Bartlett explains that some of the onus of pregnancy should be placed on men.
Republican Rep. Wendy McNamara stood to counter Bartlett’s amendment and said, while laughing, that she would “measure her comments” because she didn’t “want to get in trouble.”
Bartlett responded to McNamara by saying, “Some may think this is a joke, but it takes two people to make a pregnancy to come about. And to put all of the onus on a woman, I just think it’s unfair.”
Since last Monday, Indiana’s House of Representatives has been debating an outrageously extreme anti-abortion bill SB 1, which has already passed the House Committee of Courts and Criminal Code with an 8-5 vote and the GOP-controlled Senate, CNN reports.
Presently, Indiana allows for abortions up to 20 weeks after fertilization. The new bill allows for abortion in the cases of rape, incest, and when the life of the pregnant person is at risk, but it would effectively ban abortions at all stages of pregnancy. However, Indiana Republican state lawmakers are angling to eliminate the rape and incest exceptions.
Republican state Sen. Susan Glick sponsored the bill and has said it’s the “expression of where we believe the state of Indiana is right now.”
Rep. J. Michael Davisson is arguing for requiring forced birth of nonviable fetuses.
The bill also criminalizes doctors who perform abortions with a six-year prison term and a fine of up to $10,000, IndyStar reports.
The Indiana House will vote on SB 1 Friday. Bartlett’s proposal was defeated on an unrecorded voice vote, KPC News reported.
