The Post-Dobbs Abortion Landscape

Hello it’s the weekend. This is The Weekender ☕

The midterms offered proof that Dobbs has upended abortion politics that were baked in for decades.

The success of the abortion rights coalition in ballot initiatives from Kentucky to Michigan showed that abortion can be just as powerful an incentive to vote for those who support abortion access as for those who oppose it.

For many House Republicans, that shift would, in another world, alter their behavior. With majorities in even deeply red states supporting abortion access, you’d expect these lawmakers to moderate their position. But thanks to the dearth of competitive House districts due to cumulative years of gerrymandering, many of them have more to fear from a primary challenge from the right than a general election against a Democrat.

So while the broader abortion landscape has shifted dramatically, much has remained the same for House Republicans. They started the new congressional term with a trio of anti-abortion measures: a bill to make the Hyde Amendment permanent, a bill to open doctors to criminal charges if they don’t make every effort to save a baby born during a botched abortion* and a bill decrying violence against anti-abortion organizations**.

*Abortions late enough in a pregnancy that an infant could survive independently are virtually always tragic medical emergencies usually related to fetal abnormalities or risk to the woman’s life. They are also extremely rare.

**What violence, you may ask. It’s an interesting rewriting of history to bury the several murders, kidnappings, bombings, arsons and hundreds of death threats targeting abortion providers and clinics at the hands of the anti-abortion movement by pretending that the anti-abortion organizations are the real victims.

But — House Republicans have yet to introduce an abortion ban. Obviously, such a ban wouldn’t pass through the Democratic Senate (and neither will the three bills described above). But if this legislative flurry is all in the service of showing the anti-abortion movement that these lawmakers are still on its side, the Republicans are still stopping short of offering up the movement’s next goal. Maybe the lawmakers are eyeing the national landscape after all.

Either way, the abortion war has moved to the states, where it’ll remain until Republicans reclaim unified control and bring up an abortion ban they can actually pass. One of the most interesting features of the state-level skirmishes is the burgeoning movement to get initiatives before voters to amend state constitutions and enshrine abortion rights.

Keep an eye on TPM this holiday weekend for more on this new front.

More on other news below. Let’s dig in.

— Kate Riga

George Santos, A Gift To Political Journalists

Things just were not on the up and up, to put it mildly. Enter the universe of George Anthony Devolder-Santos, the new GOP representative from New York state. TPM reported this week on Santos’ campaign finance filings and the madcap world that they depict.

Among other things, operatives with Santos’ campaign complained to TPM about the operation’s lavish spending, including at a Long Island Italian restaurant called Il Bacco. The campaign also dropped money in Vegas and Atlantic City, as well as at the Miami outpost of famously pricey Turkish restaurant Nusr-Et which, among other things, serves gold-plated steaks. 

Toby Gotesman, a Florida Holocaust painter, told TPM that she appreciated Santos for being a gay Republican, but has come to regret her involvement with the man. “You know how your first instinct of a red flag is always what comes back to bite you in the ass later?” Gotesman said.

— Josh Kovensky

An Unexpected Journey

If you can believe it, there have been even more revelations about Rep. George Santos’s sketchy past this week. If you’re struggling to keep track, I put together a timeline of his claims leading up to his election to Congress.

But I also noticed that Santos’s alleged backstory took him through some major events in world history: from World War II (surprising) to the January 6th insurrection (less surprising). Take a peek at both before we’re undoubtedly hit with more news on the Santos front next week.

— Kaila Philo

The Frenzy Over Feinstein’s Senate Seat Begins

Sen. Dianne Feinstein (D-CA) hasn’t even announced her plans for 2024, but, as our friends over at Slate so cleverly put it, the feeding frenzy over her seat has already begun.

On Tuesday, Rep. Katie Porter (D-CA) officially launched her Senate campaign for Feinstein’s spot — and she already has her old professor ​​Sen. Elizabeth Warren’s (D-MA) endorsement. On Wednesday, Rep. Barbara Lee (D-CA) reportedly told lawmakers she is running for the same Senate seat in a closed-door Congressional Black Caucus meeting.

Porter’s bid and Lee’s remarks come before an official announcement from the long-time senator on whether she’ll seek another term but many are expecting Feinstein to step down at the end of the year. The 89-year-old trailblazer has recently come under scrutiny about her cognitive health, which has been an ongoing topic of coverage for some time.

But despite the premature announcements, Feinstein seems to think the bids for a spot she’s held since 1992 are fair game: “Everyone is of course welcome to throw their hat in the ring, and I will make an announcement concerning my plans for 2024 at the appropriate time,” Feinstein said in a statement Tuesday.

It’s clear there might be more salivating over Feinstein’s seat. Rep. Adam Schiff (D-CA) has previously expressed interest in the spot. But only time will tell how crowded the fight for Feinstein’s seat will become and if she’ll even be part of it.

— Emine Yücel 

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