Abortion rights measure proceeding in Florida

[billvon 2,991]

Women's rights advocates have gathered almost a million signatures to put a "reproductive freedom" measure on the ballot in Florida, where it will be voted on in the next election.  If passed it would undo the abortion ban that Florida republicans instituted last year.

Of course, the conservative state attorney general is fighting to keep it off the ballot, since nothing scares republicans more than a free election.

[tkhayes 348]

17 minutes ago, billvon said:

Women's rights advocates have gathered almost a million signatures to put a "reproductive freedom" measure on the ballot in Florida, where it will be voted on in the next election.  If passed it would undo the abortion ban that Florida republicans instituted last year.

Of course, the conservative state attorney general is fighting to keep it off the ballot, since nothing scares republicans more than a free election.

Yup and Florida is taking the amendment to court trying to stop it from even being allowed on the ballot.  When you cannot win on issues, move the goal posts and change the rules.....

Florida's record on constitutional amendments is pretty dodgy at best.

In new brief, Moody claims abortion amendment would let providers self-regulate - Florida Phoenix

Even if it is passed, you can bet that the Florida legislature will work legislation to 'control how the amendment is implemented'.  They did that with felony voting rights, weed, and others.  Most felons still cannot vote in Florida after the voting rights amendment passed with a massive majority.

The Women's rights amendment looks pretty good, but Florida will find a way to fuck it up and stop it.... I think they will redefine what 'viability' means, as well as set the terms of 'protecting a patient's health' to remove the ability of doctors to say the woman's health is in danger.  In other words, they will redefine every term in the amendment if it passes.

The amendment text is: 

“Limiting government interference with abortion.— Except as provided in Article X, Section 22, no law shall prohibit, penalize, delay, or restrict abortion before viability or when necessary to protect the patient’s health, as determined by the patient’s healthcare provider.”

[SkyDekker 1,465]

56 minutes ago, tkhayes said:

Yup and Florida is taking the amendment to court trying to stop it from even being allowed on the ballot. 

Don't think that is entirely correct. As part of this process the Florida Supreme Court as to approve the text of the amendment and Florida AG has indicated they do not agree with the text in its current form.

[tkhayes 348]

31 minutes ago, SkyDekker said:

Don't think that is entirely correct. As part of this process the Florida Supreme Court as to approve the text of the amendment and Florida AG has indicated they do not agree with the text in its current form.

Yeah, I am not sure about that - could not find anything online that says the SC has to approve every amendment petition..... if you have a reference, I am all ears. 

[SkyDekker 1,465]

2 minutes ago, tkhayes said:

Yeah, I am not sure about that - could not find anything online that says the SC has to approve every amendment petition..... if you have a reference, I am all ears. 

I am going off a CNN interview with the lady running the organization behind the petition. But these articles refer to it as well:

https://floridaphoenix.com/2024/01/05/abortion-rights-amendment-one-step-closer-to-the-fl-ballot-but-must-get-supreme-court-approval/

https://www.cbsnews.com/miami/news/arguments-set-for-february-on-florida-abortion-measure/

 

[billvon 2,991]

1 hour ago, SkyDekker said:

Don't think that is entirely correct. As part of this process the Florida Supreme Court as to approve the text of the amendment and Florida AG has indicated they do not agree with the text in its current form.

The AG has asked the courts to reject (not modify) the ballot measure. From his legal filing with the court:

CONCLUSION
The Limiting Government Interference with Abortion initiative should be stricken from the ballot.
Respectfully submitted,
November 15, 2023
ASHLEY MOODY
Attorney General 

https://acis-api.flcourts.gov/courts/68f021c4-6a44-4735-9a76-5360b2e8af13/cms/case/8ea48e7f-fe8b-4112-aac6-4214b4f8573a/docketentrydocuments/46433230-8124-49e9-9908-1dacfebd9cec

[wmw999 2,447]

The AG (who of course is pro-life) said that the wording could be confusing, and could lead to a "slippery slope" of liberalization of abortion laws.

I think that's a different slippery slope from the one she'd prefer.

Wendy P.

[SkyDekker 1,465]

On 1/5/2024 at 2:30 PM, billvon said:

The AG has asked the courts to reject (not modify) the ballot measure. From his legal filing with the court:

CONCLUSION
The Limiting Government Interference with Abortion initiative should be stricken from the ballot.
Respectfully submitted,
November 15, 2023
ASHLEY MOODY
Attorney General 

https://acis-api.flcourts.gov/courts/68f021c4-6a44-4735-9a76-5360b2e8af13/cms/case/8ea48e7f-fe8b-4112-aac6-4214b4f8573a/docketentrydocuments/46433230-8124-49e9-9908-1dacfebd9cec

Yes. And exactly how does that prove that "Florida is taking the amendment to court" is entirely true? My argument was that the Supreme Court of Florida is automatically involved in this process. Your link doesn't prove otherwise.

[billvon 2,991]

37 minutes ago, SkyDekker said:

Yes. And exactly how does that prove that "Florida is taking the amendment to court" is entirely true?

Sorry.  Was just demonstrating that Florida has asked the court to stop it from even being allowed on the ballot - not to get the text approved or anything.  They don't want to get the text right and they don't want it approved. They want it cancelled.

I was not arguing that there's no channel for the Supreme Court to get involved anyway.

[TriGirl 318]

On 1/5/2024 at 3:26 PM, tkhayes said:

Yup and Florida is taking the amendment to court trying to stop it from even being allowed on the ballot.  When you cannot win on issues, move the goal posts and change the rules.....

One way they like to move goalposts is to put it on the primary ballot.  Florida has closed primaries, but that does not mean unaffiliated voters cannot vote on primary day.  There is a non-partisan ballot to cast that cuts out any options specifically for the parties.   In 2022 I voted on several initiatives involving zoning and taxation, as well as school board memberships (technically non-partisan).  This is just the initiative I could see getting put on a primary ballot, because a lot of independent (unaffiliated) voters in Florida are unaware they still have work to do on primary day. 

[kallend 2,027]

"I terminated Roe v Wade" (paraphrased).  Donald Trump, Iowa Town Hall. 10 Jan 2024

I expect to see that clip over and over again in Dem ads.