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California Bill Allows Nurses, Others to Perform Abortions

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Photo Credit: LifeNews

Photo Credit: LifeNews

California’s liberal Gov. Jerry Brown now has a bill on his desk allowing nurses, certified midwives, and other specially trained clinicians to perform early-term vacuum aspiration and medicine-induced abortions.

AB 154, whose main sponsor is Planned Parenthood Affiliates of California and is supported by numerous pro-choice groups, passed both legislative chambers this past week and is now on Brown’s desk, reports Breitbart News.

If Brown signs the bill, it will allow non-physician staff at Planned Parenthood’s clinics, among others, to obtain licenses to perform the abortion procedures.

Planned Parenthood says the legislation is necessary because a shortage of doctors in some parts of the state means that women often have to wait until later in their pregnancies to terminate them, which is a riskier procedure.

“Early abortion access is a critical public health issue,” Planned Parenthood says on its legislative page.

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Gov. Rick Perry Signs Major Abortion Restrictions into Law

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Photo Credit: Frederic J BrownRick Perry, the Republican governor of Texas, signed into law the nation’s most sweeping new abortion limits on Thursday morning, in a move that is likely to be subject to a challenge in the courts.

The bill, which will drastically reduce access to abortion in the state, failed to pass last month because of an 11-hour filibuster by state senator Wendy Davis, a Democrat. It was passed last week after Perry called a second special session to do so.

“It is a very happy, celebratory day,” Perry said, before he sat down to sign the bill, at the Capitol auditorium, where the bill-signing ceremony was held amid tight security.

“This is an important day for those who support life and for those who support the health of Texas women,” said Perry, a staunch anti-abortionist. “In signing House Bill 2, we celebrate and further cement the foundation on which the culture of life in Texas is built.”

A dozen state troopers were stationed outside the building, alongside scores of protesters in orange shirts, carrying coat hangers and signs that read: “Shame”, according to Dallas News.

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Texas Passes Historic Abortion Restrictions While Protesters Attempt to Bring Feces, Urine into Capitol

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Photo Credit: APBy Fox News. The Texas Senate late Friday passed tough new abortion restrictions after weeks of protests, sending them to Gov. Rick Perry to sign into law.

The vote came after weeks of protests and rallies drew thousands to the Capitol and made Texas the focus of the national abortion debate.

Republicans used their majority to pass the bill nearly three weeks after a filibuster by Democratic Sen. Wendy Davis and an outburst by abortion-rights supporters in the Senate gallery disrupted a deadline vote.

Called back for a new special session by Perry, lawmakers took up the bill again as thousands of supporters and opponents held rallies and jammed the Capitol to testify at public hearings.

In a statement released just after the vote, Perry said, “Today the Texas Legislature took its final step in our historic effort to protect life. This legislation builds on the strong and unwavering commitment we have made to defend life and protect women’s health.” Read more from this story HERE.

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Texas Department of Public Safety Press Release Confirms Feces, Urine Taken from Pro-Abortion Protesters Trying to Gain Entrance to Capitol

AUSTIN – The Texas Department of Public Safety (DPS) today received information that individuals planned to use a variety of items or props to disrupt legislative proceedings at the Texas Capitol.

Therefore for safety purposes, DPS recommended to the Texas Senate that all bags be inspected prior to allowing individuals to enter the Senate gallery, which the Texas Senate authorized.

During these inspections, DPS officers have thus far discovered one jar suspected to contain urine, 18 jars suspected to contain feces, and three bottles suspected to contain paint. All of these items – as well as significant quantities of feminine hygiene products, glitter and confetti possessed by individuals – were required to be discarded; otherwise those individuals were denied entry into the gallery.

In the interest of the safety and security of Texas legislators and the general public, these inspections will continue until the conclusion of Senate business.

Wisconsin Senate Descends into Chaos During Debate Over Abortion Bill (+video)

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Photo Credit: Raw Story

The debate over a bill requiring women to undergo an ultrasound procedure before being permitted to have an abortion resulted in an explosive shouting match on the floor of the Wisconsin Senate Wednesday.

