Photo: Sergio Flores/Getty Images In May, Texas governor Greg Abbott signed into law an abortion ban that feels inconceivably extreme, even by his state’s standards. Senate Bill 8 banned abortion past the point of fetal “cardiac activity” — in practical terms, around six weeks — even in cases where pregnancies result from incest or rape. Though cruel, this type of ban is not uncommon, particularly not in a year that saw state legislatures pass a record 108 abortion restrictions. But S.B.
The six-week mark is pegged to the fallacy — beloved by anti-abortion groups — that a human heart begins to beat about six weeks into pregnancy. But the existence of a heartbeat implies the existence of a heart, something embryos don’t have. Abortion antagonists have never been in it for accuracy, and in evoking the specter of a heartbeat, they seek to play on emotions. Still, six-week bans are typically hard to route around the Supreme Court, which currently — under terms set by Roe v.
As a last resort, attorneys for the providers filed an emergency application to the U.S. Supreme Court — specifically, to Justice Samuel Alito — emphasizing that the law unconstitutionally outlaws pre-viability abortion and would “immediately and catastrophically reduce … access in Texas,” forcing many clinics to close. But SCOTUS refused to block S.B. 8, and the measure went into effect on September 1.
“This whole mechanism only works if there is a credible threat of lawsuits being brought against an industry if they decide to ignore the law,” said John Seago, the legislative director for Texas Right to Life, told CNN. “So we have been working to make sure that all those pieces are in place, that if we do have reports, that we do see evidence that they’re violating the law, then we can actually enforce the law ourselves.
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