Indiana lawmaker joins VP Harris’ gathering to discuss abortion
WASHINGTON (WISH) — Phil GiaQuinta, Indiana House Democratic caucus leader, met with Vice President Kamala Harris and other Democrats on Friday to discuss Indiana’s possible abortion ban.
GiaQuinta joined Democratic lawamkers from five other states that may call legislative special sessions on the matter.
A special session of the General Assembly began Wednesday, but Republican legislators say they won’t meet formally in Indianapolis until July 25. That special session is expected to last several weeks and involve public hearings, Republican leaders say. In addition to addressing inflation’s impact on Hoosiers, the lawmakers are also expected to take steps to restrict abortions.
GiaQuinta, who is from Fort Wayne, told Harris that Indiana Democrats are ready to join the fight to secure “basic freedoms and protections” stripped away by the U.S. Supreme Court. U.S. state lawmakers gained permission to take added limits on abortion after a U.S. Supreme Court ruling June 24 overturned its 1973 Roe v. Wade decision. That decision held that U.S. women had a fundamental right to choose whether to have abortions without excessive government restriction.
The Indiana lawmaker told the gathering in Washington, “Access to safe and legal abortion is critical for women to remain economically mobile, independent and safe. Make no mistake: An abortion ban will kill women. Indiana leads the nation in maternal and infant mortality outcomes and lacks the infrastructure to support families as it is.”