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ShazzieB

(21,420 posts)
Thu Jul 31, 2025, 05:18 PM Jul 31

Over a Dozen GOP AGs Are Waging War on Abortion Pill Shield Laws

No surprises here, just more disgusting maneuvering by so called "pro life" (an oxymoron if there ever was one) politicians.

https://www.jezebel.com/over-a-dozen-gop-ags-are-waging-war-on-shield-laws

Fifteen attorneys general, led by Arkansas AG Tim Griffin, have signed an open letter pleading with Congress to take the entire system down.

Shield laws are really starting to piss off Republicans. After seeing their contemporaries, Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton and Louisiana Attorney General Liz Murrill, humiliate themselves in a wildly unsuccessful goose-chase against the New York doctor who prescribed abortion pills to a woman in Texas, 15 attorneys general have now signed an open letter pleading with Congress to take the entire system down.

*snip*

The letter, which was presented by Arkansas AG (and Atwoodian villain) Tim Griffin, was signed by attorneys general in Alabama, Florida, Idaho, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Louisiana, Missouri, Nebraska, Oklahoma, South Carolina, South Dakota, West Virginia, Wyoming, and, who could forget?–Texas. And while it’s a blatant attempt to further criminalize abortion in a post-Dobbs world, it also bodes an unsettling glimpse into how vengeful anti-abortion politicians can really be. In an announcement on Tuesday, Griffin said: “Let’s just say, I’m optimistic that we’ll get something changed here.”

*snip*

Shield laws have been a newer target of the GOP’s anti-abortion agenda, as they are a temporary workaround to improving access in states with near-total and total bans, and are meant to protect health care providers in presumably blue states from being fined or prosecuted in abortion-banned states. Connecticut was the first Democrat-led state to pass a shield law after Roe v. Wade was overturned in June 2022, and nearly a dozen states now have them.

But such laws, Griffin says, “are blatant attempts by some states to interfere with other states’ ability to enforce our laws within our borders.” And because the AG believes that shield protections interfere with the criminal process, they thus affect the constitutional structure. Because, again, what else screams democracy than exacting control over pregnant bodies?

That's right, these fucksticks want to control what the residents of their states can purchase from OTHER states. Unfortunately, considering the state of things in Washington right now (especially the deeply cortupt SCOTUS super majority), I think there is real danger of them getting their way.

Just what we need right now, ANOTHER thing to worry about!

EDITED TO ADD The full text of the letter is here: https://arkansasadvocate.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/07/2025-07-29-Letter-to-Congress-Shield-Laws.pdf

ALSO: The Jezebel article says nearly a dozen states now have shield laws, tut Wikipedia says cites a higher number.
As of June 2024, abortion shield laws are on the books in DC and 18 states:
California
Colorado
Connecticut
Delaware
Hawaii
Illinois
Maine
Maryland
Massachusetts
Minnesota
Nevada
New Jersey
New Mexico
New York
Oregon
Rhode Island
Vermont
Washington

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Abortion_shield_laws_in_the_United_States
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