Pat Robertson, an outspoken anti-abortion televangelist, said Wednesday that the near-total ban on abortions the Alabama Legislature passed this week is too restrictive.
The Alabama Senate on Tuesday voted 25 to 6 to pass the Human Life Protection Act, a measure that would ban abortions, even in the case of rape and incest, unless the life of the pregnant woman was in danger. The bill would make performing an abortion procedure a felony offense punishable by 10 to 99 years in prison.
“I think Alabama has gone too far,” Robertson said on his show, “The 700 Club.” “They’ve passed a law that would give a 99-year prison sentence to people who commit abortions. There’s no exception for rape or incest. It’s an extreme law and they want to challenge Roe v. Wade, but my humble view is that this is not the case we want to bring to the Supreme Court because I think this one’ll lose.”
Robertson, who is known for his bigoted comments against women, Muslims and the LGBTQ community, went on to call Roe v. Wade a “phony case.” He also falsely claimed that former Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton was in favor of late-term abortions. As a U.S. senator, Clinton voted against a ban on late-term birth abortions because it did not include an exception for if the pregnant person’s life was at risk.
Alabama’s bill goes now to Gov. Kay Ivey (R) for a signature. Ivey has not publicly said whether she intends to sign the bill into law.
Ohio, Kentucky, Georgia and Mississippi have all passed laws this year banning abortion after six weeks, before many women even realize they’re pregnant. Texas lawmakers are considering a bill that would allow women who receive abortions, as well as abortion providers, to be charged with murder and thus subject to the death penalty.