Abortion, Every Day (1.23.24)

Missouri Republicans want to make it impossible to pass ballot measures

Click to skip ahead: In All About Wisconsin, I give you the rundown on Republicans’ ‘compromise’ bill. Ballot Measure Updates in Missouri, Colorado, Alabama and Maryland. In the States, Idaho Republicans want to do away with rape and incest exceptions. In Language Watch, Ohio Republicans hit every anti-abortion word I’ve been warning about. In 2024, are New Hampshire voters falling for Nikki Haley’s ‘reasonable Republican’ line? Stats & Studies finds that anxiety and depression went up among women after Dobbs. In the Nation, some quick hits. And finally, a new (very cool) abortion podcast in Listen Up.

---

All About Wisconsin

Let’s talk some more about the abortion ban being proposed by Wisconsin Republicans—a 14-week ban that would force women to have c-sections rather than emergency life-saving abortions. In the last two days, there’s been a ton of coverage for the bill; yet inexplicably, none have mentioned the mandate that would force vaginal deliveries or surgery rather than standard abortion care.

I simply do not understand. The language is right there in the bill—as is the history of this particular cruel move. And given that Republicans are framing the legislation as their abortion ‘compromise’, it’s downright ridiculous that the bill’s extremism isn’t being thoroughly covered.

Some background: Up until recently, Wisconsin’s 1849 abortion law was being treated as a total abortion ban. But in July, a judge ruled that the law isn’t actually an abortion ban at all—but “a feticide statute only.” (Meaning it only applies to an attack on a pregnant person that ends the pregnancy, and not abortion.)

That ruling opened the door for Planned Parenthood clinics in the state to providing care again, even though anti-abortion groups continue to claim that the law remains in effect as a total ban. The court battle around the law is expected to head to the state Supreme Court—which, thanks to the election of pro-choice judge Janet Protasiewicz, is now under liberal control.

That’s why Wisconsin Republicans are so eager to get any kind of abortion ban on the books, even if it’s not as strict as the 1849 law. They’re also making a huge bet by proposing their 14-week ban as a ballot measure: Every recent abortion-related ballot measure has come down on the pro-choice side, but I’m sure they think that feigning giving a shit what voters believe will help them.

That’s why Republicans are milking the lie that they just want an abortion law that voters support: At a public hearing yesterday, Republican Rep. Amanda Nedweski—who authored the bill—said, “It’s time to listen to the people about abortion.”

Democrats are (obviously) slamming the legislation, pointing out that it doesn’t have rape or incest exceptions. But the bill isn’t just getting blasted by pro-choicers: Anti-abortion groups are very nervous about it.

At the public hearing, the policy director for Wisconsin Family Action begged Republicans not to “water down one of the best laws in the United States protecting the unborn.” Matt Sande of Pro-Life Wisconsin argued that if the ballot measure were to pass, it would stop them from pushing stricter bans against voters’ wishes: “It’d be ‘oh, the people have spoken ’... and that would really hinder our organizational mission.” And Jack Hoogendyk of Wisconsin Family Action said that Republicans had a duty to ban abortion “no matter what the public opinion is.”

At least they’re honest that they don’t care about what voters want!

Ballot Measure Updates

Well, we knew this was coming. In response to Missouri abortion rights activists launching their ballot measure campaign, Republicans and anti-choice groups want to make it harder to pass a constitutional amendment.

The St. Louis Post-Dispatch reports that Rep. Ed Lewis, supported by Campaign Life Missouri and the Missouri Right to Life, want to require that ballot initiatives not just win a statewide majority—but majorities in five of eight congressional districts.

Thanks to GOP gerrymandering, that means amendments would need support in conservative areas in order to win. It’s a way to ensure that Republican districts could kill any measures they don’t like! Anti-abortion groups, of course, are framing the move as if they’re just trying to give voters “a voice.”

The House Elections and Elected Officials Committee heard testimony on the proposal today, where anti-choice activists and legislators made clear that they don’t give a shit about what voters want. When Democrat Rep. Joe Adams asked Lewis if this was an attack on direct democracy, for example, Lewis gave the response we’ve come to hear often from Republicans looking to excuse their attempts to undermine democracy: that this country isn’t a democracy, anyway:

“I think that our founding fathers were about as fearful of direct democracy as we should be. That’s why they created a republic.”

