Democracy Now
Democratic lawmakers and pro-choice demonstrators in Texas battled into the early hours of this morning to successfully block a bill that would have shuttered nearly all the state's abortion clinics. Senate Bill 5 would have banned abortion after 20 weeks post-fertilization and imposed harsh regulations forcing all but five Texas clinics to close down. On Tuesday morning, State Senator Wendy Davis donned a pair of pink tennis shoes and rose to her feet to launch a filibuster of the bill that lasted nearly 11 hours before Republican senators interrupted it. As the midnight deadline for the special session drew near, hundreds of protesters in the gallery erupted into cheers that drowned out the proceedings, but Republican lawmakers attempted to claim they had passed the bill anyway. Hours later, Lieutenant Gov. David Dewhurst conceded the vote had not followed legislative procedures, blaming what he called an "unruly mob using Occupy Wall Street tactics." Describing the raucous scene at the Capitol, Andrea Grimes, a freelance journalist who writes for RH Reality Check, says: "Once people at that filibuster began telling their stories and sharing them with others, that galvanized the pro-choice space and radicalized some people who hadn't realized how our rights were under threat." We also speak with Brandi Grissom of The Texas Tribune, who hosted the livestream of the senate proceeding that drew more than 100,000 viewers. Planned Parenthood President Cecile Richards tells Democracy Now!: "With the thousands of people who were mobilized this time around, they will be doubly that way if in fact Gov. [Rick Perry] tries to push [the bill] through again in another special session. And if he does, we'll be ready."
Title: Texas Showdown: Anti-Abortion Bill Fails After Protesters Fill Capitol to Cheer Marathon Filibuster
Rating: 100% based on 99998 ratings. 5 user reviews.
8:24 AM
Rating: 100% based on 99998 ratings. 5 user reviews.
8:24 AM
