‘You’ve never faced those choices’: Psaki responds to male reporter questioning Biden support on abortion
Pelosi says House will vote on abortion access bill in response to Supreme Court decision on Texas law
The Supreme Court late Wednesday denied an effort by abortion rights groups to halt a Texas law that bans people from having procedures after six weeks of pregnancy, which is the most restrictive law in the nation.
Republican Gov. Greg Abbott signed the law in May, but didn’t take effect until Wednesday. The law bans abortions when a fetal heartbeat is detected, which can occur at six weeks and doesn’t include exceptions for rape or incest but allows people to have the procedure for “medical emergencies.”
The Texas law also has a unique enforcement mechanism. The law encourages private citizens to sue anyone who helps a person receive an abortion after a heartbeat is detected. The persson suing could receive up to $10,000 from the abortion provider or others in damages if they win their case.
More:Supreme Court declines to block Texas abortion law that bans procedure at six weeks
Biden in a statement Thursday criticized the Supreme Court’s decision as an “unprecedented assault on a woman’s constitutional rights.”
In his statement, Biden directed the Gender Policy Council, as well other agencies such as the White House Counsel, Department of Health and Human Services and the Department of Justice to “see what steps the Federal Government can take to ensure that women in Texas have access to safe and legal abortions as protected by Roe, and what legal tools we have to insulate women and providers from the impact of Texas’ bizarre scheme of outsourced enforcement to private parties.”
Contributing: Savannah Behrmann and John Fritze
Reach Rebecca Morin at Twitter @RebeccaMorin_