State Sen. Kathleen Vinehout (D) began by reading various letters from her constituents complaining about the adverse affects the proposed legislation may have on women and victims of rape.

Vinehout’s argument was rebutted by her Republican colleague state Sen. Mary Lazich, who pointed out that victims of rape and incest are exempted in the anti-abortion legislation. She dismissed Vinehout’s argument as “theatrics”…

“They make that decision, it’s over! It’s over in a few minutes,” she said. “And then later on they can live with the fact that they terminated their pregnancy and it was the best thing for them or they killed their child and they made a horrific decision and they regret it and they wish they never would have done it.”

Following Lazich’s comments, Senate President Mike Ellis ( R) called for a vote on the bill despite efforts by Senate Democrats to extend the debate. The move resulted in chaos on the Senate floor.

See what happened here:

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Congressional Testimony: Standard Late-Term Abortion Method More Brutal Than Gosnell’s ‘Snippings’

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Photo Credit: APOn Thursday, a House Judiciary subcommittee held a hearing on a bill that would ban most abortions during the last four months of pregnancy nationwide. Proponents of the legislation frequently cited the murder trial of abortion doctor Kermit Gosnell, as well as the words of President Obama himself, to make their case for a new law.

“The Gosnell trial reminds us that when newborn babies are cut with scissors, they whimper and cry, and flinch from pain,” House Judiciary chairman Bob Goodlatte said during opening remarks. “But it takes only a moment’s thought to realize that wherever babies are cut, they whimper and cry, and flinch from pain. Delivered or not, babies are babies, and they can feel pain at 20 weeks. It is time to welcome young children who can feel pain into the human family. And this bill, at last, will do just that.”

Rep. Trent Franks of Arizona, the sponsor of the bill and the subcommittee chairman, quoted heavily from Obama’s speech in response to the Newtown massacre. “This is our first task: caring for our children. It’s our first job. If we don’t get that right, we don’t get anything right. That’s how we as a society will be judged,” Franks said, quoting Obama. “Are we really prepared to say that we’re powerless in the face of such carnage. That the politics are too hard? Are we prepared to say that such violence visited upon our children year after year after year is somehow the price of our freedom?”

One of the witnesses, Dr. Anthony Levatino, an obstetrician who performed more than 1,200 abortions before a moral awakening led him to stop performing them, testified about the inherent brutality of the late-term abortion procedure he used to perform.

Whereas Dr. Gosnell killed newborns by cutting into their necks to sever their spinal cords, Dr. Levatino testified that a standard late-term abortion procedure known as “dilation and evacuation” involves the dismemberment of a very developed child in utero.

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Colorado Dems Adopt ‘Kermit Gosnell Enabler Act’

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Photo Credit: WNDOn the heels of Kermit Gosnell’s extended abortion murder trial in Philadelphia, in which he was accused of killing infants who had been born alive by using a scissors to cut their spinal cords, majority Democrats in Colorado have adopted a strategy to prevent any such prosecution in Colorado

The Democrats are led by Senate President John Morse, majority caucus chair Jeanne Nicholson and House Speaker Mark Ferrandino. One opponent has come up with a striking name for House Bill 1154, which repeals certain state criminal statutes regarding the abortion procedure.

“Under guise of protecting pregnant women, this bill repeals the Colorado criminal abortion statutes, which in some respects, makes this the Kermit Gosnell Enabler Act,” Colorado Rep. Lori Saine, R-Dacono, told WND.

“In addition, HB 1154 repeals part of the statute that protects freedom of conscience – severing the rights of hospitals, doctors and medical staff to refuse [to participate] in abortions.”

Gosnell’s case attracted attention from even the generally pro-abortion establishment media with its horrific testimony of babies born alive, left on shelves breathing for 20 minutes then summarily killed with the spinal column snip.

Read more from this story HERE.

Obama Hammers New State Abortion Laws

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President Obama slammed state abortion restrictions Friday in a speech to Planned Parenthood’s national conference.

Obama criticized efforts at the state and federal levels to cut off funding for Planned Parenthood and roll back access to abortion.

