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Federal Judge Blocks Part of Texas Abortion Law

Photo: Andrew Burton/Getty Images

A federal judge has overturned part of the draconian Texas abortion bill passed over State Senator (now gubernatorial candidate) Wendy Davis’s famous filibuster. Specifically, U.S. District Judge Lee Yeakel ruled that a regulation requiring abortion providers to have hospital admitting privileges, which medical experts say unecessarily restricts abortion access, places an undue burden on women trying to end non-viable pregnancies, and is therefore unconstitutional. Unfortunately, the part of the bill that bans abortions after 20 weeks and more will stand, going into effect tomorrow. According to the Texas Tribune, the decision will probably be appealed to the abortion-unfriendly Fifth Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals.

In other abortion news, Kentucky Senator Rand Paul stumped for Virginia’s vociferously anti-abortion gubernatorial candidate Ken Cuccinelli today at Jerry Falwell’s Liberty University. Paul sought to “energize conservative supporters,” the Washington Post reports, by warning that advancements in genetic testing — plus abortion rights — could soon lead to eugenics, including the elimination of “short, overweight or less intelligent people.”

Federal Judge Blocks Part of Texas Abortion Law