The Arizona Supreme Court today is expected to decide whether the state’s current ban on nearly all abortions after 15 weeks will stay in place, or if it will revert back to a 123-year-old law which barred the procedure in all cases except to save a mother’s life. The law also carried a prison sentence of two to five years for abortion providers.
In anticipation of an opinion in the case — Planned Parenthood of Arizona vs. Mayes/Hazelrigg — self-described “Trump-endorsed” State Senator Anthony Kern got down on his knees in a “prayer circle” on the floor of the State Senate chamber. As heard in the video below, some of those praying are praying in tongues. (NOTE: “Praying in tongues,” according to the King Jesus Ministry, “is the quickest way to access the spirit dimension.”)
Kern replied: “Looks like our prayer team stirred up some god-haters like AZ Democratic Party, Pima Democrats and Jeanne Casteen.” Kern added: “Not to worry, though…prayer over our state at the State Senate is way more powerful.”
[Note: Kern was among the slate of fake electors urged by Ginni Thomas — wife of conservative Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas — to help overturn Trump’s defeat in the 2020 presidential election.]
So this happened today at the #AZLeg. #Arizona #AZSenate #AZSupremeCourt pic.twitter.com/g2LVL41UWk
— Jeanne Casteen (@JeanneCasteen) April 8, 2024
Jeanne Casteen is the executive director of Secular AZ, a nonprofit organization that protects “the constitutional separation of church and state and educates lawmakers and the public to ensure freedom of conscience.”
Note: Reproductive rights advocates in Arizona are collecting voter signatures to add an abortion rights measure to the election ballot which could enshrine abortion rights in the state Constitution — a move similar to that recently witnessed in Florida, which will vote on abortion in November. Some pragmatic Republicans don’t want that vote to happen. Republican Arizona State Sen. Shawnna Bolick said, “If that issue gets onto the ballot, it is going to drive out the Democratic base, and potentially we lose the (state) House and Senate.”