“Sue thy neighbor”: Did Republicans go too far with the Texas abortion ban?

VARSHINI REGUPATHY: Texas has been dominating national news lately, and not for any good reason. Americans nationwide have been outraged by the extremely restrictive abortion ban that was recently signed into law in Texas. Since 2011, Texas has passed 26 abortion restrictions — this bill is the clear culmination of Republican attempts to peddle their extreme anti-abortion rights ideology to the people of Texas. 

Senate Bill 8 (S.B. 8), bans abortions in cases where the doctors can detect cardiac activity, which starts at around six weeks into the pregnancy. To put this into perspective, the six-week mark occurs about two weeks after a missed period, when many women simply do not know they are pregnant. The law does make exceptions for ‘medical emergencies,’ but lawmakers do not specify what exactly entails a ‘medical emergency.’ 

Usually, abortion restrictions are enforced by the state, but S.B. 8 allows individuals with a financial incentive to report illegal abortions.  With this law, people anywhere can sue those involved in providing abortion care to Texas patients. While patients are not liable under this new law, those who help a patient attain an abortion –– such as family members, doctors, and even Uber drivers — can be sued for rewards of $10,000 or more. 

A key demonstration of the law’s severity is the lack of exceptions for rape, incest, or fetal anomaly. The ban is so extreme that it would allow anti-abortion rights activists from out of state to sue those who help a rape victim seek and have an abortion. Moreover, with S.B. 8, an average person seeking an abortion would have to drive more than 14 times further to get to a clinic.

Yet somehow it gets worse; an additional bill, S.B. 4, would limit access to abortion pills by preventing providers from giving abortion-inducing medication to patients who are more than seven weeks pregnant. 

In the face of these laws, a new question emerges: will Texas voters accept this?

Theories on the political fallout of the abortion ban differ according to who you ask. Texas Republicans are fleeing to the ideological right in hopes of strengthening their political base. On the other side of the aisle, the Democrats are making the best of a cruel situation, hoping that this defeat will galvanize their supporters in future elections. 

If you ask me, Republicans have finally gone too far, even for the Texas electorate. 

Nationally, the bill is wildly unpopular. 81% of Americans oppose granting $10,000 to private citizens that successfully sue those who perform or assist an abortion in Texas. This sentiment is evident in Texas as protests have sprung up statewide in opposition to the law. 

Governor Greg Abbott is already experiencing the consequences of his crusade against reproductive rights  According to a recent poll, 51% of Texas voters believe Abbott does not deserve re-election, with his approval numbers in the state hitting an all time low. Specifically in reference to  abortion, 53% of Texans dissaprove of Abbott’s handling of the issue, while only 37% approve. Texas voters are clearly unhappy with their government, and Republicans will feel the sting of this at the ballot box. 

Moreover, Texas Republicans’ anti-women rhetoric in recent years has been increasingly worrying to voters, especially suburban women. In 2019, a former aide to U.S. Senator John Cornyn predicted that “women, moderate women (...) are going to be scared that this right that they thought they had for the last 40-some years is going to be shelved.” 

These womens’ worst fears have come to fruition, and they will take their revenge at the ballot box. 

If there’s one message Texas Republicans need to hear, it’s this: y’all better be scared. Though Texas suburbs have long been Republican strongholds, the landscape is quickly changing. In 2018 and 2020, many Texas suburbs witnessed a notable swing to the left in response to Trump’s presidency; this swing can largely be attributed to the votes of suburban women. Considering that the suburbs are in fact the areas making Texas a battleground, Republicans need to be careful who they anger.

Republicans have gone too far this time, and the voters will not be silent. 

Varshini Regupathy is a sophomore in the McDonough School of Business studying Business and Global Affairs. She is the daughter of Indian immigrants and a proud native Texan.