ALBANY, New York (LifeSiteNews) — New York’s new Catholic governor, Kathy Hochul, has vowed to bring Texan women seeking abortions to New York, where Hochul proclaimed “the rights of those who are seeking abortion services will always be protected.”
Gov. Hochul (D), who followed Gov. Andrew Cuomo in August after he had to resign in disgrace, made the remarks following the introduction of anti-abortion legislation in Texas. The new law, dubbed the “heartbeat bill,” protects the life of the unborn in the womb after a heartbeat can detected, which can be as early as six weeks into pregnancy.
Owing to the new legislation in Texas, Hochul, who has previously been endorsed by NARAL Pro-Choice New York for her public support of abortion, expressed dismay that abortion attempts will be prosecuted, characterizing the killing of unborn babies as a “basic human right.”
“For women in Texas, they need to know: we will help you find a way to New York and we are right now looking intensely to find what resources we can bring to the table to help you have safe transport here and let you know there are providers who will assist you in this time of your need,” Hochul said in a September 15 interview with MSNBC host Lawrence O’Donnell.
“You are not alone,” Hochul promised Texans, adding that their “enlightened brothers” in New York will “help you in any way we can.”
“All they want to do is control women’s bodies in their state,” Hochul spuriously complained of Texas Gov. Greg Abbott (R). “We have to wipe out men like Gov. Abbot,” Hochul said, adding her opinion that “it’s appalling what’s going on in these Republican states,” in reference to both the restrictions on abortion and more liberal rules regarding COVID.
“To the women of Texas, I want to say, I am with you. Lady Liberty is here to welcome you with open arms.”
Hochul outlined a plan to “stand with women all across this nation using my platform, my voice, to let them know they can come to New York” to procure an abortion. “I’m going to help women get elected all over this country who are [pro-abortion]. I’m going to use my energy, my resources to make sure that happens,” the self-identified Catholic said.
Prior to interviewing on MSNBC, Hochul announced on September 13 an “agenda to affirm abortion rights and cement New York’s status as a place to welcome women seeking abortion care.” The governor outlined plans to develop a “patient bill of rights,” whereby women in the state are to be informed of “their rights and legal protections” regarding access to abortion, “and ensure this information is accessible and widely available.”
Hochul emphasized that “medication abortion” ought to be “more easily accessed during telehealth visits” and that the New York State Department of Health (DOH) will clarify “the definition of the term ‘commencement of pregnancy’ as it relates to abortion care.”
It was also revealed that the DOH will “convene a group of experts” to develop a guidance document on what the governor’s office called “abortion care.” A number of pro-abortion groups will be represented in the “expert” panel, including Planned Parenthood Empire State Acts, the National Abortion Federation, the National Institute for Reproductive Health, and the American College of Obstetricians & Gynecologists.
In addition to promising “a safe harbor” for those seeking to abort their child, Hochul penned a letter to the historically pro-abortion biased social media giant Facebook, pleading that the company “mitigate the spread of abortion misinformation online.”
She smeared so-called “anti-choice news sources,” presumably including LifeSiteNews, for supposedly spreading “misinformation” regarding gruesome abortion procedures, which she said “have no basis in reality,” after New York introduced abortion up until birth in 2019.
LifeSiteNews has an extensive resource detailing the horrific nature of both surgical and medical abortion methods.
Nevertheless, Hochul stated that publishing information on abortion procedures, though accurate, can cause women seeking abortions to “feel unsafe and alone.”
She insisted in her letter to Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg that “[t]he truth is, abortion is a safe, common medical procedure,” and wrote that she is “proud that New York is leading the fight to ensure that every woman and birthing person has access to abortion care.”
LifeSiteNews reached out to Hochul’s office for comment on her support for expanding access to abortion while claiming to be Catholic, but no response was immediately received.
In 2019, Cuomo, who like Hochul is a lifelong Catholic, signed into law the expansive “Reproductive Health Act,” consigning the life of the unborn to uncertainty up until the moment of birth. So broad is the bill that a child who survives a botched abortion attempt is not protected from subsequently being killed.
Cuomo notably demanded that the spire of One World Trade Center (or Freedom Tower) in downtown Manhattan be lit up in pink to “celebrate” the passing of the legislation.
Since the passing of Texas’ heartbeat bill, President Joe Biden has been taking steps to undercut Texas’ life-saving law and to prop up abortion businesses amid a near-total abortion ban in the state by directing additional funding to abortion facilities in the state.