Abortion foes push new bills in Congress and the states

NEW YORK (AP) — Buoyed by conservative gains in the November election, foes of abortion are mobilizing on behalf of bills in Congress and several state legislatures that would further curtail women's access to the procedure.

On both sides of the debate, activists are highlighting their hopes and concerns in conjunction with Thursday's 42nd anniversary of the U.S. Supreme Court's Roe v. Wade decision in 1973 that established a nationwide right to abortion. Since then, there have been more than 50 million abortions in the U.S.

Coinciding with the annual March for Life in Washington, the Republican-controlled U.S. House of Representatives plans a debate Thursday on a bill that would ban most abortions after 20 weeks of pregnancy on the disputed premise that a fetus can feel pain at that stage.

The bill is expected to pass in the House, but its prospects in the Senate are uncertain, despite the GOP takeover of that chamber. President Barack Obama has promised a veto if it reaches his desk.

Several proposed bills at the state level may have a better chance of enactment.

Notable among them is a first-of-its-kind measure being drafted in Kansas, with the backing of the National Right to Life Committee, which would ban doctors from using forceps, tongs or other medical implements to dismember a living fetus in the womb to complete an abortion.