The Anti-Abortion Network Has Been Built Over Five Decades And It’s Closer Than Ever To Dismantling Roe V. Wade

The New York Times: Inside The Network Of Anti-Abortion Activists Winning Across The U.S.
State after state is passing sweeping abortion restrictions this year, from Alabama’s near total abortion ban, to Ohio’s ban after a fetal heartbeat is detected, to Utah’s ban after a pregnancy reaches 18 weeks. Already, eight states have passed laws that could challenge federal protections for abortion, with more on the way, prompting jubilation on the right and fear on the left. The laws may appear to present a united front and a coordinated political campaign. Instead they reflect a sustained effort by a network of disparate activists, each with their own strategy honed over decades of work. (Dias, Tavernise and Blinder, 5/18)

The Associated Press: As States Pass Restrictive Abortion Laws, Questions Surface
As multiple states pass laws banning many abortions, questions have surfaced about what exactly that means for women who might seek an abortion. The short answer: nothing yet. Governors in Kentucky , Mississippi , Ohio and Georgia have recently approved bans on abortion once a fetal heartbeat is detected, which can happen in the sixth week of pregnancy, before many women know they're pregnant, and Alabama's governor signed a measure making the procedure a felony in nearly all cases. Missouri lawmakers passed an eight-week ban Friday. Other states, including Louisiana , are considering similarly restrictive laws. (Brumback, 5/19)

The Washington Post: Everything You Need To Know About The Abortion Ban News
The rush of Republican-controlled states to mount a challenge to the Supreme Court’s landmark Roe v. Wade ruling legalizing abortion nationwide has sparked confusion about what these new laws actually do. Here’s what you need to know. Lawmakers in Alabama, Arkansas, Georgia, Kentucky, Mississippi, Missouri, Ohio, and Utah have passed new antiabortion bills, and similar measures are pending in other states. The new laws have prompted questions about whether women who have abortions could be punished and why some of the pieces of legislation are called “heartbeat bills,” among other topics. (Iati and Paul, 5/17)

PBS NewsHour: 4 Supreme Court Abortion Cases That Could Erode Roe V. Wade
he dramatic abortion restrictions — verging on outright bans — passed by Alabama, Georgia and Missouri lawmakers have made many Americans wonder whether legal challenges to such laws could eventually reach the high court and have a shot at overturning Roe V. Wade. But in fact the U.S. Supreme Court already has four abortion-related cases pending, and whether the justices choose to hear and decide them could offer some hints as to the future of abortion rights in Chief Justice John Roberts’ court. (Coyle, 5/17)

The New York Times: Missouri Lawmakers Pass Bill Criminalizing Abortion At About 8 Weeks Of Pregnancy
Missouri lawmakers passed a bill Friday to ban abortions after a fetal heartbeat is detected, the latest in a flurry of anti-abortion measures across the country intended to mount direct challenges to federal protections for the procedure. The Missouri House passed H.B. 126 in a 110-to-44 vote after hours of heated debate, including impassioned speeches by both Democratic and Republican legislators and angry shouts of “when you lie, people die” from those who opposed the bill. Those protesters were eventually removed by the police. (Tavernise and Hassan, 5/17)

Politico: Missouri Is Latest State To Pass Restrictive Abortion Law
Missouri’s bill states a woman may not be prosecuted for having an abortion but that the provider could face up to 15 years in prison. The legislation is more ambitious than some other states' because it offers federal courts the chance to decide at what point during a pregnancy abortion should be illegal. If the detection of a fetal heartbeat, usually at six weeks of pregnancy, is deemed too early, then it offers less restrictive time limits ranging from 14 weeks to 20 weeks. The bill also prohibits all abortions except in cases of medical emergency if Roe is overturned. (Goldberg, 5/17)

St. Louis Public Radio: Missouri Lawmakers Close Out Session By Passing Eight-Week Abortion Ban
“So in sum, this bill is undoubtedly the most comprehensive, the most legally sound legislation not only in this state, but in this nation,” said Schroer, R-O’Fallon. Proponents see Schroer’s bill as a culmination of decades of advocacy against abortion rights. Rep. Holly Rehder, R-Sikeston, told her colleagues how she became pregnant at 15 — and had to subsequently deal with homelessness and poverty. (Rosenbaum and Lippman, 5/17)

