
Bill curbing the flow of abortion pills into Texas likely dead
Senate Bill 2880 passed the Senate easily last month despite concerns from Democrats, but had languished in the House State Affairs committee before it passed out at the last minute. The report didn't make it to the committee that schedules bills to come to the House floor in time to meet the Tuesday deadline.
'This is a significant failure from the House,' Texas Right to Life president John Seago said. 'When you look at the opportunity this bill had, it seems like there was a deliberate effort to slow the bill down, if not to kill it.'
The bill would have allowed anyone who manufactured, distributed, prescribed or provided abortion pills to be sued for $100,000, expanded the wrongful death statute and empowered the attorney general to bring lawsuits on behalf of 'unborn children of residents of this state.'
The bill contained several unique legal provisions, including one that said the law could not be challenged in state court, prompting separation-of-powers concerns among legal experts. Any state judge who found the law unconstitutional could be personally sued for $100,000.
Conservatives blamed State Affairs Chair Ken King, a Republican from Canadian, for sitting on the bill for more than three weeks before passing it out at the last minute. More than 40 lawmakers signed onto a letter calling on King to bring the bill up for a vote.
'If Chairman King kills a bill that would protect tens of thousands of innocent children from the murder that is abortion, Republicans will be forced to hold him accountable,' said Rep. Nate Schatzline, a Fort Worth Republican, at a press conference on Friday.
King, a six-term Republican, is relatively moderate for the Texas House, which has become more conservative in recent sessions. While Texas Right to Life has been critical of his allegiance on certain abortion issues, even going so far as to endorse his primary opponents, other anti-abortion groups, like Texas Alliance for Life, have long supported him as an ally. King did not respond to a request for comment.
Seago intimated that King would be in the running for Texas Right to Life's 'biggest disappointment' award, but said the bill stalling out reflected a larger issue with House leadership. He credited Speaker Dustin Burrows, a Lubbock Republican, for his long-standing support on abortion issues, but said he didn't do enough to move the ball on this bill.
'For the speaker, it's not an issue of his values, it's an issue of his priorities,' Seago said. 'For something that is controversial like this, that is going to be a tough floor fight, you have to have the speaker not just say he's supportive of it, but actually push it.'
In a session busy with other conservative priorities like school vouchers, THC, bail and voting, further restricting abortion pills fell down the priority list for some lawmakers, especially as a majority of Texas voters opposed authorizing private lawsuits against someone who provides abortion pills.
After a bruising few years that saw the near-total banning of abortion in Texas, abortion access groups saw a sliver of hope in the failure of this bill.
'It wasn't so long ago that the Texas Legislature could pass any extreme anti-abortion law,' said Molly Duane, senior counsel with the Center for Reproductive Rights. 'This feels like a pretty radical change from just a handful of years ago.'
With the deadline for bills to come to the House floor in the rearview mirror, some conservative lawmakers are assessing ways to get aspects of the bill tacked onto existing legislation, or taken up in special session, Seago said. But he acknowledged these are likely long-shot proposals at this point in the session, which ends Monday.
'A lot of conservative legislators are looking for any and every opportunity to walk away with pro-life victories,' he said. 'So as long as that political window remains open, we'll keep pushing it.'
First round of TribFest speakers announced! Pulitzer Prize-winning columnist Maureen Dowd; U.S. Rep. Tony Gonzales, R-San Antonio; Fort Worth Mayor Mattie Parker; U.S. Sen. Adam Schiff, D-California; and U.S. Rep. Jasmine Crockett, D-Dallas are taking the stage Nov. 13–15 in Austin. Get your tickets today!
