‘We are going to make it hurt’: South Carolina House Democrats file 1,000 amendments on proposed abortion ban bill

COLUMBIA, S.C. (WCBD)- Democratic lawmakers in the South Carolina House have filed 1,000 amendments to a proposed abortion ban bill ahead of a special legislative session.

“We’re here for the long haul,” Rep. Gilda Cobb Hunter (D-Orangeburg) said during a Tuesday news conference.

The S.C. House is expected to begin debate Tuesday on an amended version of the Senate’s six-week abortion ban as part of a special legislative session called for by Governor Henry McMaster last week.

The measure would ban abortion when an ultrasound detects cardiac activity, around six weeks and before most people know they are pregnant. It would included limited exceptions for rape, incest, fetal fatal anomalies, and to save the mother’s life or health.

Rep. Heather Bauer (D-Richland) called the bill’s potential passage a “complete invasion of our privacy.”

“This is about making sure that politicians stay out of my family decisions, out of my doctor’s offices, and also out of my bedroom,” she said. “This is about women being full citizens in our state.”

House Speaker Murrell Smith has said the chamber will not adjourn until the measure gets approval. But Democrats filed 1,000 amendments in an effort to prolong discussion even after Republicans invoked rules limiting debate.

“We have no intention of pulling any amendments,” Rep. Beth Bernstein (D-Richland) said. “We are going to make it hurt if they are going to force this on us.”

Last month, the Senate rejected a proposal that would have banned nearly all abortions in the state.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.