11 April 11th-April 17th, 2024 phoenixnewtimes.com PHOENIX NEW TIMES | NEWS | FEATURE | FOOD & DRINK | ARTS & CULTURE | MUSIC | CONCERTS | CANNABIS | Study Committee, which released a budget that endorsed a 15-week national abortion ban, as well as legislation that could allow states to eliminate access to contraception and in vitro fertilization, gut Social Security and Medicare and dismember the Affordable Care Act. About 80% of Republicans belong to the committee. In a written statement, Ciscomani said he did not support all of the positions of the group. “With any large coalition in Washington, there are a wide array of, and sometimes conflicting, points of view,” Ciscomani said. “The Republican Study Committee produces a number of commonsense provisions; however, I do not subscribe to every proposal they put out. What best reflects my perspectives are the votes I take, bills I introduced and legislation I co-sponsor.” A Schweikert spokesperson did not respond to questions from New Times. The Democratic National Committee has made reproductive freedom a focus of its advertising in Arizona and other battle- ground states. It launched a bilingual bill- board campaign in late February that recalled that presumptive Republican nominee and former President Donald Trump bragged he was “able to kill Roe v. Wade.” The DNC ads also tried to link Trump to the Feb. 16 ruling from the Alabama Supreme Court that embryos created through in vitro fertilization should be considered children. Trump has criticized the ruling and voiced support for IVF, but supports a national ban on abortion after 15 weeks. Reproductive freedom on the ballot locally While federal races in Arizona could decide what happens in Washington, local races and a potential ballot initiative could impact what happens in the state. Both chambers of the Arizona Legislature, neither of which has been controlled by Democrats since 1992, are up for grabs. Republicans, who passed the 2022 law that banned abortion after 15 weeks, hold a slim one-vote majority in the House and Senate. If Democrats regain both houses, they could pass legislation that overturns the 2022 law. On March 18, state Sen. Eva Burch, a Mesa Democrat, delivered a powerful address on the floor of the Senate, telling colleagues that she was going to get an abortion because her pregnancy no longer was viable. Burch described the cruelty and absur- dity of Arizona’s current laws. Burch was subjected to a transvaginal ultrasound, and her provider gave her a list of recommen- dations — an action mandated by state law — that included adoption alternatives even though doctors said the fetus has no chance of survival. “The only reason I had to hear those things was a cruel and uninformed attempt by outside forces to shame and coerce and frighten me into making a different deci- sion other than the one I knew was right for me,” she said. “There’s no one-size-fits- all script for people seeking abortion care, and the legislature doesn’t have any right to assign one.” Arizona Democrats see several oppor- tunities to oust antiabortion Republicans from their seats: • Legislative District 2 in north Phoenix, where Republicans Rep. Shawnna Bolick and Sen. Justin Wilmeth serve alongside Democratic Rep. Judy Schwiebert. • LD4 in North Phoenix, where Republican Rep. Matt Gress serves with two Democratic lawmakers. • LD16 in Pinal County, where Republican Rep. Teresa Martinez serves with Democratic Rep. Keith Seaman. • LD17 outside Tucson, where three extreme Republicans narrowly defeated Democrats. The abortion access ballot initiative, if it makes it to the November ballot and voters approve it, would have the most immediate impact on abortion in Arizona. The measure, for which organizers are still gathering signatures, will allow voters to choose whether to enshrine reproductive rights in Arizona’s constitution. In Ohio, where Trump has dominated in presidential elections, a similar measure was approved by a wide margin. Antiabortion activists are scrambling to stop the measure from reaching Arizona’s ballot, fearing it will pass easily. Timmaraju said the ballot initiative will drive voter turnout in support of other pro- reproductive freedom candidates in Arizona, including Gallego and Biden. “You can’t count on a ballot initiative, but a ballot initiative can help connect the dots if you have candidates that make the case, as well,” Timmaraju said. “So the perfect thing is you have Ruben (Gallego) at the top of the ticket in the state and Joe Biden and Kamala Harris at the top of the ticket nationally.” Rep. Ruben Gallego, a Phoenix Democrat running for the U.S. Senate, spoke during a Reproductive Freedom for All event on Feb. 21 at the Other Bar. (Photo by TJ L’Heureux) ‘Connect the Dots’ from p 8
