On June 24, the Supreme Court issued its ruling in Dobbs v. Jackson, reversing its decision in Roe v. Wade, and sending the decision on reproductive choice down to state governments.
That means that in Tennessee, abortion is illegal from the instant a sperm and egg get together. Doctors in Tennessee now commit a felony by performing an abortion (including prescribing medication) at any time during the pregnancy. There are no exceptions for rape or incest.
The state is party to compounding the worst possible child abuse you can imagine. There are exceptions for “the life or health of the mother,” but in order to receive care, you have to prove that in court. In other words, if a doctor performs an abortion to save the life of the mother (for, say, an ectopic pregnancy) they could still be arrested and charged with a felony—the law says they’re in the clear, but it “must be proven by a preponderance of the evidence.”
This could arguably eliminate abortions entirely (including those to save the life of the mother) in some counties, depending on how vigorously the DA prosecutes these cases.
Additionally, a law signed in May makes it so that mail-order abortion pills are illegal in Tennessee. The law is that a doctor has to be present.
All of this is unacceptable. And, based on statements by people like Marsha Blackburn about birth control, only the first step in Republican efforts to end women’s rights.
If elected, my goal is to codify Roe v. Wade into law, and to take steps to make sure we’ve got a Supreme Court that recognizes the rights to privacy granted by the 9th and 14th Amendments to the Constitution.