Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp signed a controversial piece of legislation into law Tuesday which would ban abortions after six weeks. Known as the “fetal heartbeat bill,” the Republican governor said the state’s new law “values life.”
“We protect the innocent, we champion the vulnerable, we stand up and speak for those that are unable to speak for themselves.” the Republican governor said.
The bill challenges the landmark 1973 Roe v Wade Supreme Court decision, which made abortions illegal. After the signing of the bill, Rep. Ocasio-Cortez took to Twitter to blast the legislative measure.
“Six weeks pregnant equals two-weeks late on your period,” the 29-year-old congresswoman tweeted. “Most of the men writing these bills don’t know the first thing about a woman’s body outside of the things they want from it. It’s relatively common for a woman to have a late period + not be pregnant.”
Ocasio-Cortez further continued her attack on the ban by stating the law doesn’t respect basic science.
“If you were sexually assaulted (stress delays cycle), took a morning-after pill (throws off cycle), or have an irregular cycle, you‘d have no idea. There are a TON of ways this law ignores basic biology.”
The bill is supposed to go into effect in January 2020, yet Elisabeth Smith, chief counsel at the Center for Reproductive Rights told CBS via email she plans to challenge prior.
“Bans like this have always been blocked by courts. We will be suing Georgia to make sure this law has the same fate,” she said.