Hashtags

Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Yahoo
8 minutes ago
- Yahoo
Government shutdown talk is starting early ahead of a difficult funding fight in Congress this fall
WASHINGTON (AP) — It's become tradition. Congressional leaders from both major political parties blame each other for a potential government shutdown as the budget year draws to a close. But this year, the posturing is starting extraordinarily early. The finger-pointing with more than two months to go in the fiscal year indicates the threat of a stoppage is more serious than usual as a Republican-controlled Congress seeks to make good on its policy priorities, often with no support from the other political party. Democratic leadership from both chambers and the two panels responsible for drafting spending bills met behind closed doors recently to discuss the strategy ahead. The leaders emerged demanding that Republicans work with them but were careful to avoid spelling out red lines if Republicans don't. 'We are for a bipartisan, bicameral bill. That's what always has been done,' said Senate Democratic leader Chuck Schumer. 'The onus is on the Republicans to help us make that happen.' On the Republican side, lawmakers describe the Democrats as itching for a shutdown. Senate Majority Leader John Thune said Schumer had threatened a shutdown should Republicans pass a bill to roll back $9 billion in public broadcasting and foreign aid funds. Republicans subsequently passed those cuts. 'It was disturbing to see the Democratic leader implicitly threatening to shut down the government in his July 'Dear Colleague' letter, but I'm hopeful that he does not represent the views of Senate Democrats as a whole," Thune said. Where things stand on government funding The federal government is operating on a full-year continuing resolution that provided about $1.7 trillion in spending for defense and non-defense programs. The funding expires Sept. 30. President Donald Trump requested a comparable amount for the coming fiscal year, but the Republican proposed dramatically overhauling how that money is distributed to include more for defense and border security and significantly less for health, education, housing and foreign assistance. So far, the House has approved two of the 12 annual spending bills. The Senate has yet to approve any, but those bills that have advanced out of the Senate Appropriations Committee are enjoying bipartisan support while the House bills are generally advancing out of committee on party line votes. This week, the Senate is expected to consider the appropriations bill to fund military construction projects and the Department of Veterans Affairs, generally one of the easier spending bills to pass. One or two others could get added to the package. Congress got off to a late start on the funding process. Republicans prioritized Trump's tax and spending cut bill. Most lawmakers agree Congress will need to pass a stop-gap measure before Sept. 30 to avoid a shutdown and allow lawmakers more time to work on the full-year spending measures. The view from Democrats Democrats overwhelmingly opposed this year's funding bill that expires in two months. But in the end, Schumer and nine Democratic colleagues decided a government shutdown would be even worse. They voted to allow the bill to proceed and overcome a filibuster, giving Republicans the ability to pass it on their own on a final vote. Schumer took considerable heat from progressives for his strategy. House Democratic leadership issued a statement at the time saying 'House Democrats will not be complicit.' And members of his own caucus publicly expressed disagreement. 'If we pass this continuing resolution for the next half year, we will own what the president does,' said Sen. Adam Schiff, D-Calif. 'I am not willing to take ownership of that.' Some liberal groups threatened to hold protests at various events Schumer was planning to promote a new book, and some of those events ended up being postponed due to security concerns. The Democratic frustrations have only grown stronger in the ensuing months. First, the Democrats watched the Trump administration slow-walk or block hundreds of billions of dollars from going out in part through the work of its Department of Government Efficiency. Then they watched as Republicans passed Trump's big tax and spending cut bill without any Democratic votes. Finally, they watched as Republicans this month canceled $9 billion in foreign aid and public broadcasting funds when much of it had been previously agreed to on a bipartisan basis. Meanwhile, Trump's director of the Office of Management and Budget, Russ Vought, declared that the appropriations process "has to be less bipartisan.' Democrats complain that much of the work taking place in the House has been a waste of time, since those partisan bills have no chance of getting 60 votes in the 100-member Senate. 'At this point in time, why have appropriations if they can just unilaterally through rescissions whack it all away?' said Rep. Mike Quigley, D-Ill. 'I think what you're seeing is more frustration than I've ever witnessed.' Republicans position for impasse Republicans control all the levers of power in Washington. That could make it harder to blame Democrats for a shutdown. But in the end, any bill will need some Democratic support to get the 60 votes needed to overcome a filibuster. 'Our concern is that from their standpoint, they want to have a shutdown,' Sen. John Hoeven, R-N.D., said of Democrats. '... The Democrats see it as a way to derail the agenda that we're putting through.' Sen. John Barrasso, the No. 2-ranked Republican in the Senate, said Republicans were determined to hold votes on the 12 spending bills. He said that Schumer 'had unilaterally shut down the appropriations process' in previous years by not holding such votes, moving instead to negotiate directly with GOP leadership in the House and then-President Joe Biden's Democratic administration on an all-encompassing spending package. 'If Democrats walk away from this process again, simply to protect wasteful Washington spending," Barrasso said, 'they will be the ones sabotaging the Senate and shutting down the government.' ___ Follow the AP's coverage of Congress at Kevin Freking, The Associated Press Error while retrieving data Sign in to access your portfolio Error while retrieving data Error while retrieving data Error while retrieving data Error while retrieving data
Yahoo
8 minutes ago
- Yahoo
EPA Set to Unravel US Authority to Regulate Greenhouse Gases
