Sen. Kamala Harris (D-Calif.) has announced a proposal that would require some states to obtain Justice Department approval before putting into effect any new abortion laws.
Under the 2020 Democrat's plan unveiled on Tuesday, states and localities "with pattern of violating Roe v. Wade in the preceding 25 years" would need to have any new abortion laws preapproved by the federal government, similar to the Voting Rights Act preclearance requirement, which required some parts of the country to have voting laws preapproved.
Harris is the latest candidate to roll out a proposal in response to a series of new laws across the country restricting abortion access, including one in Georgia banning abortion after a fetal heartbeat can be detected, usually at about six weeks, except in cases where the life of the mother is in danger and in cases of rape or incest where there is a police report. Alabama has also signed a law that bans abortion except in cases where the life of the mother is in danger with no rape or incest exception.
Neither law has gone into effect, but they're set to in 2020. Harris' campaign said on Tuesday she "believes we need to fight back and block these dangerous and deadly laws before they take effect."
Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) previously called for Congress to pass new federal laws codifying Roe v. Wade. But Harris' campaign said on Tuesday that codifying Roe "isn't enough." In addition to the preclearance requirement, Harris also said she'll fight for the repeal of the Hyde Amendment, which bars federal funds from being used for most abortions, reverse "illegal" attempts to cut Teen Pregnancy Prevention Program grants, and roll back President Trump's "dangerous and discriminatory rules ... to limit access to contraception and safe abortion." The New York Times reports Harris will discuss her proposal further in an MSNBC event on Tuesday night.
