If the Republican Party is supposed to be the champion of individual liberties, personal freedom, and limited governmental intrusion, can someone please explain why Republican Governor Rick Perry of Texas has just signed a bill that orders women to be humiliated and degraded with a huge government-sponsored guilt trip orchestrated by religious fanatics before being allowed to undergo a legal medical procedure?

Rick Perry Signs Controversial Bill Requiring Women To Get Sonogram 24 Hours Before An Abortion.

Facing the state’s worst budget crisis in modern history, Perry dubbed the sonogram bill an “emergency priority” that allowed the legislature to expedite its passage.

Effective Sept. 1, doctors must perform sonograms before abortions, must describe the presence of internal organs or limbs and must make the fetal heartbeat audible. […]

“Every life lost to abortion is a tragedy we all must work together to prevent, and I commend Rep. Miller and Sen. Patrick for their hard work on this significant legislation,” Perry said.

Meanwhile, the House recently voted to slash $61 million from the state’s family-planning budget, which estimates say will result in an additional 28,000 unwanted pregnancies and 13,000 births in the state every year. Two hundred teenage girls in Texas become pregnant every day.

Although the conservatives who control the House initially refused to include exceptions for cases of rape, incest, and fetal abnormality in the bill, these narrow provisions were ultimately adopted in the final version. Women can choose or refuse to view images and hear the heartbeat of the fetus, but must sign a statement acknowledging the refusal before receiving the sonogram.

The Republican Party: taking America back … to the Dark Ages.