Tag Archives: abortion

Reuters reports: In a setback to abortion rights advocates, the U.S. Supreme Court on Tuesday paved the way for Republican-backed restrictions on medication-induced abortions to take effect in Arkansas that could lead to the shuttering of two of the state’s three abortion clinics. The nine justices declined to hear an appeal by abortion provider Planned Parenthood of a lower court …

The Guardian reports: Ireland has voted by a landslide to legalise abortion in a stunning outcome that marks a dramatic defeat for the Catholic church’s one-time domination of the Republic. The Irish electorate voted by 1,429,981 votes to 723,632 in favour of abolishing a controversial constitutional amendment that gave equal legal status to the lives of a foetus and the …

The Irish Times reports: Ireland has voted by a landslide margin to change the constitution so that abortion can be legalised, according to an exit poll conducted for The Irish Times by Ipsos/MRBI. The poll suggests that the margin of victory for the Yes side in the referendum will be 68 per cent to 32 per cent – a stunning …

The BBC reports: Turnout in the Republic of Ireland’s referendum on abortion laws is higher, so far, than in recent votes. Voting will continue until 22:00 local time on Friday. The turnout at mid afternoon on Friday was higher than at the same stage of the country’s referendum on same-sex marriage and its most recent general election. Polls opened at …

During a Fox News panel about Trump’s plan to slash funding for Planned Parenthood, last night Democratic strategist Jehmu Greene wryly observed that “no one would be surprised if President Trump himself hadn’t personally funded multiple abortions.” Which, of course, is completely true, but host Pete Hegseth and right wing columnist Kristin Tate exploded, accusing Greene of spreading “irresponsible misinformation.” …

Media Matters reports: In anticipation of its annual gala, the anti-abortion group Susan B. Anthony List (SBA List) has been promoting official room blocks for the event at the Trump International Hotel in Washington, D.C., and running a contest in which the prize includes a free stay at the property during the gala. On May 14, during the White House …

Via press release: A pastor in Texas is calling Southern Baptists to be alarmed about promotion of social justice within the Southern Baptist Convention. Pastor Arnold, a lifelong Southern Baptist, declares that “most Southern Baptist churches have no idea how wide or deeply rooted that social justice is in the Convention.” As a result, pastor Arnold has submitted a resolution …

The Post & Courier reports: A bill that would have outlawed almost all abortions in South Carolina died in the early hours of Friday morning on the floor of the state Senate, granting a major victory to Democrats after they launched a lengthy filibuster that lasted throughout much of the day and showed no signs of stopping. In a stunning …

Media Matters reports: Donald Trump’s favorite Fox News program Fox & Friends’ weekend editions completely ignored a series of major damaging stories about Trump associate Michael Cohen. This continues the show’s pattern of playing defense for the president and ignoring damaging stories. The obsequious relationship between Fox & Friends and Trump has been well documented, with Trump’s tweets frequently lining …

The Hill reports: Elliott Broidy, the venture capitalist who admitted Friday to paying a Playboy “playmate” who said she was pregnant with his child, has stepped down from his post on the Republican National Committee’s finance team. Sources familiar with the discussions confirmed to The Hill that RNC chairwoman Ronna Romney McDaniel accepted Broidy’s resignation Friday from his post as …

The Wall Street Journal reports: President Donald Trump’s personal lawyer negotiated a deal in late 2017 to pay $1.6 million to a former Playboy model who said she was impregnated by a top Republican fundraiser, according to people familiar with the matter. Michael Cohen, whose office, home and hotel room were raided by federal agents this week, arranged the payments …

The Associated Press reports: Mississippi lawmakers on Thursday passed what is likely to be the nation’s most restrictive abortion law, making the procedure illegal after 15 weeks of pregnancy. The House voted 75-34 in favor of the measure, and Gov. Phil Bryant has said he will sign it. The owner of Mississippi’s only abortion clinic has pledged to sue— a …

Charlotte’s ABC affiliate reports: Concord pastor Phillip “Flip” Benham was arrested for threatening a volunteer at a Charlotte woman’s clinic. The pastor, who holds rallies with dozens of people throughout the week, especially at woman’s clinics that provide abortions, told Channel 9 the arrest was “bogus.” A volunteer at A Preferred Woman’s Health Clinic on Latrobe Drive in Charlotte claims …

The Austin Statesman reports: Texas Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick on Thursday said that, if he can help it, the planned movie on former state Sen. Wendy Davis’ 2013 filibuster won’t be shot in the Texas Senate chamber. “If I have anything to do with that, I’m not going to let them use the Senate chamber to shoot because they have …

Reuters reports: Donald Trump will become the third sitting U.S. president to address anti-abortion activists at the annual March for Life on Friday, highlighting his shift in recent years from a supporter of women’s access to abortion to a powerful opponent. Trump is due to address the march in Washington via satellite from the White House Rose Garden on Friday …

The Washington Post reports: A year ago, throngs of abortion opponents gathered in Washington for the March for Life on the Mall and to celebrate the promises of a newly sworn-in President Trump — wins they’d been seeking for decades: Defunding Planned Parenthood, permanently banning federal money for abortion, and overturning Roe v. Wade, something he said would happen “automatically” …

Politico reports: Rep. Tim Murphy (R-Pa.), the embattled anti-abortion lawmaker who allegedly encouraged his lover to terminate a pregnancy, resigned from office Thursday — just 24 hours after announcing his plan to retire after 2018. “This afternoon I received a letter of resignation from Congressman Tim Murphy, effective October 21,” Speaker Paul Ryan said in a statement. “It was Dr. …

The Associated Press reports: Republican Congressman Tim Murphy of Pennsylvania has announced plans to retire at the end of this term — amid tawdry revelations of an extramarital affair. Murphy, who is in his eighth term, says in a statement Wednesday that he will “take personal time to seek help as my family and I continue to work through our …

The anti-gay “family values” hero who last month confessed to adultery is now embroiled in another scandal. The Pittsburgh Post-Gazette reports: A text message sent in January to U.S. Rep. Tim Murphy by a woman with whom he had an extra-marital relationship took him to task for an anti-abortion statement posted on Facebook from his office’s public account. “And you …

The Washington Post reports: Norma McCorvey, who was 22, unwed, mired in addiction and poverty, and desperate for a way out of an unwanted pregnancy when she became Jane Roe, the pseudonymous plaintiff of the 1973 U.S. Supreme Court decision in Roe v. Wade that established a constitutional right to an abortion, died Feb. 18 at an assisted-living facility in …