In Ground Zero in the Fight for a Woman's Right to Choose, Wendy Davis Gets Some Vindication

     Not just her, of course, but women and those who care about them in general. However, she is clearly one person who has done a lot to give the draconian anti-abortion laws being passed in GOP states across the country some needed attention. 

     In today's successful challenge of parts of Texas' new, quite egregious anti abortion law, Ms. Davis' opponent for Governor was government lawyer defending the law, Perry's Attorney General, Greg Abbot. Some of the more egregious potions of the law were struck down:

    "The question before the court was whether Texas’ new abortion laws–requiring that abortion providers get admitting privileges to hospitals, imposing a less safe and outdated regimen for the administering of the abortion pill–constituted an undue burden on women seeking an abortion. (A third provision in the omnibus abortion bill, the 20-week ban, has not been challenged for fear it would force an unfavorable Supreme Court decision.) The provisions were set to go into effect on Tuesday."

    "District Court Judge Lee Yeakel ruled that the “admitting-privileges provision is without a rational basis,” and thus unconstitutional, but the judge had an ambiguous ruling on the medication abortion provision, saying it is constitutional “except when a physician finds such an abortion necessary, in appropriate medical judgment, for the preservation of the life or health of the mother.”

     http://www.msnbc.com/msnbc/judge-strikes-down-texas-abortion-law

     Unfortunately, the court didn't overturn the medication abortion restrictions though it didn't necessarily see this as particularly 'rational' either.

    "The admitting privileges provision was purportedly to protect women’s health, but the court found that to be a trumped-up reason. Although the court did not buy that the medication abortion restrictions were actually intended to protect women’s health, and would even have the opposite effect, the judge ruled that didn't make them unconstitutional."

     "The decision noted that another provision, the off-label protocol, is endorsed by the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists, and that it presents fewer risks and fewer burdensome visits for women. The off-label protocol also allows for use two weeks later into pregnancy."

    Mississipi's own draconian anti abortion laws were recently delayed but in Texas this is the final word. 

    "Mississippi passed a similar law last year, which a federal judge also blocked pending a trial scheduled to begin in March. Mississippi's attorney general asked the 5th Circuit to lift the temporary injunction so the law could be enforced, but the judges have left it in place signaling they believe there is a legitimate constitutional question."

    "Unlike the Mississippi case, Yeakel's order is a final decision, setting the groundwork for the 5th Circuit to review the merits of the law, not just an injunction against it."

     "The proposed restrictions were among the toughest in the nation and gained notoriety when Democratic state Sen. Wendy Davis launched a nearly 13-hour filibuster against them in June. The law also bans abortions at 20 weeks of pregnancy and beginning in October 2014 requires doctors to perform all abortions in surgical facilities."

     "The filibuster forced Gov. Rick Perry to call a second special legislative session for the Republican-controlled Legislature to pass the law. Davis is now running for governor on a women's rights platform. Since Perry is retiring, Abbott is Davis' likely Republican opponent, adding a political layer to the legal drama."

     http://talkingpointsmemo.com/news/federal-judge-declares-texas-anti-abortion-law-unconstitutional

     Of course, Governor Perry promises to continue this Holy War against women's rights and claims that this is what the people of Texas want. 

     ""Today’s decision will not stop our ongoing efforts to protect life and ensure the women of our state aren’t exposed to any more of the abortion-mill horror stories that have made headlines recently," Perry said in a statement. "We will continue fighting to implement the laws passed by the duly-elected officials of our state, laws that reflect the will and values of Texans."

      http://talkingpointsmemo.com/livewire/perry-decision-won-t-stop-efforts-to-protect-life

      AG Abbott insists that this case is destined for the apellate courts or the Supreme Court. At a minimum, Texans have a real choice to make the upcoming election. Do they want to slouch back into the Dark Ages or move forward for the basic human rights of women? Do they want to be at the vanguard of misogynistic reaction or at the vanguard of defeating this very same misogyny?