When abortion-rights supporters see some of the proposed restrictions, “you want to check the calendar, you want to make sure it’s still 2013,” Obama said.

Obama criticized Republican governors’ attempts to limit abortion access — a trend that has gathered steam over the past few years as conservatives shift from requirements like parental notification to laws that set increasingly early limits on when a woman can receive an abortion.

“There’s nothing conservative about the government injecting itself into decisions best made between a woman and her doctors,” Obama said.

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North Dakota Governor Signs Law Banning Most Abortions (+video)

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Photo Credit: mobeans

What is being called the nation’s toughest anti-abortion measure — a law that bans most abortions after six weeks, when a fetal heartbeat can be first detected — was signed into law on Tuesday by North Dakota’s governor.

The law sets the stage for an almost guaranteed legal showdown, with proponents saying the law is intended to test the 1973 U.S. Supreme Court ruling that made abortion legal.

“Although the likelihood of this measure surviving a court challenge remains in question, this bill is nevertheless a legitimate attempt by a state legislature to discover the boundaries of Roe v. Wade,” Gov. Jack Dalrymple said in a statement.

The governor directed the legislature to set aside funds to cover the cost of the expected legal battle, which opponents vowed to mount if the governor signed the measure into law.

“North Dakota’s governor today effectively banned abortion in the state, with an outrageous and unconstitutional law that will not stand,” said Cecile Richards, president of the Planned Parenthood Action Fund.

Watch video here:

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ND Lawmakers Define Life As Starting At Conception, First Step in Outlawing Abortions

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Photo Credit: The Bismarck Tribune

North Dakota didn’t set out to become the abortion debate’s new epicenter. It happened by accident, after a legislative caucus that once vetted abortion bills languished, leaving lawmakers to propose a flurry of measures — some cribbed from Wikipedia — without roadblocks.

Long dismissed as cold and inconsequential, North Dakota is now trying to enact the toughest abortion restrictions in the nation. The newly oil-rich red state may soon find itself in a costly battle over legislation foes describe as blatantly unconstitutional.

Lawmakers on Friday took a step toward outlawing abortion altogether in the state by passing a so-called personhood resolution that says a fertilized egg has the same right to life as a person. The House’s approval sends the matter to voters, who will decide whether to add the wording to the state’s constitution in November 2014.

It’s one of several anti-abortion measures to pass the Legislature. Most are awaiting the signature of Republican Gov. Jack Dalrymple, who hasn’t yet indicated whether he supports the laws. Even if he were to veto them, some could have the support for the Legislature to override him.

One bill would prohibit abortion if a fetal heartbeat can be detected, which can happen as early as six weeks into a pregnancy. Another would make North Dakota the only state to prohibit women from having the procedure because a fetus has a genetic defect, such as Down sy “The problem was we could never get all the groups on the same page,” Bismarck Republican Sen. Margaret Sitte said.

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North Dakota Passes Most Restrictive Abortion Bills In Nation

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Photo Credit: abbybatchelder

North Dakota’s Senate passed a pair of anti-abortion measures Friday that are considered to be the most restrictive in the nation, including one that would prevent women from having an abortion based on a genetic defect.

The measures now to go to Republican Gov. Jack Dalrymple who has indicated he will sign them.

The new state laws are even more strict than one finalized last week in Arkansas that would make the procedure illegal after 12 weeks of pregnancy. One North Dakota measure would prevent women from having abortions based on a genetic defect, like Down syndrome. The other would ban doctors from performing an abortion if a fetal heartbeat is detected — as early as five or six weeks.

Republican state Rep. Bette Grande of Fargo sponsored both bills. Grande, a ninth-term legislator, is one of the more conservative lawmakers in the state. She’s pushed for controversial right-to-life issues and has been vocal about the issues.

Grande recently said she had relatives who had children born with genetic abnormalities and has been surprised at the discrimination she’s seen. “It takes you back to Hitler, and we know where that went,” she has said. “He started going after those with abnormalities, and I think it’s an absurdity we would go back to that kind of thing.”

Read more from this story HERE.