Citing recent abortion polls, Texas Democrats go on offense against Republican opponents
HOUSTON (CBSDFW.COM) - At a news conference in Houston on Thursday, Democratic candidate for Governor Beto O'Rourke slammed the state's new law that bans most abortions with no exceptions for rape and incest.
The only exception is to save a mother's life.
O'Rourke said, "Reproductive healthcare is under attack in this state more than anywhere else in this country. There's one person responsible for that. That is Governor Greg Abbott. There is one way to overcome this: that is by defeating him in this election."
Governor Abbott has had ceremonies when signing new abortion laws.
His campaign's spokesperson Renae Eze, issued a statement saying, "Beto O'Rourke's extreme views on abortion, which includes support for third trimester abortion, partial-birth abortion and even opposing life-saving care for babies who survive abortion, are not only out-of-touch with Texas, they're out-of-touch with basic humanity."
O'Rourke released two ads criticizing Abbott and calling him extreme for signing the Texas Human Life Protection Act.
Under the law, doctors and other providers who are convicted of performing the procedure face life in prison, at least $100,000 in fines, and losing their licenses.
Abbott sent out his own ad calling O'Rourke's position on abortion extreme.
Democrats Mike Collier, who's running for Lt. Governor and Rochelle Garza, candidate for Attorney General, released a joint ad criticizing Lt. Governor Dan Patrick and Attorney General Ken Paxton for supporting the abortion restrictions.
Two recent polls have shown around 55% of all Texans believe abortion should be legal in most or all cases, while 44% said they believe abortion should be illegal in most or all cases.
The new state law went into effect two months after the U.S. Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade.
Republican State Representative Stephanie Klick of Fort Worth said, "Many people have been hoping that this day would come."
Klick has helped pass recent abortion laws and says she's not worried about a potential backlash against Republicans at the polls this November. "Many of these are individuals that do not support any restrictions up until right before birth on having abortions. The general public does not support that."
O'Rourke said, "I look forward to working with those in office to turn back this total abortion ban to restore the ability for women to make their own decisions about their own body."
Many political analysts are waiting to see whether the abortion issue impacts turnout in November whether other issues such as inflation, the border, or guns play more of a roll in getting people to the polls.