Abortion

Arkansas Set to Pass Worst Anti-Abortion Bill So Far

To be a pregnant woman in the midwest is an increasingly one-track fate thanks to Arkansas and other misogynistic state legislatures:

After Republicans won big gains in the Arkansas legislature in the 2012 elections, they’ve wasted no time pushing their anti-abortion agenda in the state. Arkansas Gov. Mike Beebe (D) has already signed one new abortion restriction into law already, and he hasn’t specifically confirmed whether or not he’ll sign the other proposed anti-choice legislation in the works — including a radical “fetal heartbeat” bill that would ban abortions as early as 12 weeks of pregnancy.

But as RH Reality Check points out, the heartbeat bill could pass regardless of whether Beebe decides to support it. Under Arkansas law, a simple majority in the legislature can override the governor’s veto — so even if Beebe correctly concludes that the legislation is unconstitutional, the state senators who support the bill could vote again to override him. And, assuming that all of the legislators who have already voted in favor of the bill don’t change their minds, there are enough of them to assure its passage into law.

State and local government. It’s the Republican domain and all varieties of awfulness is happening under the noses of drone-obsessed liberals focused on Obama’s foreign policy agenda.