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When state wants to hunt down abortion seekers, it dangles funds to prevent New Orleans flooding [1]
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Date: 2022-08-22
“The officials in New Orleans took an oath of office to support and enforce the laws of our State, yet they have decided that some laws are not worthy of enforcement,” Landry said in a Facebook post from his office on Thursday. “In light of the City’s open defiance of the will of the people of Louisiana, I continue to my efforts on the State Bond Commission.
“Today was another step toward ensuring the parishes and municipalities of our State comply with the laws of our State.”
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In June, Louisiana Gov. John Bel Edwards signed into law a bill to ban almost all abortions in the state, without exceptions for rape or incest. The only exceptions are for unintentional terminations, miscarriages, ectopic pregnancies, life-threatening medical situations, and life-threatening congenital or chromosomal anomalies.
Edwards reasoned in his signing letter that he believes there should be an exception “for victims of rape and incest" but that vetoing the bill in question wouldn't bring the state any closer to that protection because of an earlier trigger law with fewer exceptions than the one he signed.
The governor also highlighted the legality of emergency contraception, giving victims of rape or incest—some of whom are children—mere days to access contraception or have their lives further upended.
"For these reasons, I have signed Senate Bill 342 into law," the governor wrote.
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In response, the New Orleans City Council passed a resolution on July 7 agreeing that the city, its police department, the Orleans parish sheriff's office, and the district attorney would not use city funds to "solicit, catalog, report, or investigate reports of abortion."
Landry, in turn, went after the parish’s ability to protect its residents from flooding, writing that it is his belief “that a parish or municipality should not benefit from the hard-working taxpayers of this State while ignoring laws validly enacted by the people through their representatives.”
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New Orleans Mayor Mayor LaToya Cantrell wrote in a statement when the bond commission earlier halted the infrastructure project in July:
It is disappointing and appalling that the Louisiana Bond Commission decided to halt funding for one of the most vital and valuable infrastructure projects, despite the fact that the right to an abortion remains legal statewide. What also remains is the fact that we are in the middle of another above-average hurricane season, in which this city needs its entire Sewerage and Water Board system performing at its peak in order to protect vital assets, businesses and residents from flooding. I encourage our business leaders who rely on our partnership with the state to lend their voices and call on the Bond Commission to give us our fair share. Regardless of the outcome, my administration will continue to prioritize the needs of our residents, which includes improving our aging infrastructure, strengthening our resiliency as a city, and protecting the reproductive rights of women throughout the City New Orleans.
Cantrell told CNN on Friday that she will not rethink her position on abortion or her opposition to withholding infrastructure resources because it impacts both the state and New Orleans economies. "We cannot afford to put politics over the rights of people, and particularly safeguarding people from hurricanes and other disasters, because we are on the front lines of climate change," the mayor said.
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