Michigan Republican's bill would make it a felony to provide abortions in the state

In the latest move in Michigan’s battle over reproductive rights, Republican lawmakers in the state introduced a bill on Wednesday that would make providing an abortion a felony in Michigan punishable by up to 10 years in prison or a fine of up to $100,000.

The Protection at Conception Act, sponsored by Michigan state Rep. Steve Carra and five other GOP lawmakers, would amend the state’s 1931 ban on abortion in all cases except if the life of the mother was in jeopardy. It would allow no exceptions for rape or incest.

Michigan’s 1931 abortion ban would automatically come into effect if Roe v. Wade were to be overturned, as is expected to happen imminently. In anticipation of the rollback of Roe, Gov. Gretchen Whitmer and Planned Parenthood of Michigan have filed lawsuits in state courts this spring to protect abortion rights statewide. In May, the Michigan Court of Claims issued a preliminary injunction against the 1931 ban.

In a release posted to his House website, Carra noted the injunction and said that his bill would make the 1931 law “enforceable post-Roe v. Wade.” Carra said the bill was inspired by a similar Oklahoma law enacted in May — one of the harshest in the country — which bans most abortions with few exceptions after just six weeks of pregnancy.

A press release from the Michigan Democratic Party on Wednesday called the bill “highly punitive anti-choice legislation that surpasses the punishments laid out in the currently dormant law from 1931 that criminalizes abortion, makes felons out of reproductive health care providers, and provides no exceptions for rape or incest.”

“These bills are downright dangerous,” Michigan state Sen. Dayna Polehanki said in a statement to the American Independent Foundation. “The bill sponsors have completely lost touch with reality if they think the women of Michigan will settle for anything less than full access to reproductive health care. The only thing they’re right about is that we do need to take swift legislative action — to overturn the 1931 ban on Michigan’s books.”

If the bill passes the state legislature, Whitmer, a Democrat, would almost certainly veto it. “We have got to use every tool at our disposal to make sure that women still have bodily autonomy and the right to full reproductive healthcare,” Whitmer recently told NBC News.

Whitmer is up for reelection this fall and will face an as-yet-undecided Republican challenger in the general election. The remaining five Republicans vying to be their party’s nominee in the governor’s race — Ryan D. Kelley, Garrett Soldano, Kevin Rinke, Tudor Dixon, and Ralph Rebandt — all support the 1931 abortion ban.

Former President Donald Trump has endorsed Carra in his bid to take the seat of retiring Rep. Fred Upton (R-MI).

Carra also proposed a resolution in the Michigan House on Tuesday to make January 6 a “Remembrance Day” statewide. The resolution does not recognize Trump supporters’ failed attempt to overturn President Joe Biden’s 2020 election victory by storming the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021, but says that a “small fraction of malicious agitators” caused the violence that day.

Instead, the resolution accuses Democrats of eroding America’s “constitutional republic” over the last two years and blames House Speaker Nancy Pelosi for not calling on the National Guard. It is not the Speaker’s responsibility to call for the National Guard, although Pelosi did in fact call for their assistance. It also states “that we recognize January 6 for the heinous and tyrannical actions levied on society by an unhinged and politically motivated ruling elite seeking compliance and subversion from the American people.”

Carra’s resolution goes on to list a variety of conservative culture war grievances, referencing the “intimidation of parents as critical race theory, sexual perversion, and social justice indoctrination infiltrated our public schools” and “power grabs by political elitists” who “subverted freedom and replaced familial and faith-based guidance with mandated obedience to a secular government.”

The resolution was introduced to the Michigan House of Representatives on the fourth day of the January 6 hearings in the U.S. House of Representatives. One of the notable events of the day included testimony from the former Michigan Republican Party chairwoman Laura Cox on how the GOP had attempted to present a fake slate of electors to award Biden’s electoral college votes to Trump.

On Tuesday, Carra shared a news story about the resolution and claimed without evidence that “the violent insurrection has been orchestrated by the radical left.”

Carra recently wrote a letter to Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel asking her to launch criminal investigations into Michigan Secretary of State Jocelyn Benson, on the basis of the widely debunked claims of election fraud discussed in conservative commentator Dinesh D’Souza’s specious documentary “2000 Mules.” Former President Trump’s U.S. Attorney General William Barr called the film’s claims “singularly unimpressive.”

Despite Trump’s backing, Carra is polling behind U.S. Rep. Bill Huizenga (R-MI) who also has a lead in fundraising.

Published with permission of The American Independent Foundation.