WASHINGTON—Two dozen states and municipalities sued the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services on Tuesday over rules protecting medical workers who have religious or moral objections to abortion, assisted suicide, or sterilization. The suits, instigated by New York and California, claim HHS regulations issued earlier this month stop the provision of basic healthcare.

Congratulations to the legislatures and governors of Alabama, Georgia, Ohio, Kentucky, Mississippi, Missouri, and other states. Congratulations to Donald Trump, who has surprisingly spoken with clarity about what the left would obfuscate: He said accurately that a baby now can be “ripped from the mother’s womb moments from birth.” The uneasiness of the left about new personhood and heartbeat laws is evident in the mid-May reactions of two New Yorkers: the wise guy named Stephen Colbert, and the newspaper that some readers consider the wisest, The New York Times. 

The passage of an Alabama law protecting the unborn from abortion at any stage in pregnancy last week sparked aggressive pro-abortion outrage on social media.

The Supreme Court of California last week denied pro-life activist David Daleiden’s request to halt criminal proceedings against him. The rejection puts the case against Daleiden back on the court’s calendar, allowing California’s prosecution to move forward after months of delay. Daleiden, the founder of the pro-life Center for Medical Progress, faces 14 counts of nonconsensual eavesdropping and one count of conspiracy.

The Missouri House of Representatives on Friday passed sweeping protections for unborn babies in the state in a 110-44 vote. The state Senate approved the bill early Thursday morning, and Gov. Mike Parson, a Republican, is expected to sign it into law. Except in cases of medical emergency, the legislation would protect babies from abortion as early as eight weeks into a pregnancy, but it also includes a ladder of optional cutoffs at 14, 18, or 20 weeks of gestation that would take effect if a court ruled against the law.

Alabama Gov. Kay Ivey signed nearly complete protections for the unborn into law on Wednesday, prompting immediate and severe backlash from abortion proponents. Sponsors of the law, which makes performing an abortion at any stage of pregnancy a felony punishable by prison time for abortionists—but not for mothers—have said the goal is to give the U.S. Supreme Court a chance to overturn its 1973 Roe v. Wade decision, which led to legalized abortion nationwide.

The Alabama legislature passed sweeping protections for the unborn on Tuesday in a bid to bring the question of abortion before the U.S. Supreme Court. The bill, which makes performing an abortion a felony at any stage of pregnancy with almost no exceptions, passed by a wide margin. Gov. Kay Ivey, a Republican, hasn’t said whether she will sign the bill. The legislation’s sponsor, Rep. Terri Collins, also a Republican, said she expects the governor to sign it, but lawmakers could likely muster enough votes to overcome a veto if she doesn’t.