Governor Gavin Newsom of California is joining with the governor's of Oregon and Washington in releasing an open letter on the subject of abortion. The three Democratic state leaders are urging their gubernatorial counterparts and legislators in other states to review their laws and protect a woman's right to have an abortion, and Newsom is making it clear that women wanting the procedure are welcome in California.
"In the absence of federal leadership on this issue, states must step up and put in place their own protections - both in statute and in their state constitutions, and through the expansion of family planning and education - to defend every American’s right to reproductive freedom," wrote Newsom, Oregon Governor Kate Brown, and Washington Governor Jay Inslee. "Roe is settled law, but newly enacted and clearly unconstitutional laws in a handful of states compel our states to act now to reaffirm longstanding commitments to safeguard the fundamental rights of women."
On Friday Governor Newsom also signed a reproductive freedom proclamation to reaffirm California's commitment to keeping abortion as one of the reproductive choices for women, including the use of state money to pay for abortions under subsidized health insurance plans for low-income people. He said he hopes California can serve as a model for other states.
The letter comes as several states have approved restrictions on abortions or completely outlawed the procedure.
Georgia, along with Alabama, Mississippi, Missouri, have passed anti-abortion laws which are being challenged by the ACLU and women's rights groups in court. Louisiana's Democratic Governor John Bel Edwards signed a strict abortion ban into law on Thursday that prohibits abortions once a fetal heartbeat is detected.
In addition, a judge is expected to rule Friday on the license renewal of the only Planned Parenthood clinic in Missouri that performs abortions. The St. Louis clinic's license to perform abortions expires by the end of the day. If it is not renewed, Missouri would become the first state without an abortion clinic.
Missouri's health department cites concerns about patient safety and legal violations. Planned Parenthood says Missouri is "weaponizing" the licensing process.
Three major entertainment production companies are threatening to pull their business out of Georgia when that state's new abortion law takes effect. A generous tax credit offered in Georgia has resulted in a growing number of movie and television projects, but now Netflix, Disney, and WarnerMedia say they will consider stopping all production, and Comcast's NBCUniversal has said these new abortion laws will "strongly impact" where they decide to produce content.