Abortion, Every Day (8.21.23)

In the States

I’m sorry to say that the Indiana Supreme Court declined to rehear the case against the state’s abortion ban from the ACLU and Planned Parenthood. That means the law, which is essentially a total abortion ban, is now in effect. (Nearly all of the clinics in the state had already stopped providing abortion care on August 1, even though the ban wasn’t enforceable until the Court certified its decision.)

The executive director of the ACLU of Indiana, Jane Henegar, called it a “dark day.”

“We have seen the horrifying impact of bans like this across the country, and the narrow exceptions included in this extreme ban will undoubtedly put Hoosiers’ lives at risk. We will continue to fight in court to clarify and expand upon the current exceptions. Every person should have the fundamental freedom to control their own body and politicians’ personal opinions should play no part in this personal decision.” 

For a reminder on the details of the ban—and just how cruel it is—you can read my previous coverage here.

In Nebraska, Planned Parenthood of North Central States has appealed a judge’s decision that rejected a legal challenge to the state’s abortion ban and anti-trans law. The challenge was based on the Nebraska constitution’s rule that bills can’t contain more than one subject—but the judge sided with the state’s lawyers, who argued that the issues were actually not distinct because they were both about health. Ruth Richardson, president of the regional Planned Parenthood, said the group “will never stop fighting for the reproductive freedom, bodily autonomy and health of our Nebraska communities.”

A reminder that abortion rights advocates in the state are also working on a pro-choice ballot measure. As you know, when abortion rights are put on the ballot, abortion rights win. So fingers and toes crossed.

Speaking of ballot measures: Floridians Protecting Freedom, the group working to get abortion in front of voters in Florida, reports that they’ve collected more than 600,000 of the 900,000 signatures needed to move the measure forward. Campaign Director Lauren Brenzel says, “Floridians are fighting back against the threat abortion bans pose to their freedom, and we are confident that will translate to success at the ballot box.”

While pretty much everything I cover at Abortion, Every Day reminds me just how dystopian our current reality is, every once in a while there’s a piece of news that really drives it home. Last week, the Attorney General of Arizona released guidance on how those seeking abortion care can protect themselves from arrest and criminalization. (Abortion is banned in Arizona after 15 weeks, and a total abortion ban from 1864 is currently blocked and being battled out in court.)

AG Kris Mayes’ consumer alert details how abortion patients can protect their digital privacy—from step-by-step instructions on how to shut off location tracking on their phone and disable activity trackers, to how to use VPNs. The publication of the document comes after a roundtable discussion Mayes’ held last week with abortion rights advocacy groups. From her statement about the guidance:

“While abortion remains legal in Arizona, the legal landscape around this issue remains in flux, and it is important for individuals to be aware of the digital footprint they create so they can make informed decisions about protecting their data privacy.” 

There is just something so wildly fucked up about a state employee having to tell people about how to avoid criminalization…by the state. One small quibble with the document, which is generally pretty good: the guidance tells readers to only disclose their plans to get an abortion with “trusted people in your life.” That warning doesn’t go nearly far enough. The unfortunate truth is that anti-abortion snitch culture has incentivized families and friends turning each other in, and those seeking care should be advised not to tell anyone they don’t have to—even those that they trust.

I hate to say that, I really do, but as this report in Ms. magazine points out, those who are criminalized for having abortions are often turned in by the people they trust and love the most. A report from If/When/How, for example, found that 26% of those brought up on criminal charges were reported to law enforcement by friends, relatives and intimate partners. Another 18% percent were reported by “other” means, which Ms. points out “includes anonymous reports (presumably made by individuals who fall into the ‘friends, relatives and partners’ category, among others).”

This is wild: A Republican candidate for Louisiana Attorney General, state Solicitor General Liz Murrill, falsely claimed that abortion medication is laced with fentanyl. Last week, Murrill gave a radio interview about her candidacy for AG—but the comment appears to have been made during an off-air conversation captured on camera. Murrill was talking about drugs, and said that the legalization of marijuana has created “a great black market” that increases the spread of fentanyl:

“And they do put fentanyl in pot. All of these drugs coming in and people buying things online, it is also a problem, frankly, with abortion pills. Buy them online, well they’re gonna have fentanyl in them.”

There is no evidence to suggest that abortion medication purchased online is laced with drugs. But Republicans have good reason to lie: Abortion medication prescribed online has made it much safer and easier to end a pregnancy in anti-abortion states, and anti-abortion activists are furious that patients have been able to obtain care in spite of the law. So it makes sense that in the same way conservatives lie about the safety of procedural abortions, they’ll lie about pills, too. (Let’s not even get into the irony of Republicans ‘worrying’ about the safety of online abortion medication after they’ve left so many patients no other choice.)

