Global Courant
Democrats in the US House of Representatives plan to use a rare procedural maneuver next week to force Republicans to speak openly about codifying abortion rights, despite being the minority party.
Pro-Choice Caucus Chairs Diana DeGette, D-CO, and Barbara Lee, D-CA, will file a motion for discharge on the “Women’s Health Protection Act,” which would force a vote on abortion legislation if it gets a majority of members to approve it. to sign, DeGette’s office said in a press release. Rep. Judy Chu, D-CA, the sponsor of the bill, also plans to join the petition.
“The Women’s Health Protection Act, which passed the House twice during last Congress, would restore the protections that existed under Roe v. Wade by codifying a nationwide right to abortion care. Poll after poll shows that more than two-thirds of the country supports women’s right to abortion care,” DeGette’s office said.
It continued, “DeGette, Lee and Chu hope there are at least six Republicans willing to listen to the people of their district and help restore their rights to reproductive care.”
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Rep. Barbara Lee, D-CA, left, and Rep. Diana DeGette, D-CO, took part in a demonstration in front of the US Supreme Court when justices heard arguments in Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health. (Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images)
With 211 Democratic members already supporting a vote on the legislation, lawmakers will need some help from their Republican colleagues to pass the 218 vote threshold.
“The trio has worked closely with Democratic leadership to make the legislation a priority to help countless Americans who are suffering as a result of the GOP abortion bans now in effect in several states across the country,” DeGette’s office said. .
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Democratic lawmakers tried to use a resignation request to push a clean debt limit bill through the chamber, but negotiators eventually came to an agreement before convincing enough Republicans to join them.
Rep. Judy Chu, D-CA, the sponsor of The Women’s Health Protection Act, also plans to join the petition. (Alex Wong/Getty Images)
The current discharge petition could pressure moderate Republicans, especially in swing districts, to step up to the plate.
Democrats pushed the Women’s Health Protection Act after the U.S. Supreme Court overturned the law Roe against Wade in its decision last year Dobbs v Jackson Women’s Health.
The Supreme Court struck down the 1973 decision and returned the legality of abortion to the state level.
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The bill reads: “A health care provider has the right under this law to provide abortion services, and a patient has the corresponding right under this law to terminate a pregnancy before it is viable, without being subject to state restrictions .”
The bill would also allow post-viability abortions when “in the good faith medical judgment of the attending health care provider, it is necessary to protect the life or health of the patient.”
Democrats pushed the bill after the Supreme Court overturned the 1973 decision last year in its decision on Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health. (Valerie Plesch/Bloomberg via Getty Images)
Reaching the 218 signature threshold would not immediately trigger a vote on the bill.
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After the petition has received 218 signatures, at least seven sitting days must pass before a vote can be taken.
The Women’s Health Protection Act passed the House in September 2021, almost entirely along party lines, 218 – 211. Texas Representative Henry Cuellar was the only Democrat to vote against the bill. Three members did not vote.
Fox News’ Tyler Olsen contributed to this report.
