Stacey Abrams, Georgia Democratic gubernatorial nominee, called for a legislative solution that restores nationwide abortion access following the Supreme Court ruling overturning Roe v. Wade, saying, “allowing each state to decide the quality of your citizenship is wrong.
Georgia has its own restrictive abortion law that bans abortions when a “fetal heartbeat” can be detected at about six weeks into a pregnancy. Unlike the states with so-called trigger laws that were designed to take effect as soon as such a Supreme Court ruling was issued, Georgia’s law was already passed and signed by Republican Gov. Brian Kemp but then suspended by federal courts as unconstitutional.
But now, with the Supreme Court precedent overturned, the 11th Circuit Court of Appeals in Atlanta would be set to let the law go into effect soon.
“Women deserve bodily autonomy, the deserve the right to make these choices,” Abrams told CNN’s Jake Tapper on “State of the Union,” adding, “In Georgia in particular, in a mater of days, this six-week ban will be the law of the land. That is horrendous, that is appalling an it is wrong. As the next governor, I’m going to do everything in my power to reverse it.”
Abrams said President Biden “should do what is within the per view of the executive,” but emphasized the need for a “legislative solution that restores the constitutional protection to women regardless of what state they live in.”
“I believe there should be federal law that allows women to have these choices, to have reproductive choice and reproductive justice, and I think that it has to stop being a political football where the ideology of the leader of a state can determine the quality of life for a woman and her ability to make the choices she needs,” Abrams added.
Abrams advised businesses to consider the health care challenges that will face Georgia employees once the 6-week abortion ban begins, noting abortion restrictions are likely to stiffen if Republican Gov. Brian Kemp wins another term.
“I would tell every single business and every single woman to do what is best for the women that work for them. They need to make sure they are accommodating the very real health challenges facing the women of Georgia,” Abrams said.
She added that Georgia has refused to expand Medicaid and has one of the nation’s highest maternal death rates, reiterating that citizens and businesses should “take into very real consideration the danger Brian Kemp poses to the life and welfare of women in this state.”
Abrams said Kemp has already shown his “ambiguity” regarding birth control, and that it is “very, very dangerous for women in Georgia right now,” as laws governing birth control access are expected to be the next step for Republicans nationwide.
