In scanning Georgia reactions to Friday’s U.S. Supreme Court ruling overturning its 1973 Roe decision that returns establishing abortion policies to all 50 state legislatures, we commend to readers comments from Bert Brantley, an aide to Gov. Brian Kemp, as well as a statement from Fair Fight, a Democrat organization loyal to Kemp’s gubernatorial opponent Stacey Abrams.
“The Georgia legislature passed the Fetal Pain Bill in 2012 and the LIFE Act in 2019, which should set the basis for what the law will be here in Georgia, once a couple of other things happen first. The LIFE Act is currently stalled in the federal court system, specifically the 11th Circuit of the U.S. Court of Appeals,” Brantley notes. So Attorney General Chris Carr asked the 11th Circuit to uphold Georgia’s law now that the federal precedent has shifted – Attorney General Chris Carr filed a notice regarding Georgia’s Heartbeat Bill. (wtxl.com)
“As we understand the possibilities,” Brantley continues, “the 11th Circuit could rule to reverse the lower court’s decision and allow the law to take effect, or it could remand the issue back to U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Georgia for Judge Steve Jones to revisit his earlier ruling.”
One interesting part of the LIFE Act is that in addition to limiting abortion to when a fetal heartbeat can be detected (generally thought to be at about six weeks), the law also confers what is known as “personhood” to the fetus, Brantley notes “This means that the mother/parents can go ahead and receive tax credits and other benefits (including child support) that usually only occur after birth.”
Finally, he underscores that “Governor Kemp and the Georgia General Assembly have continued to increase support for new mothers and babies, including extending postpartum Medicaid coverage, providing paid parental leave benefits for state employees, modernizing Georgia’s adoption code and improving our foster care system.”
Here is Fair Fight’s response:
“The Supreme Court’s decision to overturn Roe v. Wade was expected, but nevertheless it is deeply painful to watch our country take a giant leap backwards, in direct opposition to our voices and our votes.
“The Court has upended a half century of precedent and unraveled federal protections for those seeking reproductive health care. Let’s be clear: the lives of vulnerable pregnant people are now on the line because of the far-right’s desire for power over our freedom to make decisions about our own bodies.
“This decision touches every corner of our country — and Georgians in particular will feel its immediate impacts as Brian Kemp’s draconian six-week abortion ban, HB 481, will likely go into effect in a matter of days. All while the state is experiencing the country’s worst black maternal mortality rate, extreme doctor and nurse shortages and half a million people lacking access to basic healthcare because of Brian Kemp’s refusal to expand Medicaid.”
