The measure, approved by the Alabama Senate, would outlaw almost all abortions in the state. “This is a war on women,” Senator Kirsten Gillibrand said.
Democrats vying for the party’s nomination for president roundly condemned a measure approved by the Alabama Senate on Tuesday that would outlaw almost all abortions in the state, calling it an outrageous, appalling and unconstitutional attack on women that they vowed to challenge.
Among the measure’s most forceful critics were the leading women candidates: Senator Kamala Harris of California, Senator Elizabeth Warren of Massachusetts, Senator Amy Klobuchar of Minnesota, and Senator Kirsten Gillibrand of New York, who has made fighting for women central to her campaign.
“This is a war on women,” Ms. Gillibrand said, “and it is time to fight like hell.”
The legislation bans abortions at every stage of pregnancy and criminalizes the procedure for doctors, who could be charged with felonies and face up to 99 years in prison — a point highlighted by Ms. Gillibrand and others. It includes an exception for cases when the mother’s life is at serious risk, but not for cases of rape or incest — a subject of fierce debate among lawmakers in recent days.
