Ohio Gov. John Kasich vetoed a bill that would have banned abortion if the unborn child had a heartbeat.
Kasich, who has approved other pro-life legislation during his time in office, said that he believed the legislation would be struck down by courts.
“However, the central provision of Sub. H.B. 258, that an abortion cannot be performed if a heartbeat has been detected in the unborn child, is contrary to the Supreme Court of the United States’ current rulings on abortion. Because the lower federal courts are bound to follow the U.S. Supreme Court’s precedents on abortion, Sub. H.B. 258 will likely be struck down as unconstitutional.”
Kasich claimed that the state would be a losing party in a lawsuit and would have to pay hundreds of thousands of dollars to the winning party. “Therefore, this veto is in the public interest,” he said.
The legislation passed in the Ohio House with 53 votes.
The legislation would “generally prohibit an abortion of an unborn human individual with a detectable heartbeat.”
The bill includes exceptions for medical emergencies or medical necessities.
It also includes a rule that a physician would need to meet with the pregnant woman seeking an abortion at least 24 hours before the procedure to “give her an adequate opportunity to ask questions about the abortion.”
It’s the second time in two years that a piece of legislation that would ban abortions of fetuses that have heartbeats was vetoed by Kasich, who will leave office at the end of the year. Incoming Gov. Mike DeWine, also a Republican, has indicated he would sign legislation like the heartbeat bill.
Kasich on Friday vetoed two bills in total and approved 12 pieces of legislation.
Of the approved pieces of legislation, one took aim at the nonconsensual circulation of private sexual images, as part of an effort to cut down on so-called “revenge porn.”