For background on how Missouri Republicans have been attacking democracy in order to stop any pro-choice amendments from moving forward, click here and here.

Maryland anti-abortion groups fighting against a pro-choice ballot measure using the same old talking points that lost in Ohio. Maryland Matters reports that an organization called Health Not Harm MD claims the amendment would “eliminate basic health safety regulations,” and that it “threatens to eliminate parental rights to make important medical decisions for their minor children.”

And CBS News reports that Jeffrey Trimbath, President of Maryland Family Institute, says “This amendment threatens parental rights. We think it harms women and children and we believe it's unnecessary.”

I don’t know why they think these lines are going to work any better in Maryland than in Ohio, but sure—go for it! In the meantime, Maryland House Speaker Adrienne Jones laid it plan:

“We can't take anything for granted when it comes to reproductive health care. We don't just need to win. We need to send a message.”

Here’s some more info on the effort by Alabama Democrats to get abortion rights on the ballot. As I reported yesterday, the measure can’t really go anywhere since it would need to pass the Republican-controlled legislature before getting to the ballot—but it’s a smart idea to remind voters that the state GOP is trying to prevent them from having a say.

Finally, a quick hit: Colorado Newsline and The Denver Post have more on the Colorado reproductive justice groups and lawmakers behind the state’s new ballot measure effort.

In the States

A North Dakota judge has denied a request to temporarily block the state’s abortion ban in order to allow doctors to perform emergency, life-saving abortions. Abortion providers and the Center for Reproductive Rights asked the judge to stop the state from targeting doctors who use “good-faith medical judgement” to perform abortions for those with dangerous pregnancies, but District Judge Bruce Romanick ruled against them. Naturally. The court still has to make a final ruling on the actual constitutionality of the ban.

Idaho Republicans want to strip away the tiny bit of abortion access that’s left in the state: Sen. Dan Foreman has proposed a bill to do away with rape and incest exceptions. Under his law, doctors who provide abortions to sexual violence victims would be punished with prison time. Democratic Rep. Lauren Necochea told the Idaho Statesman, “That the state would force a 12-year-old rape victim to carry a pregnancy is a shocking idea, and Sen. Foreman is clearly out of step with the values of the vast majority of Idahoans.”

The abortion rate in Florida has gone down for residents, but risen significantly for out-of-state patients. WUSF reports that there’s been a 46% increase in abortions for those traveling from other states, and Planned Parenthood clinics have seen their out-of-state patient volume quadruple. Michelle Quesada of Planned Parenthood of South, East and North Florida says the increase has a serious impact on waiting times for people to get care:

“In our northern centers, that really does push appointment wait times a little bit. The wait time is 4-5 weeks in Tally [Tallahassee] and 3-4 weeks in Jacksonville. So we’re still seeing a steady number of out-of-state patients that have nowhere else to turn to for this care.”

Right now, we’re waiting on a decision from the Florida Supreme Court on a challenge to the state’s 15-week abortion ban—a ruling that will determine the future of a more-recently-passed 6-week abortion ban that hasn’t gone into effect yet. At a news briefing yesterday, state Senate Democratic Leader Lauren Book reminded the press that the ruling could come down “at any time.”

Florida pro-choice activists are also pushing an abortion rights ballot measure that needs to be approved by the state Supreme Court before it can get on the ballot. It’s a tense time, considering that the Court has been stacked with judges by Gov. Ron DeSantis. And if abortion is further banned in Florida, it obviously won’t just impact people in the state—access in the entire region will be decimated.

---

If you missed my article earlier today about the travel bans being proposed in Tennessee and Oklahoma, check it out here:

Breaking: Travel bans proposed in Tennessee & Oklahoma

---

Minnesota’s equal rights amendment could get an update to include abortion rights. If approved by voters, the state ERA would prohibit the state from discriminating against anyone because of “race, color, national origin, ancestry, disability or sex, including but not limited to, pregnancy, pregnancy outcomes, and reproductive freedom, gender identity and gender expression, or sexual orientation.”

Betty Folliard, of ERA Minnesota says, "We're not expanding laws; we are putting those laws into the constitution so that they're permanent.”

Also in Minnesota: Planned Parenthood workers in the state secured their first union contract!

