Shad Plank Live Extra:The Senate vote to restrict abortion clinics

Join political writer Kimball Payne and state editor Dave Hendrickson at 11 a.m. Friday to join in a discussion about the Senate's vote Thursday to tighten regulations on abortion clinics.

 

The underlying bill that was amended to become Virginia's abortion clinic law....

Here's Sen. Ryan McDougle's underlying bill that was amended in the House of Delegates.

Here's a link to the description and history of the bill - along with the vote count, and here's a secnd link to see how small the amendment really was that was offered by the House.

Board of Health; regulation of facilities. Requires the Board of Health to promulgate regulations containing minimum standards for policies related to infection prevention, disaster preparedness, and facility security of hospitals, nursing homes, and certified nursing facilities. This bill provides that minimum standards for construction, maintenance, operation, staffing, equipping, staff qualifications and training, conditions under which services may be provided, as well as requirements for policies related to infection prevention, disaster preparedness, and facility security for hospitals, nursing homes, and certified nursing facilities shall also apply to any facility in which five or more first trimester abortions per month are performed, and that such facilities shall be classified as a category of hospital for the purposes of such requirements. This bill requires the Board of Health to promulgate regulations to implement the provisions of this act within 280 days of enactment.

 

Virginia Attorney General Ken Cuccinelli's statement and opinion on abortion clinics....

Virginia Attorney General Ken Cuccinelli released the following statement Thursday afternoon following the Senate's vote to enact tougher restrictions on abortion clinics.

Cuccinelli's August opinion on the subject spurred new interest in the legislation that was eventually passed today when Lt. Gov. Bill Bolling broke a 20 to 20 tie and passed the legislation on to Gov. Bob McDonnell who has said he would sign it.  

Here's Cuccinelli's statement:

"Today, a long, hard-fought battle for women's health and dignity has finally been won in the State Senate.

Just this afternoon, the Democrat controlled Virginia State Senate passed a bill which will require abortion clinics to meet hospital-style safety standards. This will mean that any abortion clinic which performs more than 5 abortions in a month will need to meet safety standards comparable to any other clinic which performs out-patient procedures.

For over 25 years, Virginia abortion clinics have not been held to minimal health and safety standards. As a result, women who walk into these clinics are often not treated with the care and respect that any human being deserves.

Our abortion clinics have not been held to high safety standards in the past - even issues of basic cleanliness have been lacking. As a result, women who walk into these clinics have been done a severe disservice.

It is interesting to note that in 1984 when the health and safety regulations were removed from Virginia abortion clinics, the Virginia Society for Human Life and notoriously liberal National Organization for Women (NOW) held their one and only joint press conference ever. They jointly objected to the removal of health and safety standards, asserting that women in abortion clinics would not get the quality of treatment and the respect of people in other medical facilities. And what an understatement that turned out to be.

Obviously I am pro-life. While I regret the occurrence of abortions, I do want women in all circumstances treated with the dignity and respect that every human being deserves. The establishment of health and safety standards for Virginia's abortions clinics will not only help preserve the health and safety but also the dignity of women in Virginia.

As a state senator I tried for several years to pass this legislation - and it is great to see that today, members from both sides of the aisle - and the Lt. Governor - realized the importance of this legislation and were able to score this victory for life, and the dignity of women."

Here's a link toCuccinelli's opinion regarding abortion clinic regulations in the state.

This one is probably going to get a lot more traffic in the next few weeks

Senate Democrats blame tea party for new abortion rules, say moderate GOPers gone...

Senate Democrats just sent on a release summing up their end of the debate today over new abortion clinic restrictions in Virginia under the headline "The Moderate Republican Senator is No More Tea Party Pressures Republicans to Support Anti-Abortion Agenda."

Today the Virginia Senate passed a bill to classify women’s clinics performing first trimester abortions as “hospitals.”

The bill, SB 924, also direct the Board of Health to promulgate regulations at women’s clinics offering abortion services. Opponents of the bill, say those regulations could close the doors of 17 of the 21 women’s clinics offering these services in Virginia. While 20 of the 22 Democratic Senators voted to kill the bill, all of the Senate’s Republican members voted in favor of the legislation. The 20-20 tie was broken when Lt. Governor Bill Bolling voted for passage.

Thursday afternoon Senate Republicans and Democrats debated the impact and constitutionality of the bill on the Senate floor.

Click below for more:

National Abortion Rights Action League blasts Senate vote on abortion clinics...

NARAL Pro-Choice Virginia issued the following statement in response to the Virginia General Assembly passing SB 924 as amended, requiring first-trimester abortions to be provided in hospitals:

“The bill passed today singles out abortion from other medical care and could potentially close several health centers that provide abortion. It represents a shameful level of political interference in the doctor-patient relationship,” said Tarina Keene, executive director. “The politicians behind this plan falsely claim they are protecting women’s health, yet their ultimate goal is to make it even more difficult for women to access abortion care in Virginia. Unfortunately, it’s no secret that Governor McDonnell is a cheerleader for this reckless, out-of-touch extreme agenda and will sign this far-reaching bill into law as soon as it hits his desk. The public is watching these divisive attacks on women unfold in Richmond and asking, ‘When did attacking a woman’s right to choose with extreme bill after extreme bill become the new jobs agenda for the General Assembly?’”

