In response to the recent US Supreme Court ruling overturning Roe v. Wade, the state legislature has voted to place on the November 2022 ballot Senate Constitutional Amendment 10, which would enshrine a right to have an abortion, without any limitations.
SCA 10 actually goes further than current state law on abortion.
Current state law (Health and Safety Code Section 123462(c)) says “The state shall not deny or interfere with a woman’s fundamental right to choose to bear a child or to choose to obtain an abortion, except as specifically permitted by this article.” The exception language is permits abortion prior to the viability of the unborn child in order to protect the life or health of the mother:
“The state may not deny or interfere with a woman’s right to choose or obtain an abortion prior to viability of the fetus, or when the abortion is necessary to protect the life or health of the woman.”
SCA 10 omits any protections for unborn babies after they reach the point of viability, stating y: “The state shall not deny or interfere with an individual’s reproductive freedom in their most intimate decisions, which includes their fundamental right to choose to have an abortion and their fundamental right to choose or refuse contraceptives.”
In other words, SCA 10 enshrines a state constitutional right to abortion on demand, with no restrictions.
This is a sign of the abortion radicalism that pervades the ranks of state Democratic leaders and activists, and is out of step with the opinions of most Americans, who support a range of restrictions on abortion.
This is how Orange County’s state legislators voted on SCA 10?:
In Favor of SCA 10
Sen. Bob Archuleta (D)
Senator Tom Umberg (D)
Senator Dave Min (D)
Senator Josh Newman
Assemblyman Tom Daly
Assemblywoman Sharon Quirk-Silva (D)
Assemblywoman Cottie Petrie-Norris (D)
Opposed to SCA 10
Senator Pat Bates (R)
Assemblyman Steve Choi
Assemblywoman Janet Nguyen
Assemblywoman Laurie Davies (R)
Assemblyman Jay Chen (R) was absent.
One has to wonder if the Democrat legislators who voted to place SCA 10 on the ballot really understand that they voted for abortion without restrictions – allow the destruction of unborn human life even at a point where it is incontrovertible that it is capable of surviving outside of the womb?
There’s a saying that people should avoid making big decisions when they’re emotional. SCA 10 is a perfect example of legislating based on emotion. It pertains to a fundamental moral issue – defenseless, innocent human life – but was passed in a rush, with little deliberation about its consequences.
