Special session not likely if Roe v. Wade is overturned

Some prominent Georgia Republicans, including gubernatorial hopeful David Perdue, responded to news last week indicating the U.S. Supreme Court is ready to overturn Roe v. Wade by calling for a special legislative session to strengthen the state’s restrictions on abortion.

But a quick look back at the General Assembly’s session in 2019, when Republicans pushed through the “heartbeat law,” shows that probably won’t happen.

That measure, which would bar most abortions once a doctor has detected cardiac activity in a fetus — about six weeks into a pregnancy, before many women are aware they are pregnant — won passage by a single vote after about a dozen GOP legislators abstained from voting or joined Democrats to oppose it.

The law has yet to take effect after a federal judge put it on hold to see how the Supreme Court would handle a Mississippi case, the one addressed in the leaked draft of an opinion written by Justice Samuel Alito spelling out the end of Roe.

Practicality was trumped by aspiration this past week, when numerous Republican candidates, aiming to drive up their support among the GOP base as the primary nears, pressed for lawmakers to return to the state Capitol later this year to toughen restrictions beyond the “heartbeat law.”

That was even true for candidates who, if they won their races, would have no effect on abortion policy. Count among them Republican state Sen. Bruce Thompson, now running for labor commissioner.

“As a strong pro-lifer, I believe all life was created by God and deserves to be protected,” said Thompson, who earlier this year unsuccessfully sought to block the mailing of abortion pills to Georgians.

The same thing played out in reverse on the Democratic side, with state Rep. Bee Nguyen, now bidding to become secretary of state. She said she would make the overturning of Roe a primary factor in her campaign, saying it showed Republicans “don’t care about women.” The secretary of state has no role in abortion policy.

■ Democratic gubernatorial candidate Stacey Abrams is responding to Roe’s potential demise with one of her strengths: collecting campaign cash.

Abrams’ campaign for governor paused its fundraising to direct donations to the following abortion rights groups: the Feminist Women’s Health Center, SisterSong, ARC Southeast, Planned Parenthood Southeast and NARAL Pro-Choice Georgia.

“We know that no one individual, campaign or organization can guarantee reproductive choice on their own,” Abrams’ campaign wrote in a campaign fundraising email. “We can only win this fight by uniting and doing the work together.”

■ Democratic U.S. Sen. Raphael Warnock is once again seeking an end to the filibuster, this time so the Senate would be able to approve legislation to protect abortion rights.

“I think that no Senate rule and no Senate procedure is more important than people’s constitutional rights,” he said. “And it is our duty as one of the three co-equal branches of government to find a way to stand with the American people, 70% of which believes that it is a woman’s right to choose.”

Warnock had pressed for an end to the filibuster when Democrats were aiming to pass federal election law.

That effort failed when two moderate members of the party — U.S. Sens. Joe Manchin of West Virginia and Kyrsten Sinema of Arizona — would not support a change of filibuster rules that typically doom pieces of legislation that fail to get 60 votes, meaning, right now, that neither party can pass anything without persuading 10 members of the opposing party to cross the aisle.

Georgia’s other U.S. senator, Jon Ossoff, also had advocated for bypassing the filibuster to pass the election bill. But he was not as quick to join a similar effort on abortion.

■ The Atlanta Journal-Constitution’s most recent polling on abortion was in January, when 68% responded that they opposed the overturning of Roe. That included 43% of Republicans.

Maloney now faces two counts of rape and two counts of aggravated indecent assault tied to the 2013 incident, the Tribune-Democrat reported. He is currently out on bond.

Broun said in a statement to The Atlanta Journal-Constitution he is bothered by the charges against Maloney but is still working with the consultant’s firm.

“These allegations are very disturbing,” the statement reads. “That said, I believe in the judicial process, and I trust that truth and justice will prevail, and I will be praying for everyone involved.

“We have primarily worked with another member of the company and will continue to evaluate the situation as it unfolds.”

Broun, who left the House to make an unsuccessful run for the U.S. Senate in 2014, is now one of eight competitors in the 10th Congressional District’s GOP primary.