A new war between the states is erupting -- this time over abortion. A dozen states, including Texas and Louisiana, have enacted near-total bans on abortion. Eight other states, including New York, are going on the offense against these anti-abortion states.
New York Gov. Kathy Hochul thinks she can be the supreme leader for all of America, dictating abortion policy everywhere. In 2023 she signed a shield law that promises legal protection to New York doctors who prescribe abortion drugs via telemedicine to patients in the anti-abortion states. Some doctors are actually mailing the drugs to these patients.
Texas and Louisiana are coming after these out-of-state doctors, including New York abortion activist Dr. Margaret Carpenter. Louisiana wants to extradite her and try her in criminal court for violating its state ban, and a Texas court has slapped her with a $100,000 civil penalty.
Hochul says "no way in hell" will she enforce the penalty or surrender Carpenter to Louisiana authorities. In addition to the 2023 shield law, Hochul signed additional protections this spring, allowing abortion docs to keep their names off the prescription bottle, making it harder for law enforcement to track them down.
Rep. Mike Lawler (R-N.Y.), from the Hudson Valley, worries that Hochul "has invited New York to be the abortion capital of the world."
Lawler's got a point. She is zealous that everyone in the U.S., from Texas to New York, can always choose abortion.
Count on this abortion battle to roil the New York governor's race in 2026. Lawler is frequently mentioned as a possible candidate, as is ardent pro-lifer Rep. Elise Stefanik (R-N.Y.).
Stefanik gets an A-plus rating from Susan B. Anthony Pro-Life America for her work protecting the unborn and preventing taxpayer dollars from going to abortion. In 2023 she cosponsored the SAVE Moms and Babies Act, which would have barred the Food and Drug Administration from approving new abortion drugs and required that abortion pills be administered by a doctor or nurse, effectively outlawing their use by women in states with abortion bans.
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After Dobbs v. Jackson Women's Health Organization, Stefanik said it was time for the states to "embrace this debate" over abortion. Democrats in New York would like nothing more.
Expect them to run hard on abortion next year because they won't have much else, with the state's population in decline, energy costs soaring, and high taxes and regulation throttling the economy. As if crusading for abortion access in Texas could possibly make up for New York ranking dead last in economic prospects, according to Rich States, Poor States.
In the last gubernatorial race, Hochul was a one-trick pony. She unleashed millions of dollars of ads against Republican gubernatorial nominee Lee Zeldin for his pro-life stance. And she won.
Lesson to the GOP for the future: Take that issue off the table. New York women's reproductive rights are safely enshrined in the state's constitution. Issue closed.
New York's clash with anti-abortion states is widely expected to reach the U.S. Supreme Court. It's a big deal. Every month, some 7,700 women in anti-abortion states abort using pills prescribed by telehealth doctors, according to the Society of Family Planning.
New Yorkers should be asking why they are even footing the bill for this legal battle. Shouldn't the state be minding its own business?
The Dobbs decision in 2022 said each state should make its own decisions about abortion.
But Hochul is actually helping New York doctors break the laws of other states. She has long made New York a sanctuary state for illegal migrants. Now she wants to make New York a sanctuary for lawless abortion providers.
Expect New York to get clobbered when this case reaches the highest court. Hochul's efforts to evade and obstruct the laws of Texas and Louisiana violate the principles of federalism as well as the spirit of Dobbs.
Meanwhile, don't let the 2026 gubernatorial race devolve into a fistfight over abortion. Politicians running for the top job should be grilled on how to make the state affordable, safe, and prosperous. And they should keep their noses out of other states' business.
Betsy McCaughey is a former Lt. Governor of New York State and founder of SAVENYC @SAVENYC.org. Follow her on Twitter @Betsy_McCaughey.
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