Republican faction seeks to keep courts from interpreting Ohio's new abortion rights amendment | AP News
Category: News & Politics
Via: perrie-halpern • 2 years ago • 57 commentsBy: SAMANTHA HENDRICKSON (AP News)
S E E D E D C O N T E N T
COLUMBUS, Ohio (AP) — Four Ohio Republican state lawmakers are seeking to strip judges of their power to interpret an abortion rights amendment after voters opted to enshrine those rights in the state's constitution this week.
Republican state Reps. Jennifer Gross, Bill Dean, Melanie Miller and Beth Lear said in a news release Thursday that they'll push to have the Legislature, not the courts, make any decisions about the amendment passed Tuesday.
"To prevent mischief by pro-abortion courts with Issue 1, Ohio legislators will consider removing jurisdiction from the judiciary over this ambiguous ballot initiative," said the mix of fairly new and veteran lawmakers who are all vice-chairs of various House committees. "The Ohio legislature alone will consider what, if any, modifications to make to existing laws based on public hearings and input from legal experts on both sides."
A woman bows her head during a prayer at a watch party for opponents of Issue 1 at the Center for Christian Virtue in Columbus, Ohio, Tuesday, Nov. 7, 2023. (AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster)
It's the latest development in the struggle over abortion rights between the Republican-dominated Legislature and the majority of the voters, who passed the amendment by a margin of 57% to 43%.
Abortion rights advocates plan to ask the courts to repeal any remaining abortion bans and restrictions on the books in Ohio, including a mandatory 24-hour period that abortion seekers must wait before they can have the procedure and a ban on abortions after a fetal diagnosis of Down syndrome.
House Speaker Jason Stephens declined to comment on the release, according to his spokesperson, Aaron Mulvey. However, Stephens was among the dozens of legislative Republicans who have vowed to fight back against the new amendment.
"The legislature has multiple paths that we will explore to continue to protect innocent life. This is not the end of the conversation," Stephens previously said in a news release.
If the amendment or any other abortion restrictions were to end up being challenged in the courts, it's unclear how they would fare. The state Supreme Court has a conservative majority and has the final say over state constitutional issues.
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Samantha Hendrickson is a corps member for the Associated Press/Report for America Statehouse News Initiative. Report for America is a nonprofit national service program that places journalists in local newsrooms to report on undercovered issues.
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thumpers can't accept the results of elections they've lost to the will of the majority and then wonder why their numbers are plummeting...
obviously the negative social stigma of promoting an unconstitutional theocracy or outright dominionism isn't severe enough.
It seems that the Republicans cannot accept the people's will. Keep it up dumb asses.
after numerous attempts at subterfuge, legislative shenanigans, and a campaign of disinformation, anti-choice A-holes still think they can defeat the will of the voters. xtian family values my ass, time to put a leash on those unamerican thumpers and hit them where it hurts them most, their tax exempt status...
It's like they can't help themselves. They know this is what is losing elections for them, but they just keep doubling down on it.
the very definition of insanity. they deserve something of epic biblical proportion that will clear out the religious scam artist theocrats for the next 5 generations...
What a surprise, they are determined to force their minority view on the majority no matter what.
... happens to them.
They think God is on their side. That explains about 95% of it.
a phrase most associated by those instigating violent death since the dawn of time...
In my personal experience, the majority haven't bothered to read their approved guidebook (the Bible) in any of its many translations. The Bible does not condemn abortion, but enslavement of others is clearly condoned . However, working on the Sabbath carries the death penalty. ( Remember the Blue Laws? )
In essence, the majority really believe they either are God (or the God's right-hand representative on Earth) and have a mandate to rule over anyone who doesn't have the power to escape them.
God's stance on abortion and the treatment of babies/children at the link below.
There is nothing kind and loving about the history of the people of the Bible. That could be the reason so many people own a Bible and don't bother to read it.
God is not Pro-Life
Would it be fair to say that not only is God not "Pro-Life"-- but the fact is that She's actually a Trump supporter?
(Of course there are other gods who may feel differently)
It’s not mischief. It’s judicial review.
So, they want to legislate away judicial review? Just break up the system of checks and balance? Separation of powers?
They say they want to leave it up to the states. The state votes, and they want to undermine the result. These people don’t respect our democratic process. They don’t respect our founding concepts of justice.
The RCC spent $1.7 million fighting the issue in Ohio.
that's a lot of mackerel, crackers, and cheap red...
Mackerel is better served with a crisp, acidic white or my favorite with it,Tio Pepe Fino Muy Seco Sherry
any mackerel menu changes need to be approved by the snappers directly associated ...
The RCC should be branded a political organization and lose its tax exemption.
Total spending by Party on Ohio Abortion Amendment:
- Dem $24.6M
- Rep $16.3M
I wonder if that's coming from the US Bishops or the Vatican. The Church removed a Bishop in Texas on Friday and this hasn't been the first ultra conservative US Bishop removed or suspended.
As we have constantly written: You can't trust MAGA conservatives no farther than you can throw them. They whined for 45 plus years about the federal system of abortion and cheered when the justices sent the "power" over abortion back to the states. . . now they won't stand for the state's constitutional amendment without their slimy GOP mark on it!
See it right here folks! The GOP does not respect voters wishes unless those wishes align with their own MAGA self-interests. This is not and never has been about voting: this is about red-state having ALL the power over the lives of the citizens living locally.
Meta cleaned up from thread @8.1.
The audacity is pure irony here and worthy of all the contempt thinking people can muster. That said it's only 4 people and would not likely pass. Also it's patently unconstitutional.
Outside of this particular conversation anti-abortion activists across the country have publicly stated they should work harder while Republican politicians in swing states are trying to shift the conversation elsewhere. Democrats are now looking to push referendums in states where abortions are now illegal.