervix. Gov. John Bel Edwards intends to sign the bill into law, which would make Louisiana the sixth state to ban the procedure.
South Carolina lawmakers passed a law banning abortion at 20 weeks Tuesday, the point in a pregnancy when evidence shows the unborn child can feel pain. Gov. Nikki Haley is expected to sign the bill when it hits her desk, making South Carolina the 17th state to ban abortion after 19 weeks. The bill passed overwhelmingly in both chambers.
The Oklahoma legislature passed a nationally unprecedented abortion bill Thursday that would make it a felony for anyone who’s not a doctor to perform an abortion, and strip the medical license of any doctor who performs an abortion, except to save the life of the mother. Republican Gov. Mary Fallin vetoed the bill Friday, saying it wouldn’t withstand a constitutional challenge, but it’s possible the legislature will override her veto. The bill had strong support in both the House and Senate.
Gov. Doug Ducey cleared the way for Arizona to strip Planned Parenthood clinics in the state of Medicaid funds Tuesday, when he signed a bill granting new power to the Arizona Health Care Cost Containment System. A number of states defunded the non-profit after a series of undercover videos were released last year showing top Planned Parenthood doctors discussing and participating in the harvesting, dissection, and distribution of aborted fetuses
The videos caught the attention of congressional Republicans, and the House Select Investigative Panel on Infant Lives has been tasked with investigating the fetal tissue industry and late-term abortion practices. House Democrats tried to shut down the panel through an amendment offered to a spending bill this week, but the measure was defeated. The panel is flexing its subpoena power to uncover potentially incriminating accounting information from fetal harvesters such as StemExpress, and recently launched an investigation into a Maryland abortionist accused of killing babies born alive.
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