By: Jackie Wang
Texas’ role in restricting abortion
Texas anti-abortion organizations celebrated Kennedy’s retirement. Texas Alliance for Life executive director Joe Pojman said Kennedy’s retirement is “welcome news.”
By: Emma Platoff
“I feel much better today than I did on Tuesday, no question about that,” said Joe Pojman, executive director of Texas Alliance for Life. “But I’m still cautious — though very optimistic.”
By: Chuck Lindell
Joe Pojman, head of Texas Alliance for Life, sees an opportunity to re-enact the restrictions that Kennedy helped strike down in 2016 — requiring all abortions to be done in hospital-like centers, and requiring abortion doctors to have admitting privileges in a nearby hospital.
Difficulty meeting those requirements would have left fewer than 10 abortion clinics open in Texas. More important for future legal challenges, the 2016 ruling established a harder-to-meet legal burden that requires states to show that regulations have benefits that outweigh the difficulties placed on women seeking an abortion.
Pojman also sees a chance to ban cities, counties and hospital districts from signing contracts or providing tax money to abortion providers such as Planned Parenthood. Efforts to enact such a ban fell short in the 2017 legislative session.
By: Calvin Freiburger
“In the 2016 case of Whole Woman’s Health v. Hellerstedt, Kennedy showed beyond a doubt that he can be counted on to defend the abortion industry against laws to protect mothers and unborn children from abortion,” Texas Alliance for Life’s Christopher Maska wrote. “Kennedy joined the 5-3 majority that gutted key pro-life safety provisions of HB 2. Just like in Casey, if Kennedy had changed his vote in Hellerstedt, the pro-life cause would have prevailed.”
By: Kira Ciupek
“It’s about raising awareness for pro-life initiatives and raising money for Texas Alliance for Life, so they can do their lobbying work and help pass pro-life legislation,” said Tom McNew, one of the team leaders for the event and Executive Director of Armor of God Radio. McNew added that Texas Alliance for Life, which has the full support of Texas’ Catholic bishops, lobbied for ten pro-life bills passed by the Texas Legislature last year.
By: Staff