A Texas abortion bill which would have effectively shuttered 37 of the state's 42 clinics where abortions are performed was downed by a 12-hour filibuster by Texas state senator Wendy Davis (D-Fort Worth) and hundreds of protestors gathered in the Senate gallery who drowned out a last-minute Republican attempt at a vote. In a special session slated to last for 13 hours, Republicans managed to finally end the filibuster based on three points of order: first, by claiming that Davis' remarks were not germane; second, after Davis received assistance from another senator in adjusting her back brace; and finally, another claim on the germaneness of her comments. But Republicans were not able to pass the measure in time, as chaos in the chamber's gallery kept Lt. Gov. David Dewhurst, the chamber's presiding officer, from formally signing the bill before the deadline passed. Watch video of the protestors in action below.
"Get them out!" Republican Senator Donna Campbell reportedly shouted at security guards, pointing at the crowd, which had been loudly cheering Davis - and jeering proponents of the bill - for more than 10 minutes already. "Time is running out. I want them out of here!"
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But Republicans could not do it in time. As the clock ticked toward midnight, when the session would be forced to end, Republicans rushed to assemble colleagues at the podium for a last-second vote. They managed to begin voting just before, but the 19-10 decision in favor of the bill - and the formal signing of it - came after midnight. The Associated Press reported that Dewhurst retreated to his office shortly after the vote and issued no statements on the matter. Other Republican state senators initially challenged the defeat, but after convening for a private meeting on Wednesday morning, changed tack and acknowledged that the vote would not count.
Texas Governor Rick Perry, who had called the special session, has the power to immediately convene another. Dewhurst hinted to the press that Perry may do just that, saying, "It's over. It's been fun. But see you soon."
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If passed, the bill would ban abortion after 20 weeks of pregnancy, force clinics offering the procedure to upgrade their facilities and acquire classification as ambulatory surgical centers, and require doctors to have admitting privileges at a hospital within 30 miles. In a largely rural state 773 miles wide and 790 miles long, it would have sounded the death knell for all but a handful of clinics, and made abortions virtually inaccessible to women living along the Mexican border or in West Texas.
Protestors from across Texas flocked to the state Capitol, staging what they called "a people's filibuster" from 11:45pm until after midnight. Dewhurst denounced them as an "unruly mob", while Davis said their support showed "the determination and spirit of Texas women".
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Davis' filibuster rocketed her onto the national political stage almost overnight - at one point, according to the Washington Post, a live stream of her filibuster was being viewed by almost 200,000 people. Her Twitter following leaped from 1,200 on Tuesday morning to over 20,000 by Tuesday night. "Thanks to the powerful voices of thousands of Texans, #SB5 is dead," she wrote on Twitter on Wednesday. "An incredible victory for Texas women and those who love them."
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