Member-only story
Texas Republican Lawmakers Pull Off a Misdirection Worthy of Houdini
And it’s still working
Harry Houdini’s greatest skill wasn’t magic, it was misdirection. While he was pulling off whatever trick or sleight-of-hand that enabled his “magic” to happen, he kept the audience’s attention focused elsewhere so they wouldn’t see what he had up his sleeve. Over the last month or so, lawmakers in Texas have put on a masterclass in misdirection that would have made Houdini envious.
Do a Google search for “Texas” and the first results (after Tropical Storm Nicholas, which will be old news by tonight) are all about SB8, the recent law that went into effect September 1 making abortions in the state illegal after six weeks’ gestation. It is the only thing people are writing about, talking about, and planning action on from both sides of the issue.
Without question, this is an important issue, and one that has galvanized both pro-life and pro-choice groups for 48 years since the Roe v. Wade ruling. For many, it is the only issue they care about at all. And that was exactly what Texas Republican lawmakers and Governor Greg Abbott were counting on when the bill was introduced.
Consider for a moment that even as they were crafting the legislation, lawmakers knew that every such bill nationwide, most much less restrictive…
