Texas House set to pass bill requiring a sonogram before having an abortion
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Republicans in the Texas House will demonstrate their newly-gained power today when they give the official approval of a bill that would require women to get a sonogram before having an abortion.
The legislation survived lengthy debate and exhaustive efforts from Democrats to amend the bill on Thursday. The Texas House needs to take one more procedural vote this afternoon and then send the bill to the Texas Senate, where a similar, less stringent sonogram bill already passed.
In an example of the aggressive anti-abortion rights battles that conservatives are mounting at the state level, the sonogram bill was the first major piece of legislation taken up by the Texas legislature this year. It was one of five measures given "emergency" status by Republican Gov. Rick Perry, in order to hasten their passage. Like the sonogram measure, the other "emergency" items are relatively partisan and politically charged: a voter identification measure, a bill indicating state support for a balanced federal budget amendment to the U.S. Constitution, an eminent domain measure and a ban on "sanctuary" cities.
The state Senate version of the sonogram bill would grant exemptions for victims of rape or incest. The state House, however, where Republicans hold a two-thirds majority, did not include such an exemption in its version. The state House also rejected an amendment that would have "substituted" the House version with the exact wording of the Senate bill, signaling the legislature may have trouble reconciling the two bills.
In response to the forceful objections raised by Democrats, Republican lawmakers pointed out that a woman may choose "not to receive the information" from the sonogram, the Associated Press reports. In other words, a woman would not be penalized for looking away from the image of the fetus, or wearing headphones to avoid hearing a heartbeat.
Under the legislation, doctors who failed to provide a sonogram before performing an abortion would lose their medical license.
Democrats offered numerous amendments last week to illustrate their objections to the bill. State Rep. Harold Dutton offered an amendment that would, in the event that a woman decided give birth to her child after undergoing the sonogram, require the state to pay for that child's college tuition, the Texas Tribune reports.
Dutton offered another amendment that would have compelled the state to pay for that child's health care until age 18, as well as a third amendment to pay for the child's health care up until age six. All three amendments failed.
"We want to see all these children around, but the state of Texas ends its obligation to that child when it's born," Dutton said, according to the Tribune. "We want it born, but we don't want to do our duty."
State Rep. Marisa Marquez offered an amendment that would have allowed a woman, after being compelled to receive a sonogram, to force the unborn child's father to undergo a vasectomy. That amendment also failed.
State Rep. Carol Alvarado, according to the Associated Press, carried an ultrasound wand onto the House floor on Wednesday and on Thursday, described in detail how the tool is used. "This is government intrusion at an all-time high," she said.
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Soon we will become Iran.
Ga. Law Could Give Death Penalty for Miscarriages
- By Jen Phillips
| Wed Feb. 23, 2011 4:32 AM PST.It's only February, but this year has been a tough one for women's health and reproductive rights. There's a new bill on the block that may have reached the apex (I hope) of woman-hating craziness. Georgia State Rep. Bobby Franklin-who last year proposed making rape and domestic violence "victims" into "accusers"-has introduced a 10-page bill that would criminalize miscarriages and make abortion in Georgia completely illegal. Both miscarriages and abortions would be potentially punishable by death: any "prenatal murder" in the words of the bill, including "human involvement" in a miscarriage, would be a felony and carry a penalty of life in prison or death. Basically, it's everything an "pro-life" activist could want aside from making all women who've had abortions wear big red "A"s on their chests.
I doubt that a bill that makes a legal medical procedure liable for the death penalty will pass. The bill, however, shows an astonishing lack of concern for women's health and well-being. Under Rep. Franklin's bill, HB 1, women who miscarry could become felons if they cannot prove that there was "no human involvement whatsoever in the causation" of their miscarriage. There is no clarification of what "human involvement" means, and this is hugely problematic as medical doctors do not know exactly what causes miscarriages. Miscarriages are estimated to terminate up to a quarter of all pregnancies and the Mayo Clinic says that "the actual number is probably much higher because many miscarriages occur so early in pregnancy that a woman doesn't even know she's pregnant. Most miscarriages occur because the fetus isn't developing normally."
Holding women criminally liable for a totally natural, common biological process is cruel and non-sensical. Even more ridiculous, the bill holds women responsible for protecting their fetuses from "the moment of conception," despite the fact that pregnancy tests aren't accurate until at least 3 weeks after conception. Unless Franklin (who is not a health professional) invents a revolutionary intrauterine conception alarm system, it's unclear how exactly the state of Georgia would enforce that rule other than holding all possibly-pregnant women under lock and key.
I've seen a lot of anti-woman, hate-filled bills this year, but this one takes the cake. And it's not just anti-woman, it's anti-logic. The bill contends that Georgia is exempt from upholding Supreme Court decisions like Roe v. Wade because the Constitution's Article I only governs five crimes: counterfeiting, piracy, high seas felonies, offenses against the law of nations, and treason. According to the bill, since murder is not one of those five crimes, it should be solely governed by the state. The bill also mandates that doctors must try to save the mother and the fetus, even though as we know, there are many situations in which both cannot be saved. It also changes medical terminology, re-designating all zygotes, embryos, and concepti as fetuses. In the bill's logic, a fertilized egg is the same as a person, and its destruction is murder. Sometimes even a fertilized egg will fail to adhere to the uterine lining, so would that make a uterus a murderer? At least the bill doesn't propose instituting pro-life Stork Bucks or outlawing "space abortions"...yet.
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Abortion is a band aid for the far greater problem of the lack of abstinence and lack of financial support and education for these women. At the moment until we fund and actually support women they should legally be allowed to have an abortion regardless of how terrible one is for her and for the child.
Also not that the same ignorance that belongs to some liberals is also equally shared by a lot of conservatives.
I just want us to fund and support women :(
The human brain isn't fully physiologically formed until a child nearly three and psychologically, until between five and six. To simplify, In cases of a complete absence of adequate parenting, the brain PHYSICALLY forms into one capable only of psychopathic responses. A human isn't humane unless they have received basic nurturing for at bare minimum the first 12 months.
Pro-life needs to be much more than 9 months gestation.
jimbom123..Yers are the best said. Abortion is not done lightly. Some are done for medical reasons.
I don't live in TX. I would not afther Tyler. I hated it.
I am a sp needs person and I am in my 50s. I am blind from birth.
There children here born yet all they care about is birthing more. Go read the article on homeless kids. That makes no sense to bring more in. Are they gonna pass a law where Mommy has to be fixed so she can't breed after an abortion..I don't think so.
Where do unwanted children go..Foster homes..I was a foster child..They want able bodied kids to grow up and fight in wars..
The church won't allow birth control.
Some persons are baby crazy..They will do anything to have a child but think things thru..Girls are on a one track mind Baby. Babies are demanding. etc.
When I lived in Texas the Dems were in control of the all three branches of the government and the state ran great. Now under the repubs, they have something like at $15 Billion deficit.
And Washington is being run by idiots!
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Texas is being run by idiots.
http://motherjones.com/blue-marble/2011/02/miscarriage-death-penalty-georgia
Why do you hate America?
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Why do YOU hate puppies and kittens ????
No you dont. If a person is being endangered by anyone at any time in their life, it is our problem
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Then tell me why the holier than thou Republican party doesn't seem to care about these children once they're born.