Free Republic

Iowa Governor Kim Reynolds made it official today, signing the heartbeat law to protect babies from abortions. The legislation will save thousands of lives annually by protecting babies at a point when they have a heartbeat. “All life is precious and worthy of the protection of our laws,” Reynolds said when signng the bill. “The Heartbeat Bill is now the law of the land! Despite the abortion industry’s best attempts, Iowa is protecting the most innocent and defenseless lives!” she added. Video Player 00:00 02:38 The Iowa General Assembly passed the bill late Tuesday night in a special legislative session....

For millions of mothers and fathers each year, going to a doctor’s office to hear their unborn child’s heartbeat is one of the most important milestones in early pregnancy. But prominent Democrat Stacey Abrams publicly claimed ultrasound technology that enables parents to hear that heartbeat is instead a patriarchal plot to control women’s bodies by creating a “manufactured sound.”“There is no such thing as a heartbeat at six weeks,” Georgia gubernatorial candidate Stacey Abrams said during a Tuesday event at the Ray Charles Performing Arts Center in Georgia. “It is a manufactured sound designed to convince people that men have...

video link in story RNC Research video: Georgia Democrat Stacey Abrams: "There is no such thing as a heartbeat at six weeks. It is a manufactured sound designed to convince people that men have the right to take control of a woman's body."

This column examines the Supreme Court’s recent ruling in Whole Woman’s Health v. Jackson (pdf) and why the left is so upset about it. In Whole Woman’s Health, the court opted not to suspend the Texas Heartbeat Act immediately, but to wait for a hearing on the merits. In addition to agitating the liberal media, the decision has annoyed “progressive” academics. If they teach in law schools, they often belong to an outfit called the American Constitution Society (ACS), a group that is positively beside itself over the court’s order in Whole Woman’s Health. The ACS’s reaction illustrates the absurdity...

As RedState reported yesterday afternoon, a Texas law that bans abortions after a heartbeat is detected (typically after 6-8 weeks) has officially gone into effect. That left pro-abortion advocates reeling and lashing out over their sacred sacrament being curtailed.But there was one last hope to try to stop the law — the Supreme Court.Fortunately, that hope has been dashed, at least for the time being. The nation’s highest court ruled last night that they would not block the Texas abortion law, allowing it to proceed as other litigation efforts take place.#BREAKING: Supreme Court DECLINES to block Texas abortion law —...

A Texas state law took effect early on Wednesday after the U.S. Supreme Court did not act on an emergency petition brought by abortion facilities and activists to block it, meaning private citizens can sue abortion providers who perform the deadly operation after six weeks of pregnancy.The Texas law had been set to go into effect on Sept. 1 and protects children with detectable heartbeats, which typically occurs six to eight weeks into a pregnancy. The high court’s inaction occurs as the justices prepare to hear a direct challenge to the 1973 Roe v. Wade decision later this year.The law,...

Texas Gov. Greg Abbott (R) on Wednesday signed the "heartbeat" bill into law, banning abortion in the state once a fetal heartbeat can be detected. [Snip] Other states have passed "heartbeat" bills and, once signed, abortion rights activists filed lawsuits challenging them. Subsequently, courts have blocked these laws, ruling they are unconstitutional. However, the Texas measure contains a unique enforcement mechanism whereby any private citizen may file a civil lawsuit against an abortion provider or any other individual who "aids or abets" a "criminal abortion."

Michael Cohen, formerly a personal lawyer for former President Donald Trump, predicted Thursday on CNN’s “Newsroom” that Rudy Giuliani would do what he did and turn on Trump. Cohen said, “I told him was that Donald Trump doesn’t care about anyone or anything, that he will be the next one to be thrown under the bus, and that’s exactly what’s going to happen.”

Pennsylvania Gov. Tom Wolf (D) warned the GOP dominated legislature to not waste time passing a bill to ban abortions after the baby's heartbeat can be detected. "I will veto whatever bill they pass," Wolf promised. "Some women don't want to be mothers. They shouldn't be forced to become mothers in order to fulfill somebody else's moral values." Rep. Stephanie Borowicz (R-McElhattan), sponsor of the bill was distressed that "the governor has rejected any and all limitations on the cruel practice of killing innocent babies. Isn't 'life' one of the inalienable rights that our country was founded to protect? Women...

A split has emerged between pro-life activists in Tennessee as some are opposing a measure to effectively ban all abortions in the state out of fear such legislation could backfire at the U.S. Supreme Court. Republicans in Tennessee are considering an amendment to a fetal heartbeat bill introduced by Republican Sen. Mark Prody in August that would ban abortion once a fetal heartbeat is detected, which can be as early as six weeks into a pregnancy. The legislation, which won’t be voted on until at least January 2020, is similar to heartbeat legislation passed in at least eight other states...

Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp signed the "heartbeat" bill into law Tuesday morning. Kemp kept his campaign promise in signing the bill, HB 481, technically called the "Living Infants Fairness and Equality (LIFE) Act," that will prohibit abortions in the state after a heartbeat is detected, as early as six weeks into a pregnancy. The law allows exceptions in the case of rape, incest, or if the life of the mother is in danger. Before the signing of the bill, State Rep. Ed Setzler, pointed to science, law, and the simple fact that common sense says a beating heart is a...

COLUMBUS — With opposing protest groups outside the chamber, the Ohio House on Wednesday voted 56-39 in favor of a controversial heartbeat abortion ban bill. The Ohio Senate voted shortly after, 18-13, to approve House changes to the bill later today, giving it the final legislative approval. Gov. Mike DeWine has promised to sign it into law. Once law, it will be the most restrictive abortion measure in Ohio since the procedure was legalized 46 years ago by the landmark U.S. Supreme Court ruling, Roe versus Wade. It would make it a crime for doctors to perform an abortion once...

Gov. Phil Bryant says he’s not worried about lawsuits as Mississippi prepares to enact one of the strictest abortion laws in the nation. The Republican governor is scheduled to sign a bill Thursday to outlaw most abortions once a fetal heartbeat can be detected, about six weeks into pregnancy. The New York-based Center for Reproductive Rights calls it “blatantly unconstitutional” and says it will sue Mississippi to try to block the law from taking effect on July 1. Mississippi is one of several states considering similar bills this year. Abortion opponents are emboldened by new conservatives on the Supreme Court...

Many media commentators are warning readers about a new Ohio bill because it could prevent women from obtaining abortions before they know they’re pregnant. But in the process of doing so, they’re making a pro-life message go viral: Abortion stops a beating heart.On Dec. 12, the Ohio Senate made national headlines for approving abortion legislation, known as the “heartbeat bill” or H.B. 258, which would ban the abortion of unborn babies with a detectable heartbeat. Republican Gov. John Kasich has promised to veto the bill – which resembles one he vetoed in 2016. But that didn’t keep the media, from...

On September 8, 2018, Chilean women stood outside in a peaceful protest, letting the world listen in as they broadcasted the heartbeats of their preborn children. When Colectivo Por Las Dos Vidas: Ola Celeste Chile posted the women’s video, it was paired with these words: “The voice of the heart does not need explanation. Children for birth speak for themselves, we must only hear them. Chile is #porlas2vidas (for two lives) .” The square where these women met was quickly filled up with excited people, waving and wearing blue scarves. Each one was proclaiming that it is absolutely possible —...

OMAHA, Neb. — They are two stories that are hard to forget from January 2016. First, 21-year-old Sarah Root, killed hours after her graduation by a man in the country illegally. And a central Nebraska man so desperate to get a new heart, he left home in a blizzard, making it to the hospital just in time. KETV has learned that these two stories will forever be linked together. Dan Griffin, the man who battled the blizzard, was the one who received Sarah Root's heart that night.

The Ohio legislature Tuesday approved one of the nation’s toughest abortion laws, and the bill is now headed to Gov. John Kasich for his signature or veto. Votes in the Ohio Senate and House capped a long day of maneuvering on a bill that would effectively outlaw abortions by banning the procedure once a heartbeat is detected, which can be as early as six weeks into a pregnancy. First Ohio senators voted 21-10 for the bill, which is different than the one the House approved last year. After more than 90 minutes of emotional debate, the House voted 56-39 late...

A federal appeals court struck down one of the nation’s toughest abortion restrictions on Wednesday, ruling that women would be unconstitutionally burdened by an Arkansas law that bans abortions after the 12th week of pregnancy if a doctor can detect a fetal heartbeat. The 8th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals sided with doctors who challenged the law, ruling that abortion restrictions must be based on a fetus’ ability to live outside the womb, not the presence of a fetal heartbeat that can be detected weeks earlier. The court said that standard was established by previous U.S. Supreme Court rulings. The...

"Abortion stops a beating heart" has long been a poignant rallying cry for the pro-life movement. Abortion rights advocates often characterize the unborn as an impersonal "clump of cells" that a woman may choose to do with whatever she wants. But even as the House of Representatives plans a January 22 (Roe v. Wade anniversary) vote on the Pain Capable Unborn Child Protection Act, it turns out the leading abortion provider in the nation matter-of-factly acknowledges on its website that some abortions involve stopping a beating heart. According to Planned Parenthood's own description of fetal development, an unborn child's heartbeat...

Thought your fingerprint was secure? Think again. The unique pattern on the tip of your fingers can easily be copied and used to access your most personal information. As PIN numbers and passwords prove redundant in protecting data, tech companies are looking to convert bodily features into secure identity authenticators. Bionym, the Toronto-based biometrics technology company, have introduced The Nymi -- a wristband that measures heartbeats to authenticate identity. Its embedded sensor reads the electrical pulses produced by your heartbeat, which is unique to each of us. "You leave your fingerprints everywhere - you actually leave this impression which can...