Perry wants even more restrictions on abortions

Gov. Rick Perry pauses as he speaks during a news conference at The Source for Women, 6009 Richmond Ave., Tuesday in Houston. Gov. Rick Perry pauses as he speaks during a news conference at The Source for Women, 6009 Richmond Ave., Tuesday in Houston. Photo: Melissa Phillip, Houston Chronicle Photo: Melissa Phillip, Houston Chronicle Image 1 of / 11 Caption Close Perry wants even more restrictions on abortions 1 / 11 Back to Gallery

Proclaiming his ultimate goal to eliminate abortion at any stage, Gov. Rick Perry on Tuesday said he would back legislation to ban abortion in Texas after 20 weeks, the point at which he said a fetus can experience pain.

He said he also wants lawmakers in the upcoming legislative session to pass a law requiring physicians who perform abortions to have admitting privileges with nearby hospitals, and he wants abortion clinics to be licensed as ambulatory surgical centers.

"Over the last decade, Texas has taken extraordinary steps to protect the lives of the unborn, but when 80,000 lives are lost to abortion each year in our state, we know our work is far from over," Perry said, speaking at the Source Pregnancy Center in west Houston.

"Let me be clear, my goal - and the goal of many of those joining me here today - is to make abortion at any stage a thing of the past," Perry said. "But while Roe versus Wade prohibits us from taking that step, it does allow us, the states, to do some things to protect life if they can show there is a compelling state interest. I don't think there's any issue that better fits the definition of a compelling state interest than preventing the suffering of our state's unborn."

Elizabeth Graham, director of the state-based anti-abortion group Texas Right to Life, said her group supports the 20-week ban, but no bill has been filed yet.

Appearing with Perry in Houston, she said her organization would back a measure that includes exceptions for women whose lives are in danger, but not for victims of rape or incest.

"Those decisions for children who are conceived in rape and incest will need to be made prior to the 20-week mark," she said.

Attempt 'to curb access'

Abortion rights advocates cite data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention showing only 1.3 percent of abortions are performed beyond 21 weeks' gestation, with nearly 92 percent performed at less than 13 weeks.

"This proposed abortion ban is a cruel attempt by anti-choice extremists to curb access to care for women in the most desperate of circumstances," said Heather Busby, executive director of NARAL Pro-Choice Texas, in a press release. "The reality is that while most women welcome pregnancy and can look forward to a safe childbirth, for some, pregnancy can be dangerous.

"These proposed bans threaten women's health, which is why the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists, the nation's leading medical experts on women's health, has come out in strong opposition to 20-week bans," Busby said.

Similar measures have been enacted in Nebraska, Alabama, Idaho, Indiana, Kansas, Oklahoma, Georgia and Louisiana.

Seeks more regulations

Perry already has signed several bills into law that make it more difficult for women to gain access to abortion services, including a mandatory ultrasound law and a law aimed at excluding Planned Parenthood from the state's Women's Health Program.

Perry said he also hopes lawmakers will use the upcoming session to pass a law that regulates abortion clinics as if they were surgery clinics.

Abortion rights advocates contend such so-called TRAP laws - Targeted Regulation of Abortion Providers - burden first-trimester abortion clinics with costly building restrictions that are designed to shut down the clinics.

Texas would join Pennsylvania, South Carolina, Mississippi and Virginia if similar legislation passes.

"Again, the ideal world is a world without abortion," Perry said. "Until then, however, we will continue to pass laws to ensure abortions are as rare as possible under existing law."

Losing issue with some

Although the national Republican Party is undergoing a post-election period of reassessment of its position on issues that affect women and other groups, Rice University political scientist Mark Jones said that the governor has little to lose politically by maintaining a strong anti-abortion stand.

Jones pointed out that the key electorate for Perry to win in 2014 is the Republican primary voter.

With the Republican Party in general, however, it's a losing issue, Jones said.

"It's a position that repels younger voters in particular and many women, who otherwise would likely vote Republican," he said.

Perry promised that the Republican-dominated Texas Legislature, which convenes Jan. 8, would spend its entire 140-day session "protecting life."