Pennsylvania Gov. Tom Wolf slammed a bill Monday that would protect unborn babies from abortions once their heartbeats are detectable.
Wolf, a pro-abortion Democrat with close ties to the abortion industry, spoke at a Women’s Reproductive Rights rally in Philadelphia with Mayor Jim Kenney and others, Northcentral PA reports.
Slamming the pro-life legislation as “shameful and cowardly,” Wolf said he will veto it if it reaches his desk, according to the report.
The bill would prohibit abortions after an unborn baby’s heartbeat is detectable, about six weeks of pregnancy. State Senate Bill 912/House Bill 1977 would require abortion practitioners to test for a baby’s heartbeat and, if detected, prohibit the abortion unless the mother’s life is at risk.
A lead sponsor of the bill, state Rep. Stephanie Borowicz said it is time for unborn babies’ right to life to be restored.
“When you hear a baby’s heartbeat, everything changes. If you can be declared dead when the heart stops, why not be declared alive when it starts?” she said. “I would love to see Roe v. Wade overturned, of course. Sixty million babies’ lives have been lost.”
Pennsylvania joins a growing number of states considering heartbeat legislation. State lawmakers in Georgia, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, Missouri and Ohio passed similar legislation within the past year, but none currently are in effect due to legal challenges.
Wolf said he would veto any legislation that restricts abortion in Pennsylvania. The state allows abortions for any reason up to 24 weeks of pregnancy. Viability now is about 22 weeks.
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Here’s more from the report:
Additionally, Wolf called the “Heartbeat Bill” moniker a clever way to emotionally manipulate the general public while subtly attacking women’s personal liberties. Mayor Kenney agreed, saying that “These bills jeopardize health, especially in the instance of high-risk pregnancies, and I appreciate the Governor’s leadership on this very important issue.” …
Rep. Mary Isaacson said, “This bill, which to be clear is a six-week abortion ban, is not only scientifically and ethically wrong, but is yet another unconstitutional attempt to force Pennsylvanians to carry unwanted or unviable pregnancies to term at greater medical risk and against their will.”
It is not clear what pro-abortion lawmakers think is unscientific about the bill. Scientifically, it is almost universally accepted that an unborn baby’s heart begins beating within the first few weeks of life and their heartbeat is detectable around six to eight weeks of pregnancy. In 2016, researchers at the University of Oxford published an amazing new study about how early a human being’s heartbeat begins. They found that the heartbeat may begin as soon as 16 days after conception.
But with the growing wave of heartbeat bills across the nation have come attempts to deny this science and dehumanize babies in the womb. In May, for example, the New York Times used the term “embryonic pulsing” rather than the more accurate “heartbeat” to describe the pro-life legislation.
In Pennsylvania, more than 12,000 abortions occur after nine weeks of pregnancy, according to the state Department of Health. A heartbeat law could protect thousands of babies in the state every year.
Some pro-lifers have renewed hope that the new conservative-majority U.S. Supreme Court will uphold a heartbeat bill and overturn Roe v. Wade. Others, however, are hesitant because of concerns about losing the court battle and being forced to reimburse pro-abortion groups for their legal fees.
North Dakota and Arkansas passed heartbeat bills several years ago, but federal courts struck down both laws. In January, a judge declared an Iowa heartbeat law unconstitutional.
The Supreme Court took away the states’ ability to protect unborn babies from abortion under Roe v. Wade, and instead allowed abortion on demand through all nine months of pregnancy. Roe made the United States one of only seven countries in the world that allows elective abortions after 20 weeks.
ACTION: Contact Governor Wolf here to complain.
