Ohio state Senate comes up one vote short of overriding Kasich's heartbeat bill veto

Ohio's pro-life heartbeat bill was officially defeated Thursday after the state senate failed to override a veto from Gov. John Kasich, R-Ohio.

The Ohio House voted to override Kasich's veto of one of the strongest pro-life bills in the nation, 60-28, but the state Senate came one vote short of saving the bill.

In a separate vote, the Ohio legislature overrode Kasich's veto of pro-gun legislation that expanded gun access for off-duty police officers and allowed pre-emption of local gun restrictions.

The heartbeat bill would have banned abortions in Ohio after the first fetal heartbeat is detected. An unborn baby's heartbeat can start as early as six weeks into a pregnancy. If a person is pronounced dead when his or her heartbeat stops, shouldn't a person be pronounced a living human being when it starts? That is the pro-life logic supporting this legislation.

Ohio's governor-elect, Republican Mike DeWine, has pledged to sign the heartbeat bill if it is passed again.

Kasich, the term-limited governor and failed 2016 presidential candidate who is now considering a 2020 run for president, said the heartbeat bill would have been unconstitutional.

“As governor I have worked hard to strengthen Ohio’s protections for the sanctity of human life, and I have a deep respect for my fellow members of the pro-life community and their ongoing efforts in defense of unborn life,” he said. “However, the central provision of Sub. H.B. 258, that an abortion cannot be performed if a heartbeat has been detected in the unborn child, is contrary to the Supreme Court of the United States’ current rulings on abortion.

"The State of Ohio will be the losing party in that lawsuit and, as the losing party, the State of Ohio will be forced to pay hundreds of thousands of taxpayer dollars to cover the legal fees for the pro-choice activists' lawyers."

Days ago, Kasich said on Fox News he is "actively" considering a run for president in 2020.

“So we are actively thinking about it, but I can’t tell you when exactly we will make the decision but we will let you know," he said.

If he claims to be pro-life on the campaign trail, his veto of the heartbeat bill tells conservatives everything we need to know about his actual position. Kasich would not confront the court on abortion as governor, and he will not do so as president.

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