(Bloomberg) -- The Trump administration is set to announce its plans to abolish the US government's authority to regulate greenhouse gases, threatening to strike a deep blow at Washington's ability to fight climate change. Budapest's Most Historic Site Gets a Controversial Rebuild San Francisco in Talks With Vanderbilt for Downtown Campus Can This Bridge Ease the Troubled US-Canadian Relationship? Trump Administration Sues NYC Over Sanctuary City Policy The Environmental Protection Agency will unveil a proposal in Indiana on Tuesday to scrap a landmark determination that planet-warming gases endanger public health and welfare, the agency's administrator, Lee Zeldin, said in a podcast. If finalized, the move would lay the foundation to unwind a host of regulations limiting emissions from power plants, oil wells and automobiles. Rolling back the 2009 endangerment finding would be among the most far-reaching steps yet by President Donald Trump's administration to gut US capacity to fight climate change. The finding forms the bedrock of the government's authority to impose limits on carbon dioxide, methane and other greenhouse gases. Ending it would be squarely at odds with the scientific consensus that those gases are causing climate change that's already leading to rising seas and more intense storms. 'How big is the endangerment finding? Well repealing it will be the largest deregulatory action in the history of America — resulting in over a trillion dollars in savings,' Zeldin said during an interview on the Ruthless Podcast that aired Tuesday. The EPA's proposal will also aim to end some automobile emission limits, according to a person familiar with the matter. Environmentalists have argued that any move to reverse the endangerment finding not only bucks scientific conclusions about the ways carbon dioxide, methane and other greenhouse gases interact with the world's atmosphere, but also imperils the planet. Efforts to restrain emissions now are critical to restraining the world's temperature rise and avoiding more tipping points where the consequences of climate change are magnified. 'The endangerment finding is based on decades of established, proven scientific evidence and has been repeatedly affirmed by courts,' said National Wildlife Federation chief scientist Diane Pataki. 'Overturning this decision directly contradicts the EPA's mandate to protect public health and address the sources of greenhouse gas pollution that have caused the climate crisis.' The Supreme Court effectively compelled the EPA to asses the impact of greenhouse gases in 2007 when it affirmed the agency's authority to regulate them as air pollutants under the Clean Air Act. At that point, it was up to the EPA to determine whether greenhouse gases constituted a threat that should be regulated. Critics have argued Congress designed the Clean Air Act to regulate localized pollutants, not those with widespread, global effects. Some have been pushing for repeal of the endangerment finding ever since. A policy blueprint drafted by conservative groups and Trump loyalists known as Project 2025 recommended addressing the endangerment finding. Energy businesses and some Trump allies are deeply divided over the wisdom of efforts to wholly scrap the endangerment finding. Some are concerned the effort would siphon time and manpower from other regulatory priorities, including rewriting Biden-era rules governing power plant and vehicle pollution. The effort would require the EPA to go through the formal, time-consuming federal rulemaking process. Even if the measure is finalized by the end of the year, it might not survive inevitable legal challenges. Energy companies also have warned that doing away with the endangerment finding — as well as the federal climate regulations it supports — could revive public nuisance lawsuits against oil producers and power plant operators. Under a 2010 Supreme Court decision, federal climate regulation under the Clean Air Act has effectively precluded those claims. (Updates with remarks from EPA administrator in fourth paragraph.) Burning Man Is Burning Through Cash It's Not Just Tokyo and Kyoto: Tourists Descend on Rural Japan Cage-Free Eggs Are Booming in the US, Despite Cost and Trump's Efforts Everyone Loves to Hate Wind Power. Scotland Found a Way to Make It Pay Off Elon Musk's Empire Is Creaking Under the Strain of Elon Musk ©2025 Bloomberg L.P. Sign in to access your portfolio
Yahoo
8 minutes ago
- Yahoo
MDpanel Expands Internationally Through Strategic Combination with Integra Medical Consulting
LOS ANGELES, July 29, 2025 /PRNewswire/ -- MDpanel is happy to announce a strategic combination with Integra Medical Consulting (Integra), a highly respected independent medical evaluation (IME) provider based in Vancouver, British Columbia. This milestone marks MDpanel's second expansion within Canada, but the first conducting full IMEs. It represents a significant step forward in MDpanel's mission to elevate access to high-quality medical opinions across North America. For almost a decade, Integra has built a strong reputation in Canada for its expert medical professional network, commitment to objectivity, and high-touch service model. By partnering with Integra, MDpanel deepens its reach into the Canadian market while remaining focused on delivering timely, objective, and high-quality medical opinions. "We are thrilled to partner with the Integra team," said MDpanel CEO, Jason Erdell. "This collaboration allows us to bring our platform and processes to a new geography, while learning from a well-established team that shares our values around physician excellence and client service." The partnership will allow both organizations to combine resources to better serve government agencies, solicitors, insurers, and employers. Together, MDpanel and Integra will continue to invest in report quality, operational scale, and client experience while preserving the local relationships and trusted expertise that define Integra's presence in Canada. "Partnering with MDpanel gives us access to tools and infrastructure that will help us grow responsibly and continue to provide the standard of service our clients and medical professionals have come to expect," Integra CEO Erica Enstrom said. MDpanel continues to build a national — and now international — network of high-performing medical professionals. With the addition of Integra, MDpanel is uniquely positioned to support clients who demand a consistent, technology-enabled experience backed by clinical credibility. Integra's vast physician network will soon be able to access the industry's only end-to-end platform within which they can entirely produce medical opinions with support not otherwise attainable by traditional hands-off approaches. Calfee, Halter & Griswold LLP and Cassels Brock & Blackwell LLP served as legal advisors to MDpanel. TechStrat served as the exclusive M&A advisor to Integra. About MDpanelMDpanel is the leading provider of expert medical opinions in the United States, serving physicians across a range of specialties. MDpanel is committed to being the partner of choice for physicians, carriers, attorneys and injured workers by connecting those in need of medical opinions with the most qualified and highly regarded medical professionals. For more information about MDpanel, please visit Media ContactDavid LiaoVP of Corporate View original content to download multimedia: SOURCE MDpanel