The White House suggested Tuesday that President Obama would veto a Republican bill that would ban abortions after 20 weeks of pregnancy, saying the legislation is both unconstitutional and detrimental to women's health.
Here's an excerpt of the Statement of Administration Policy:
H.R. 36 is a direct challenge to the Supreme Court’s holdings on abortion. Not only is the basis for H.R. 36 scientifically disputed, the bill disregards women's health and rights, the role doctors play in their patients' health care decisions, and the Constitution. Furthermore, the provision that requires rape and incest survivors to report the crime to a law enforcement agency or child welfare authority in order to have access to an abortion after the 20-week mark demonstrates a complete disregard for the women who experience sexual assault and the barriers they may face in reporting. Research indicates that the majority of survivors have not reported their sexual assaults to law enforcement. …
If the President were presented with this legislation, his senior advisors would recommend that he veto this bill.
House Republicans introduced the bill on the first day of the 114th Congress and plan to take a vote on it on Jan. 22, the anniversary of
Roe v. Wade. In the Senate, South Carolina Sen. Lindsey Graham is expected to introduce a similar bill soon and Majority Leader Mitch McConnell pledged last year to give the legislation a vote if Republicans took control of Congress.
The abortion ban is part of a strategy Republicans are pushing nationwide.