Texas Governor Rick Perry has official signed HB2, legislation banning abortion after five months in addition to requiring abortion clinics to meet basic medical standards, into law.
“This is a lifesaving victory for Texas women and unborn children,” pro-life Susan B. Anthony List President Marjorie Dannenfelser said in a statement. “We thank Governor Perry, the pro-life legislators, and the entire statewide coalition including Texas Right to Life, Texas Alliance for Life, Concerned Women for America of Texas, 40 Days for Life, and so many others for making this happen."
The Catholic Association is also celebrating Perry's signature on the law.
"Today is a great day for women and babies. Women will be safer and countless babies in Texas will be spared the pain of late-term abortions," Senior Fellow with The Catholic Association Ashley McGuire said in a statement. "Rick Perry is a brave man for standing up to the mob tactics of the abortion lobby and has earned the respect of pro-life women and men across the country. We hope other states as well as the federal government follow Texas' lead in standing up for women and babies."
Now that the battle in Texas is over, pro-life activists have their eye on the U.S. Senate where Majority Leader Harry Reid is open to a vote on late-term abortion ban legislation. The House of Representatives has already passed legislation banning abortions after five months.
“Texas’ monumental new law sheds light on the urgent need for action in the U.S. Senate. Unborn children and women deserve federal protection from horrific late-term abortions. Polls consistently show that the majority of Americans support protecting babies and women late in pregnancy and Senate Majority Leader Reid should bring this to the floor for a vote," Dannenfelser said. "If he and his Senate colleagues stand with the American people against the barbarism of late-term abortion, they have nothing to fear from a Senate vote. Conversely, remaining silent on this – especially in the aftermath of Kermit Gosnell and other abortion clinic horrors – would be both a moral and political mistake.”
