On what planet does it make any kind of sense to criminalize everyone involved in an abortion except the one person who actually makes it happen: the woman carrying the fetus?

Not that I oppose the bill in question. I don't. That bill has no chance of becoming law in Ohio and, as currently written, could actually help Democrats in Ohio. No objections here.

The legislators have finally decided that a woman's life is not worth saving. NO abortion even if she's going to die without one, even if she's been raped by her father/brother/whomever???? When did women become expendable?

The IRS rules stated here would clearly make any church that funds efforts to stop abortion no longer tax exempt. If applied fairly. Also all churches that fund anti-evolution legislation.

My concern is that the lawmakers will remove the "Extreme" language (the whole thing is extreme if you ask me) and just decide on a less-restrictive ban, or limit out-of-state abortions, like Missouri has done.

Here's a quote from another article, in the Cleveland newspaper:

Denise Mackura, current head of Ohio Right to Life, said a substitute bill is being drafted by Brinkman following talks with her powerful lobbying group.

Makura said "sloppy drafting" of Brinkman's bill means that it would also erase the restrictions on abortion, such as a partial birth abortion ban, enacted by Ohio lawmakers over the past two decades. She said a new bill - which would act as a "trigger" to ban abortion in Ohio only if Roe was overturned - is expected to replace the current legislation.

So it would not apply unless Roe was overturned? Is there a lawyer in here who can clarify? If this draconian measure passes, Ohioans can still get, give and abet abortions until Roe falls?

Yeah, if a state enacts unconstitutional legislation, such as a total ban on abortions (or a ban on interracial marriage, or one requiring people to quarter soldiers in their houses), it cannot be enforced against anyone. You can have the law on the books, but you can't prosecute anyone for violating it--if you tried, they could get an injunction. Or, I guess you could write the law to say that if Roe/Casey is overturned, then the restrictions will go into effect.

Could someone also please explain to me why this can be written into law? I understand why you're not supposed to buy liquor or tobacco in another state, and transport it into your own, because your state wants the tax money from the sale (although still legally fishy to me). But how can it be illegal to drive someone to another state for a medical procedure? How can you hold a person hostage to their state's laws?

If someone can choose a doctor in another state because they have a good reputation for a certain surgery, why can you not choose a doctor in another state who will perform an abortion?

The feeling I get about these trafficking laws is that they treat a woman as a subclassed citizen who needs to be restrained from any freedom.

Arguably, this part of the law is unconstitutional, independent of the status of Roe. The right to travel among the states is a very fundamental right, and any restriction of it is subject to the highest judicial scrutiny. The state interest in preventing abortions would probably not outweigh the burden of restricting people from crossing state lines to engage in activities related to their medical care that are legal in the destination state.

This may be the first time anyone has said "hooray for the IRS" since their role in the conviction of Al Capone.

Thank the lord not all government agencies are under this administration's thumb.

The part of the law about transporting women out of state is also tricky because of the extensive, extensive gray area...

1. What if a woman is unknowingly pregnant, happens to travel (courtesy of her friend who drove) to a less misogynistic state, and once there finds out she is pregnant and seeks an abortion? Is her friend liable even though the friend and the woman did not know she was pregnant when they left Ohio?

2. What if a woman is pregnant and seeks money to travel out of state for an abortion without telling those from whom she requests the money the purpose of her trip? Are they still liable even though they didn't know?

3. If Ohio tries to limit the rights of Ohioans to get abortions outside of Ohio, do other states have to follow this law? My guess is no, given the various groups that do indeed transport women around for abortions. Don't states' rights come in somewhere? What if a legal resident of Ohio is a college student elsewhere, and while elsewhere gets pregnant and has an abortion? Is she going to be prosecuted on her first trip home? How is the Ohio law enforcement even going to know what's going on outside of their own state?

It sounds like the law would be exceedingly difficult to prosecute, if outside states will still do the procedure on Ohioans and those involved in getting there can either plead the Fifth or simple ignorance.

Everybody gets punished except the person who initiates the "crime" of abortion. I think this annoys me more than any other single aspect of the abortion debate. The bleeping right wingers act as if women are just helpless victims of abortion who are not grown up enough to be held responsible for their actions. I can almost understand them having a religious belief in life beginning at conception. I can respect that people who believe that life begins at conception might fight to ban abortion. At least that is an honest debating point. What I cannot understand is how in the 21st century they can write legislation that treats women as the equivalents of helpless crime victims if they think we are committing a crime. If abortion is murder, then a person seeking an abortion is no better than someone who tries to hire a thug to kill their child. This issue highlight the inherent flaws in the anti-choice arguments, and the sincere belief of the right that women are fools.