Rep. Greg Pence
Rep. Greg Pence, R-Indiana, has voted in favor of two anti-abortion measures that cleared the new GOP-led House but are not expected to pass the Democratic-controlled Senate.
House Republicans are taking early action on abortion with their new majority, approving two measures Wednesday that make clear they want further restraints after the Supreme Court overruled the federal right to abortion last year, The Associated Press reported.
The House passed one resolution to condemn attacks on anti-abortion facilities, including crisis pregnancy centers, as well as a separate bill that would impose new penalties if a doctor refused to care for an infant born alive after an abortion attempt, according to wire reports.
Neither is expected to pass the Democratic-led Senate, but Republicans said they were making good on promises to address the issue along with other legislative priorities in the first days in power.
Abortion has proved politically tricky for Republicans since the June Supreme Court decision that overturned Roe v. Wade after almost 50 years and allowed states to enact near or total bans on abortion, according to wire reports. While some Republicans have pushed to expand on the ruling with a national ban — or a compromise ban that would limit abortions after a certain point — many have rejected that option. And it has become clear that most Americans would oppose it.
A July AP-NORC poll showed Republicans are largely opposed to allowing abortion “for any reason” and after 15 weeks into a pregnancy. But only 16% of Republicans say abortion generally should be “illegal in all cases,” and a majority, 56%, say their state should generally allow abortion six weeks into a pregnancy. According to AP VoteCast, a national survey of the midterm electorate, 61% of all voters said they were in favor of a law guaranteeing access to legal abortion nationwide.
Democrats criticized the resolution condemning attacks on pro-life facilities as one-sided because it did not condemn similar — and long-standing — violence against abortion clinics.
The Democrats argued that the legislation imposing new penalties on doctors is unnecessary because it is already illegal to kill an infant. It would create complicated new standards making it harder for health providers to do their jobs, they said.
