Arkansas Gov. Mike Beebe is interviewed in a hallway at the Arkansas state Capitol in Little Rock, Ark., Monday, March 4, 2013, after vetoing legislation that would have banned abortions 12 weeks into a pregnancy. (AP Photo/Danny Johnston)
Arkansas Gov. Mike Beebe is interviewed in a hallway at the Arkansas state Capitol in Little Rock, Ark., Monday, March 4, 2013, after vetoing legislation that would have banned abortions 12 weeks into a pregnancy. (AP Photo/Danny Johnston)
FILE - In this Feb. 19, 2013, file photo, Sen. Jason Rapert, R-Conway, speaks to a reporter after a meeting of the House Committee on Public Health, Welfare and Labor at the Arkansas state Capitol in Little Rock, Ark., where his bill dealing with abortion received the committee's recommendation. Arkansas Gov. Mike Beebe on Monday, March 4, vetoed the legislation by Rapert that would have banned abortions 12 weeks into a pregnancy. (AP Photo/Danny Johnston, File)
In this photo taken Feb. 19, 2013, Sen. Jason Rapert, R-Conway, is interviewed after a meeting of the House Committee on Public Health, Welfare and Labor at the Arkansas state Capitol in Little Rock, Ark. Arkansas Gov. Mike Beebe on Monday, March 4, vetoed legislation by Rapert that would have banned abortions 12 weeks into a pregnancy. (AP Photo/Danny Johnston)
LITTLE ROCK, Ark. (AP) ? Arkansas Gov. Mike Beebe on Monday vetoed legislation banning most abortions 12 weeks into pregnancy, rejecting what opponents said would be the most restrictive restriction in the U.S.
The legislation would ban the procedure at 12 weeks if a fetal heartbeat is detected using an abdominal ultrasound. The Democratic governor's veto come less than a week after the state enacted a 20-week ban. That restriction went into effect after the Legislature overrode another veto by Beebe.
Beebe's objections to the 12-week ban echoed those he had to the 20-week ban. He said the 12-week ban contradicts the U.S. Supreme Court's 1973 Roe v. Wade decision that legalized abortion until a fetus could survive outside the womb. A fetus is generally considered viable at 22 to 24 weeks.
"Because it would impose a ban on a woman's right to choose an elective, nontherapeutic abortion well before viability, Senate Bill 134 blatantly contradicts the United States Constitution, as interpreted by the Supreme Court," Beebe said in his veto letter. "When I was sworn in as governor I took an oath to preserve, protect and defend both the Arkansas Constitution and the Constitution of the United States. I take that oath seriously."
The Republican-led Legislature approved the measure last week. The sponsor said he would ask the Senate to override Beebe's veto of the 12-week ban on Tuesday. It takes a simple majority of the House and Senate to override a governor's veto. Republicans hold 21 of the 35 Senate seats and 51 of the 100 House seats.
"I'm disappointed for all of the unborn children that could have been saved in this bill, but I have faith that the 70 percent of the Legislature that voted to pass the bill will be there to override this veto," Sen. Jason Rapert, a Republican from Conway, told reporters after the veto was announced on the Senate floor.
Beebe had previously said he found the 12-week ban even more problematic than the 20-week one. He wouldn't say whether rejecting the 12-week ban was an easier decision.
"Both of them are constitutional issues. I don't know if you'd characterize one as easier than the other," Beebe told reporters after issuing his veto. "It becomes a question of what is the constitutionality of the bill."
The 12-week measure includes exemptions for rape, incest, the life of the mother and highly lethal fetal disorders. The original version of Rapert's bill would have banned abortions as early as six weeks into a pregnancy, but he changed the measure after facing resistance from some lawmakers.
Beebe said he did not plan on reaching out to lawmakers in the House or Senate to ask them to uphold his veto. At least one Democrat who voted for Rapert's bill said he would likely oppose overriding the governor's veto.
"I can't imagine I'll vote to override it," said Sen. Larry Teague, a Democrat from Nashville. "I think it's probably less constitutional than the first one was."
No Democrats voted in the Senate to override Beebe's veto of the 20-week measure last week, and only two of the 48 House Democrats supported the override.
The Senate approved the ban on a 26-8 vote Thursday moments after approving the override of the 20-week prohibition along party lines. The House approved it a week earlier on a 68-20 vote.
The measures are among several abortion restrictions Arkansas lawmakers are considering after Republicans won control of the House and Senate in November.
The American Civil Liberties Union of Arkansas has vowed to sue to overturn the 12-week ban if it's enacted.
"Despite continued attacks on women's health care from the Arkansas Legislature, Gov. Beebe has remained steadfast in his support for women's health care," said Jill June, president and CEO of Planned Parenthood of the Heartland. "Unfortunately we can't say the same about extreme lawmakers pushing these dangerous bills."
If lawmakers override Beebe's veto, the 12-week ban would take effect 90 days after the Legislature adjourns. The Legislature is not expected to adjourn until later this month or next month.
The 20-week ban took effect immediately.
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Andrew DeMillo can be reached at www.twitter.com/ademillo
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