Safe websites to find & buy abortion medication: Aid Access, Plan C Pills, Hey Jane, Abortion Finder, I Need An A

I missed this story out of Texas while I was on vacation, but it’s a doozy: The state is being sued by a prison guard who says her bosses prohibited her from going to the hospital when she started to have labor pains while seven months pregnant—a delay in care that resulted in a stillbirth. How is the state defending itself? By arguing that her fetus doesn’t qualify as a person under the law. That’s right, apparently a fetus is only a person in Texas when it comes to abortion. Completely horrific.

Over at MSNBC, Andrea Grimes (who also has a terrific abortion rights newsletter) points out something vital about the story:

“But this is not hypocrisy—this is ideological consistency. It is business as usual. And it tracks with the only record the Lone Star State has when it comes to the health of pregnant Texans and Texas children: a deadly one.”

In related news, Dallas Weekly looks at a recent ruling in favor of Texas women harmed by the state’s abortion ban and its connection to Black maternal health. (The state’s maternal death rate among Black women increased by over 35% from 2019 to 2021.)

Mississippi Today takes an important look at why Republicans in the state are afraid to let Mississippi voters have a say on abortion rights. You may remember that lawmakers in the state were considering reinstating ballot initiatives earlier this year, but with the specific caveat that the process couldn’t be used to restore abortion rights.

And this is interesting: The California GOP may rewrite their party platform to remove opposition to marriage equality and abortion rights. Jessica Levinson, a Loyola Law School professor, told the Los Angeles Times, “It’s a seismic shift but it’s a shift born out of practical necessity: Look at what’s happening not just in California but in much more conservative states, realizing antiabortion, anti-same-sex marriage stances are no longer tenable.”

Conservatives, however, are freaking out over the possible change, calling it unnecessarily divisive in a pivotal moment for the party. One Republican described it as “a big middle finger” to the presidential candidates who will be speaking at the GOP state convention this fall.

Republicans in another pro-choice state, Illinois, are also trying to figure out how to deal with abortion. The Chicago Tribune reports that Republicans in the state understand they’re losing on the issue. Demetra DeMonte, Illinois'‘ Republican national committeewoman, saying, “We are the ones that must change.” But unlike California Republicans, the state GOP isn’t changing their platform and DeMonte says that the party needs to get even more aggressive. (Good luck with that!)

Quick hits:

• At MSNBC, Joy Reid talks about the Mississippi 13-year old rape victim who was denied an abortion;

• The New Republic looks at Pennsylvania Governor Josh Shapiro’s decision to end the state’s longstanding contract with an anti-abortion center;

• PBS Wisconsin looks at Republican efforts to increase funding to anti-abortion centers;

• How having abortion rights and marijuana on the ballot in Ohio might impact turnout for both;

• And while The Wall Street Journal says that GOP voters in Iowa want the presidential candidates to “hold firm” on severe abortion bans, polls show that Republican support for total abortion bans have dropped significantly over the last few years.

In the Nation

Remember Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals Judge James Ho and his truly bizarre argument in the mifepristone decision that abortion robs doctors of the joy of delivering babies? Well, it turns out that his wife, Allyson Ho, has—for years—accepted money from the Alliance Defending Freedom, the conservative legal organization who brought the case against mifepristone. The Lever reports that for every year since 2018, she has participated in events with the group and received thousands of dollars in speaking fees and travel expenses.

From Gabe Roth, executive director of the watchdog organization, Fix the Court:

“The bottom line is that any entity that is putting money in your spouse’s bank account raises a potential for impropriety if you sit on one of those cases. The money was put there in the last couple of years, it’s not like that’s easily forgettable.”

Ho responded to the report by saying he consulted an ethics advisor who told the judge he didn’t need to recuse himself, and that “Allyson’s practice is to donate honoraria to charity.” (Please note that he didn’t say she did donate that money to charity, just that it’s her ‘practice’ to do so.)

In related news, MSNBC’s Chris Hayes laid into Ho’s judicial opinion last week:

Sen. Tommy Tuberville, who has blocked more than 300 military nominations and promotions, told a conservative interviewer, “I don't care if they promote anybody to be honest with you.” I don’t know how well that comment is going to go over, especially among military families—which POLITICO reports are really feeling the effects of Tuberville’s ‘protest’.

