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Republican-appointed justices on the Arizona Supreme Court gave the political world an unexpected jolt this week, clearing the way for a 160-year-old near-total abortion ban to take effect. Under the 1864 law — approved before the end of the Civil War, and before women could vote — anyone who performs abortions or helps people access abortion care could face felony charges.
There are no exceptions for rape, incest, or the health of the pregnant woman.
Even conservative Republicans quickly recognized the fact that the court ruling would be, and is, politically radioactive. But Donald Trump — the politician who bears much of the responsibility for creating this mess — told reporters yesterday that Arizonans concerned about the collapse of their reproductive rights need not be concerned.
The Republican conceded that the state Supreme Court went too far, but said moments later, “I think it’ll be straightened out.” He added, “I’m sure the governor and everybody else have got to bring it back into reason and that it will be taken care of.”
The same afternoon, efforts to bring state law “back into reason” ran into some trouble. The New York Times reported:
A decision by Arizona’s highest court upholding an 1864 ban on nearly all abortions created chaos and confusion across the state on Wednesday. As abortion providers were flooded with phone calls from frantic patients, Republican lawmakers at the State Capitol blocked efforts to undo the ban, prompting angry jeers from Democrats.
It seemed like a relatively straightforward plan: If Arizona’s territorial policymakers approved a near-total abortion ban in 1864, Arizona’s state policymakers can repeal the ban in 2024. Even Kari Lake, the Republican conspiracy theorist running for the U.S. Senate this year, responded to the state Supreme Court ruling by arguing that the legislature take action to address the issue.
But when Democrats in the GOP-led state House took steps to repeal the 1864 ban, members of the Republican majority balked.
A report in the Arizona Republic added, “Democrats exploded, shouting ‘shame, shame,’ ‘hold the vote,’ and ‘save women’s lives’ as they pointed across the aisle at Republicans, who began to leave the floor.”
Efforts in the GOP-led state Senate were no better. The Times’ report noted, “Republican leaders in the Senate removed one bill from the day’s agenda.”
So much for “it’ll be straightened out.”
Gov. Katie Hobbs called the failure of House Republicans to advance a repeal bill “unconscionable.” The Democrat’s statement added, “The extremist Republican majority had the chance to do the right thing for their constituents, and they failed. As they have time and again, radical legislators protected a Civil War-era total abortion ban that jails doctors, strips women of our bodily autonomy and puts our lives at risk.”
It’s a safe bet we haven’t heard the last of this.