U.S. House Speaker Pelosi pledges action on bill in response to Texas abortion law

U.S. House Speaker Pelosi pledges action on bill in response to Texas abortion law

WASHINGTON (Reuters) -The Democratic-controlled U.S. House of Representatives in coming weeks will debate and vote on legislation aimed at stopping states from enacting restrictive anti-abortion regulations like the one just approved by Texas, Speaker Nancy Pelosi said on Thursday.

In a statement in which she said the Texas statute "delivers catastrophe to women in Texas, particularly women of color and women from low-income communities," Pelosi said a Democratic bill will be brought before the full House for debate "upon our return" from a recess scheduled to end Sept. 20.

It was unclear whether the Democratic-controlled Senate would bring up such a bill if it is passed by the House.

If so, it likely would face a difficult path in the 100-member Senate, which is evenly divided between Democrats and Republicans, with Democratic Vice President Kamala Harris having the power to break tie votes.

Most legislation, however, requires the support of at least 60 senators in order to advance.

(Reporting by Susan Cornwell and Richard Cowan; Editing by Dan Grebler)

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