Quick hits:

• An Ohio OBGYN writes in The Columbus Dispatch that Issue 1 isn’t enough to protect abortion rights—voters need to keep Republicans from winning the state’s Senate seat;

• A new report found that the teen birth rate in Texas has risen for the first time in fifteen years thanks to the state’s abortion ban;

• The Charlotte Observer reports that Democratic Gov. Roy Cooper and other North Carolina Democrats plan to treat abortion as a top issue for 2024;

• And Indiana abortion provider Dr. Caitlin Bernard was the guest of honor at Our Choice Coalition’s fundraising event last night.

Language Watch

I swear to god, I need to get anti-abortion BINGO cards going because this quote I’m about to share hits every single term I’ve been warning about. In a debate this week between Ohio Senate Republican candidates, the three men were asked about whether they believe in a national abortion ban. Businessman Bernie Moreno kicked off the answers by refuting the word ‘ban’:

“To be clear, you’re using that word, I’m not…Insomuch as there is a federal law, I think we can work towards consensus around not having federal funding for abortion, and getting to a point where we can have a 15-week floor where there’s common-sense restrictions after 15 weeks. The reality is, the left has gotten so radical, so extreme on abortion…They’re the absolute extremists on abortion…”

Moreno even hit on the oh-so-common (bullshit) talking point that we need a federal abortion ban because it “puts us in line with even the most left-leaning European countries.”

Not be outdone, Secretary of State Frank LaRose said, “I don’t use the word ‘ban’,” and claimed “we have to be really thoughtful and compassionate about this issue.”

BINGO!

“Abortion is not a controversial issue; it’s a gerrymandered issue.” ~ Jennifer Driver, senior director of State Innovation Exchange (SiX), at an abortion rights briefing this week

2024

The Washington Post reports that Nikki Haley’s nonsense abortion talking points may be working in New Hampshire. As you all know, Haley has been hard at work pretending to be the ‘reasonable’ Republican on abortion—despite having the same exact position as her conservative colleagues. She’s used the word ‘consensus’ over and over again to distract from the fact that abortion bans are being passed against voters’ wishes, and constantly says a national abortion ban would never pass—an attempt to give the impression that she wouldn’t support one. (She would.)

One New Hampshire college student told WaPo, for example, that she likes Haley because she doesn’t support a national ban: “She’s not going to make it outlawed on a federal level.” Again, Haley absolutely does support national legislation, and made a pledge to sign a 15-week ban. Another college student said she supports Haley because she’s personally anti-abortion but pro-choice for other people: “She has great ideas, especially about abortion.” Ugh.

This is why it’s so, so important that we’re repeating the truth about these candidates—and all Republicans—over and over again. There’s a reason Haley repeats the same abortion talking points in every single speech despite her ‘moderation’ being consistently debunked—she knows it works!

That’s why I’m glad to see that Democrats are running the below ad on a mobile billboard around the University of New Hampshire today.

Stats & Studies

New research published this week by researchers at Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health found that there was an uptick in anxiety and depression after the Dobbs decision. Unsurprisingly, those negative mental health symptoms were more likely among women of reproductive age living in anti-choice states. The researchers report that after the Dobbs decision was leaked, those symptoms of anxiety and depression worsened, and continued to worsen after SCOTUS officially released its ruling.

In the Nation

• Danco Laboratories filed a brief to the Supreme Court in the mifepristone case today, urging them to repeal the 5th Circuit Court’s ruling;

• The Guardian talks to abortion rights activists who want Democrats to work for something better than “restoring Roe”;

• POLITICO covers Biden’s abortion strategy;

• Salon on whether Roe could ever be restored;

• The Intercept on the lie that the anti-abortion movement “loves them both”;

• And Stat News reports that donations to abortion funds are falling. (Here’s a good way to remedy that!)

Listen Up

A huge congratulations to We Testify’s Renee Bracey Sherman and co-host Regina Mahone, editor at The Nation, on the launch of their new abortion podcast! The A Files: The Secret History of Abortion is out to address the fact that “everything you’ve been taught about abortion is wrong.” I’m super excited to listen to the first episode tonight.

If you want to find out more, check out this interview that Teen Vogue did with the two reproductive justice activists, or listen to The A Files’ trailer below: