Arizona abortion: Chants of 'shame' as lawmakers spar over 1864 law

Arizona's legislature descended into cries of "shame!" as senior Republicans blocked attempts to repeal the state's 1864 law banning abortion.

Republican majority leaders on Wednesday cut off two attempts to discuss a repeal and adjourned for the week, prompting chants from Democrats.

One Republican described it as "extremist, insurrectionist" behaviour.

The state's top court on Tuesday ruled the law was enforceable, but put the ruling on hold for at least 14 days.

The disagreements among state lawmakers follow a wave of protests about the Arizona supreme court's decision, which has potentially sweeping implications for women's healthcare and election-year politics in a battleground state.

The ruling was criticised by both Donald Trump and the White House. Governor Katie Hobbs called for a repeal and Attorney General Kris Mayes, a fellow Democrat, has said she would not prosecute those performing or obtaining abortions.

However, Republicans in the legislature on Wednesday said there was no reason to rush the debate. The party's chief whip, Teresa Martinez, said the House was "navigating an extremely complex, emotional and important area of law and policy".

She accused Democrats of "screaming at us and engaging in extremist and insurrectionist behaviour on the House floor", and said "pregnancy... should be celebrated. It is an abortion that terminates life."

The 1864 law criminalises abortion except to save a mother's life. There is no provision for victims of rape or incest. A 14-day moratorium on the court's ruling is in place while a lower court considers added arguments about the law's constitutionality.

Hobbs called the inaction unconscionable. "Radical legislators protected a Civil War-era total abortion ban that jails doctors, strips women of our bodily autonomy and puts our lives at risk," she said.

The row in the legislature came hours after Mr Trump, the presumptive Republican presidential candidate, said Arizona's supreme court ruling had gone too far but he believed it would quickly be "straightened out".

In the video statement posted on his social media platform Truth Social, Mr Trump also took credit for the US Supreme Court's 2022 ruling that overturned Roe v Wade, the landmark decision that protected abortion access across the US for nearly 50 years.

An Arizona clinic told CBS, the BBC's partner in the US, that it intended to stay open until the last moment before the court ruling is confirmed.

Ashleigh Feiring, a registered nurse at Camelback Family Planning in Phoenix, said abortion services were still available and that staff hopes emergency legislation would stop the law's enforcement.

Dr Gabrielle Goodrick, Camelback's founder, told the BBC the possible ban was "draconian". "My reaction has been shock, dismay, disgust," she said. "This law is going back in time when people didn't have bodily autonomy."

Anti-abortion groups including SBA Pro-Life America meanwhile urged Arizona residents to oppose a proposed ballot initiative aimed at placing abortion rights in Arizona's state constitution.

"They would wipe away all pro-life laws put in place by the Legislature, reflective of the will of the people," SBA President Marjorie Dannenfelser said in a statement.

She said the 1964 law was an "enormous victory for unborn children and their mothers".

If it is enforced, Arizona residents seeking an abortion would have to travel to a neighbouring state where the procedure is still legal, such as California, New Mexico or Nevada.