Over 500 pro-life laws have been introduced across the nation so far in 2021, according to a recent analysis from the pro-abortion Guttmacher Institute, the former research arm and “special affiliate” of Planned Parenthood.
“Since January, there have been 561 abortion restrictions, including 165 abortion bans, introduced across 47 states (all counts current as of June 7, 2021). A whopping 83 of those restrictions have been enacted across 16 states, including 10 bans,” Guttmacher noted. [Editor’s Note, 6/8/21: These figures have been updated.]
“Between April 26 and April 29, 28 new restrictions were signed into law in seven states — almost half (46%) of the restrictions passed so far in 2021. This was the highest number of new restrictions signed in a single week in at least a decade. That count includes multiple abortion bans that directly challenge Roe: a near-total ban on abortion in Oklahoma, six-week abortion bans in Idaho and Oklahoma, a 20-week ban in Montana, and a ban on abortion for non-lethal genetic anomalies in Arizona.” Guttmacher added.
Lila Rose celebrates five hundred pro-life laws introduced in 2021 (Image: Twitter)
While the pro-life community is hailing the news as good, abortion advocates are concerned.
“Anti-choice politicians are launching an unprecedented, all-out attack on reproductive freedom,” NARAL tweeted.
“To put those figures in context, by this time in 2011 — the year previously regarded as the most hostile to abortion rights since Roe was decided — 42 restrictions had been enacted, including six bans,” Guttmacher wrote.
In an interview with The Recount, Planned Parenthood president Alexis McGill Johnson expressed concern over pro-life laws like heartbeat bills, calling them a deliberate attempt to “try and position a fundamental challenge to Roe.”
Planned Parenthood’s president referred to the life-affirming legislation as “weaponizing” and claimed pro-life laws are simply an “onslaught” to “winnow [abortion] access.”
Of course, abortion “access” is the bread and butter of Planned Parenthood, fill the organization’s self-described “bucket of money” significantly.
Planned Parenthood commits 41% of the abortions in the United States every year (over 350,000), but serves just 3% of women of reproductive age in the U.S. while it received $618.1 million in tax-payer dollars in just one year (June 30, 2019 to June 30, 2020).
SBA List President Marjorie Dannenfelser had a different perspective, calling the massive pro-life legislative push a “rebuke to the Biden-Harris administration.”
“Across the nation, state lawmakers acting on the will of the people are taking bold steps to humanize our laws and challenge the radical status quo imposed by Roe v. Wade,” Dannenfelser wrote. “The 61 new laws enacted and hundreds of bills introduced include legislation to stop late-term abortions after five months of pregnancy, end lethal discrimination against unborn children for reasons like a Down syndrome diagnosis, protect unborn babies from the moment their heartbeat can be detected, safeguard women from dangerous abortion drugs, and more. We’re grateful to all our state allies and have been honored to work together to advance many of these vital protections.”
“We…know Roe is the floor…” Planned Parenthood’s president claimed. “Roe is not working,” she added.
When asked if there was a “path to ensuring some kind of stability [on abortion rights],” the Planned Parenthood president replied in typical fashion, “building and holding power.” Power is critical to Planned Parenthood.
The organization’s past president Cecile Richards once told NBC’s Chuck Todd that she was helping to turn Planned Parenthood into “the largest kick butt political organization.”
Richards’ replacement, Dr. Leana Wen, who was later outsted for failing to focus on abortion and expand their political power, tweeted regarding her departure, “The new Board leadership has determined that the priority of Planned Parenthood moving forward is to double down on abortion rights advocacy.”
Live Action president Lila Rose issued a press release in response to the news about successful pro-life gains on the state level, noting that abortion proponents are hoping to shut down these pro-life gains by attempting to pack the Supreme Court with four more pro-abortion Justices:
Let’s be clear: radical schemes to pack the court and kill the filibuster are about one issue and one issue only: abortion. The far-Left knows they are losing the battle in an increasing number of state legislatures and in the court of public opinion–and that they could well lose at the Supreme Court. Now that the court has six Republican-appointed justices to the Democrats’ three, abortion advocates are concerned that the judicial branch might finally step up to defend the most fundamental right of all–the right to life for all humans.
The modern day Democrat Party and abortion lobby is proving that it will stop at nothing to defend abortion, even if that means undermining our constitutional order by destroying the legitimacy of the Supreme Court.
While Planned Parenthood and others in the industry cry foul over every reasonable abortion restriction, the fact of the matter is that unrestricted abortion on demand is what is being “weaponized” to fuel abortion empires like Planned Parenthood, and the numbers prove it.
According to Planned Parenthood’s 2019-2020 annual report, in just one year it accumulated nearly $70 million in excess revenue over expenses while recording net assets over $2 billion.
Editor’s Note, 5/3/21: Added statement from Live Action president Lila Rose.
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