Governor Greg Abbott said, “The U.S. Supreme Court correctly overturned Roe v. Wade and reinstated the right of states to protect innocent, unborn children. Texas is a pro-life state, and we have taken significant action to protect the sanctity of life. Texas has also prioritized supporting women’s healthcare and expectant mothers in need to give them the necessary resources so that they can choose life for their child.”
Beto O’Rourke, the Democrat challenging Abbott for the governorship in November, emphasized the election in response to the ruling.
“The only way to overcome today’s decision is to win this race for governor,” said O’Rourke. “The Supreme Court has sent this back to the states, and our state’s current governor has outlawed abortion beginning at conception with no exception for rape or incest. If you care about protecting a woman’s freedom to make her own decisions about her own body, health care, and future, join this campaign and help us win.”
O’Rourke has expressed in the past that he thinks there should be no legal restrictions on abortion, calling it “a decision for a woman to make.”
Attorney General Ken Paxton has clarified that Texas can prosecute abortion 30 days after the Supreme Court issues its judgment, not its opinion. He noted that the decision could take another month to come out. Paxton also tweeted, “Abortion is now illegal in Texas. And today I’m closing my office — and making it an annual holiday — as a memorial to the 70 million lives lost bc of abortion.”
Paxton’s Democratic opponent, Rochelle Garza, said on Twitter, “Roe has been overturned. I’m angry and I know you are too. But I’ve taken on the fight for our reproductive rights before and, together, I KNOW we can win again.”
“As a mom to a 3-month-old, I’ll be damned if my daughter, and all of our children, grow up in a country that does not value their health & their human right to decide what happens to their bodies.”
Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick said, “Because of our trigger bill that we passed last year, in 30 days, abortion will be banned in Texas. I thank God for delivering us this day, and I am so proud that Texas has taken the lead to ensure that such evil can no longer live in our state.”
Like O’Rourke, Patrick’s Democratic challenger for November, Mike Collier, focused on the importance for Democrats of winning his statewide race. Collier called it “a dark day for freedom in Texas” and stated, “A woman’s right to control her own body and her own healthcare now depends on who will be Lt. Governor of Texas.”
U.S. Senators Ted Cruz (R-TX) and John Cornyn (R-TX) celebrated the ruling as well. Cruz called it “nothing short of a massive victory for life,” and that, “Roe was wrong the day it was decided, and it has been wrong every day since then.”
Cornyn said, “This decision correctly returns the authority of states to decide the limits on abortion and will save countless innocent lives. I commend the Justices for not bowing to the vicious intimidation campaign waged by the radical Left.” Cornyn has come under fire from Republicans for supporting a bipartisan gun control bill in the U.S. Senate.
Texas Rep. James Talarico (D-Round Rock) claimed that “Republicans stole the Supreme Court, and the Supreme Court stole our rights.”
He also offered various solutions for Democrats to pursue, asserting that, “the only way to save American democracy is to abolish the undemocratic loopholes in our system—like the electoral college and the filibuster—and re-establish majority rule,” and cited “the idea of providing abortion care on federal lands or in federal offices.”
State Rep. Ryan Guillen, a former pro-life Democrat who switched sides to the Republican Party, stated, “As humans, each of us have a moral responsibility to protect & defend the innocent life around us. As public servants, that responsibility is intensified. Today’s decision will save innocent lives.”
The day the Supreme Court ruling came out, some clinics stopped performing abortions in the state.
The Democratic Party of Texas called on officials and law enforcement to not enforce the state’s restrictions on abortion. Five county district attorneys have already agreed not to prosecute abortion offenses.
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