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Republicans Rally Support As Senate Committee Clears SB1

Ryan Poppe
/
TPR

The Senate Committee on Health and Human Services voted out Senate Bill 1, the Senate version of an abortion bill, and will take it up on the Senate floor Friday afternoon for a final vote.

As both sides voice their opinions on abortion rights in Texas, Republicans have enlisted more out-of-state help in the fight to push through the controversial package.

First there was an appearance by Mike Huckabee, the former governor of Arkansas, and now former U.S. Sen. Rick Santorum has joined Lt. Gov. David Dewhurst and other Texas House and Senate lawmakers to weigh-in on the fight.

"I’m here because Texas is the center of the pro-life debate in the country right now," Santorum said, "and the country is watching as well as I think many around the world are watching. They are listening to these arguments as articulated by Lt. Gov. Dewhurst very, very well and I wanted to add my voice in amplification to it."

During the course of his speech Sanatorium criticized how the abortion debate has been portrayed.

"The media’s focus and concentration is always, 'The Republican Party is such a radical group,' yet when Republicans want to do things like have safety standards commensurate with every other surgical procedure done in the State of Texas, and protect a child who would otherwise would be born alive, that is considered radical?" Santorum said.

Ryan started his radio career in 2002 working for Austin’s News Radio KLBJ-AM as a show producer for the station's organic gardening shows. This slowly evolved into a role as the morning show producer and later as the group’s executive producer.