Over at Slate, Christina Cauterucci wrote a vital piece about the way that conservatives are using anti-trans scare tactics and misinformation to fight against pro-choice ballot measures. This is an issue I’ve been talking about a lot here at the newsletter: Essentially, conservatives in places like Ohio have spent millions of dollars on ad campaigns falsely claiming that abortion rights ballot measures will allow children to have gender-affirming surgery without parental consent. Their hope is that anti-trans bigotry will be more popular than their stance on abortion—which keeps losing every ballot it’s put on.

Cauterucci, who has been doing fantastic work on abortion rights, provides a rundown of where we’re seeing this strategy in action and why they’re using it despite the lie being debunked at every turn:

“[A]nti-abortion activists aren’t concerned about the truth of the matter; they’re invested in the long-term maintenance of transphobic anxiety in the electorate as a means to achieve their other political goals. In trans people, they have found the perfect punching bag: members of a tiny minority with little political power who can be made out to represent a fundamental threat to the traditional gender order.”

Finally, yet another interview with Students for Life president Kristan Hawkins where there is no question or mention of the fact that the group wants to make birth control illegal. (You may remember this glossy profile in The Atlantic that made the same mistake.) At this point, I’m truly at a loss.

Quick hits:

• The Marshall Project on conservative efforts to remove or censure prosecutors who refuse to go after abortion cases;

• TIME on the domino effect if mifepristone is restricted or banned;

• Vox reporter Ian Millhiser on why we should hold out some hope on the Supreme Court and abortion medication;

• Finally, both Vogue and Salon get into the very disappointing abortion (or non-abortion, more accurately) storyline in “And Just Like That.”

2024

The first Republican presidential debate will be held this Wednesday in Wisconsin, where abortion is sure to play a central role.

Mike Pence is already gearing up to call out his fellow nominees on their hesitance to support a national abortion ban, saying, “I see people in the field, including my former running mate, that are shying away from the cause of life, trying to relegate it only to a state issue.” Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, however, continues to evade a firm answer on federal legislation, much to the continued annoyance of anti-abortion groups. In remarks this weekend in New Hampshire, DeSantis said, “Look, I think I understand that, you know, you’re going to have different states do that differently.”

For more on where the candidates stand on abortion, both the Associated Press and The New York Times have a roundup of their positions.

What Conservatives Are Saying: The “Three Exceptions”

New talking point alert! In light of the absolute ass-kicking Republicans are taking anytime abortion is on the ballot, they’ve been desperately trying to sort out how to talk about the issue in a way that doesn’t piss off voters or attract the ire of anti-abortion groups. They think they’ve found their answer with the ‘three exceptions’ rule—a longstanding GOP phrase that’s taken on new energy in the last few weeks.

This month, Donald Trump said, “I support the three exceptions, for rape, incest, and the life of the mother.” Trump, who has refused to explicitly support a national abortion ban, continued, “to me, the three exceptions are very important.”

And earlier this month, a GOP strategist told ABC News about the way Republicans are thinking about how to frame a national abortion ban. He said, “a 6-week ban at the federal level is absolutely a loser,” but that “part of this is how you message it.” What’s more palatable? You guessed it:

“How about a 15-week national minimum standard with the three exceptions? That doesn't sound as terrifying as an abortion ban. I don't think you lose the middle when you get to something like 15 weeks with the reasonable exceptions.”

Please note the emphasized sentence: Republicans’ entire plan is to make their truly horrific bans seem as not “as terrifying” as they actually are. And while I’ve been writing for a while now about how conservatives use exceptions as a way to feign softening on the issue, this focus on the ‘three exceptions’ feels more pointed.

That’s why it’s more important than ever that Democrats repeat again and again that exceptions aren’t real. Not that they’re difficult to use or include too many hurdles. We need to make clear that they are absolutely fucking imaginary.

You Love to See It

This new Michigan new ad campaign seeking to woo out-of-state workers is just terrific. The ads, all of which feature the slogan, “In Michigan, all are welcome,” simply relays the rights people enjoy in the state: like reproductive rights and LGBTQ rights.

Michigan has been leading the way on abortion rights for a while now: Democrats, led by Gov. Gretchen Whitmer, have embraced a proactive agenda on the issue and enshrined abortion rights in the state constitution. Whitmer has also made it practice to talk about how “bigotry is bad for business.” She says, “People want to create homes in places where they know that their leaders and laws align with their values.”

It isn’t a coincidence that the ads are targeted to those in Florida, Texas, Georgia, Indiana, South Carolina and Tennessee.