 

Family Foundation lauds Virginia's new restrictions on abortion clinics...

The conservative Family Foundation has already shot out a statement lauding the Virginia Senate for voting for tougher abortion clinic restrictions.

The 20 to 20 tie was broken Thursday by Virginia Lt. Gov. Bill Bolling - the Family Foundation has long lobbied for tighter restrictions on clinics that provide outpatient, first trimester abortions.

“After more than two decades, with today’s vote Virginia’s abortion centers will no longer be able to hide behind a veil of politically motivated secrecy. After recent revelations about horrific activities in abortion centers in other states and ties from some of those activities to abortion centers in Virginia, it became critical that the General Assembly take action. We look forward to working through the regulatory process on ensuring that the regulations imposed by the Board of Health ensure that these centers are safe for the women who make the unfortunate choice of abortion.”

Abortion clinic fight going on now in Virginia Senate - watch it live....

The Virginia Senate appears on the verge of greenlighting a new law Thursday that would force abortion clinics to meet hospital—style regulations, a long sought goal of anti-abortion lawmakers that pro-choice advocates say is unconstitutional and could shutdown 17 of the state’s 21 outpatient clinics.

The floor fight is going on now - and here's a link to watch it live.  

 UPDATE: Sen. Richard Saslaw - "This will be voted up or down."

"You've got my word that we will vote on this today."

UPDATE 12:50 p.m. - Sen. Janet Howell - "We are requesting an informal opinion from the attorney general."  

UPDATE III -Proposal passed by temporarily.

UPDATE IIII - Emotional debate has resumed on the floor of the Senate, female Democrats giving testimony about the era before legal abortions. But it's unclear if any of the debate is strong enough to change the minds of folks in the Senate. There is very little new information surrounding the abortion debate.  

Lt. Gov. Bill Bolling breaks the 20 - 20 tie in the Senate - and approves tighter restrictions for abortion clinics.

Shad Plank Live:The General Assembly's closing days...Scott Rigell's first impressions...Gov. Scott Walker....

Democrats take aim at Rep. Rigell over budget resolution cutting benefits for homeless veterans...

National Democrats are going after Virginia Republicans for the House Continuing Resolution backing budget cuts, and in Hampton Roads that means U.S. Rep. Scott Rigell is taking flack for what the GOP aimed at.

The freshman Republican remains part of the target list for national Democrats, who believe that having Barack Obamaon the ticket could make swing districts extremely competitive during the 2012 election cycle. Rigell's military heavy district means that his opponents want to knock into his support with military and veterans - hence the compare and contrast.

According to the release from the Democrats Congressional Campaign Committee, the ads are going out on the web, in emails to supporters and also in robo-calls throughout the district.

Here's some more on the back and forth from CNN.

Here's a breakdown of the cuts from Sen. Daniel Inouye, a Hawaii Democrat  and chairman of the Senate Appropriations Committee - the Homeless veterans section is on page 8.

Here's the details of the new ad campaign from the DCCC.

As part of this second phase of the DCCC’s Drive to 25 Campaign, automated phone calls, web ads, live phone calls, and e-mails will be running in Representative Scott Rigell’s district beginning today.

The text of the automated phone call running against Representative Scott Rigell follows:

"Everyone knows we need to cut spending and reduce the deficit in Washington. And we can do that by reforming government, cutting wasteful spending, and getting rid of taxpayer subsidies for the Big Oil companies making record profits.

Instead, Representative Scott Rigell voted for a partisan plan to eliminate vital housing assistance for homeless veterans. On the battlefield, our troops leave no soldier behind, but Representative Scott Rigell is willing to leave our veterans behind here at home by eliminating millions for Homeless veterans to find housing. This doesn’t make any sense.

Call Representative Scott Rigell at [PHONE] and tell him to cut taxpayer subsidies for Big Oil companies, not walk away from our veterans."

Waiting on a reply from Rigell's office.  

 

Virginia Beach attorney enters growing GOP field in U.S. Senate race in 2012

Virginia Beach attorney announced Tuesday that he is filing paperwork to run for the GOP nomination for the U.S. Senate seat in 2012, entering a rapidly expanding field of Republican hopefuls.

David McCormick has launched a website backing his bid for the Republican nomination with points on different issues and a welcome video. The frontrunner in the race appears to be George Allen, but the field is thick with Richmond tea party founder Jaime Radtke, Bishop E.W. Jackson, Bert Mizusawa and rumors around Corey Stewart, Rep. Rob Wittman and Del. Bob Marshall.

According to his biography, McCormick has worked in the Virginia Beach Republican Party on various levels, but this appears to be his first run for public office.