Kristi Noem's pro-life proposal blocked by South Dakota Republicans
The bill would ban abortions after a fetal heartbeat can be detected and allow private citizens to sue
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}South Dakota Republicans blocked a pro-life proposal from Gov. Kristi Noem that would ban abortions after a fetal heartbeat can be detected and was modeled after Texas’ law that allows private citizens to sue.
Republican lawmakers in the state said the bill could "jeopardize" their chances of ultimately getting abortions outlawed in the conservative state.
Pro-life Republican House Speaker Spencer Gosch said the bill language proposed by the governor could interfere with a Planned Parenthood legal battle connected to a decade-old law forcing women to go to crisis pregnancy centers before getting an abortion. The law was halted years ago and Noem has vowed to take it to the U.S. Supreme Court.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}South Dakota Gov. Kristi Noem on Wednesday, Feb. 2, 2022, in Pierre, South Dakota. (Associated Press)
"We were not in support of the governor’s original draft language," director of South Dakota Right to Life, Dale Bartscher, said, adding that he’d like to see it return with revisions.
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Noem has touted support for the bill from national anti-abortion groups.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}"They’re not listening to national leaders in the pro-life movement on the momentum we have in front of the Supreme Court and what this legislation means to South Dakota," Noem told reporters of state Republicans.
She said she didn't believe her proposal "takes any credibility away from the case in front of the Supreme Court."
A billboard with the text, "Abortion: The choice that kills," is seen inside a cemetery in Kimball, South Dakota (Getty Images)
She tweeted earlier Wednesday: "Every single life is precious and deserving of our protection – but apparently South Dakota legislators think otherwise."
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}She called the move "unprecedented" in a video message posted to social media.
Kristi Noem, governor of South Dakota, speaks during the FAMiLY Leader summit in Des Moines, Iowa, U.S., on Friday, July 16, 2021. (Getty Images)
"Today was the first time the legislature refused to give a hearing to a bill and they chose to do it on a pro-life issue, protecting babies." She said she had worked on the bill for months and argued the language would help build the case to overturn Roe v. Wade.
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{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Kristin Hayward, the advocacy manager of Planned Parenthood South Dakota Action Fund, claimed the governor was "decimating reproductive rights in our state."
The Associated Press contributed to this report.