The Washington Post: A GOP Lawmaker Used The Phrase ‘Consensual Rape’ During Abortion Debate. He Says He Misspoke.
A Republican Missouri legislator apologized Friday for using the phrase “consensual rape” during a debate over a new, restrictive antiabortion bill. “I’m not trying to make excuses,” said Rep. Barry Hovis, who represents the city of Jackson in southeastern Missouri. “Sometimes you make a mistake and you own up to it.” The lawmaker, who was elected in 2018, made the remark while arguing on the State House floor that the measure’s eight-week window for abortions gives rape survivors “ample time” for the procedure. (Donovan-Smith, 5/17)

The Associated Press: Hundreds Protest Alabama Abortion Ban: 'My Body, My Choice!'
Hundreds of demonstrators marched to the Alabama Capitol on Sunday to protest the state's newly approved abortion ban, chanting "my body, my choice!" and "vote them out!" The demonstration came days after Gov. Kay Ivey signed the most stringent abortion law in the nation— making performing an abortion a felony in nearly all cases unless necessary for the mother's health. The law provides no exception for rape and incest. (5/19)

The New York Times: What Does It Really Mean To Be 6 Weeks Pregnant?
Now that several states have passed bills that effectively ban abortion after a fetal heartbeat can be detected, the new laws are raising a lot of questions about early pregnancy and miscarriage treatments. The fetal heartbeat can typically be seen on an ultrasound at around six weeks into pregnancy, but many women have no idea they’re pregnant at that time. So when do women typically realize that they are pregnant? And how often are pregnancies unplanned? We’ll explain all of this and more. (Caron, 5/18)

In other news on abortion from the states —

The Associated Press: Texas Passing Laws, But Not Leading Abortion Fight This Time
Sidestepping bigger abortion battles playing out elsewhere in the U.S., Texas Republicans on Friday pushed a bill toward Gov. Greg Abbott's desk that would ban the state's liberal capital city from leasing a downtown building to Planned Parenthood for just $1. For Texas, which has passed some of the nation's strictest anti-abortion laws over the past decade, the measure that was largely provoked by a single Planned Parenthood office in Austin is one of the few bills aimed at abortion providers that appears likely to pass the GOP-controlled Legislature before lawmakers adjourn this month. (Weber, 5/17)

The Associated Press: Female Lawmakers Speak About Rapes As Abortion Bills Advance
For more than two decades, Nancy Mace did not speak publicly about her rape. In April, when she finally broke her silence, she chose the most public of forums — before her colleagues in South Carolina's legislature. A bill was being debated that would ban all abortions after a fetal heartbeat is detected; Mace, a Republican lawmaker, wanted to add an exception for rape and incest. When some of her colleagues in the House dismissed her amendment — some women invent rapes to justify seeking an abortion, they claimed — she could not restrain herself. (5/18)

The Associated Press: Trial Set To Begin In Case Targeting Virginia Abortion Laws
A trial is set to begin in a lawsuit filed by women's health groups seeking to overturn restrictions on abortion providers in Virginia. The lawsuit is among legal challenges filed in at least a dozen states over what abortion-rights groups call Targeted Restrictions on Abortion Providers. (5/20)

The Washington Post: Women At Two Va. Universities Wanted More Access To The Morning-After Pill. So They Took ‘Matters Into Their Own Hands.’
The calls and text messages arrive directly to Michyah Thomas’s iPhone. They come from other students at Hampton University in need of the morning-after pill or in search of a ride to a health center or a hand to hold. They reach Thomas, a 21-year-old at Hampton, through a hotline she and another student, Alexandria Brown, created. Each time, the pair figures out a way to get students what they need, delivering the emergency contraception themselves or calling on a group of about a dozen volunteers to help with transportation. (Truong, 5/19)

CQ HealthBeat: Anatomy Of A Vote: From Anti-Abortion Activist To Federal Judge
In years past, Wendy Vitter’s nomination would have probably sparked a larger outcry, but in May 2019, her confirmation to a lifetime seat on the federal bench barely registered a blip. This, despite numerous instances in which the lawyer and wife of former GOP Sen. David Vitter advocated on behalf of anti-abortion groups, oftentimes advancing baseless claims, while failing to disclose her activity. In 2013, she led a panel discussion entitled “Abortion Hurts Women’s Health,” and promoted a brochure that alleged birth control was linked to breast and cervical cancer and “violent death.” That same year she spoke at a rally opposing the construction of a Planned Parenthood clinic in New Orleans. (Miller, 5/20)