I just got an email about this. We need to pray now -- today -- for this.

TALLAHASSEE — House Democrats have temporarily shut down the chamber to try and block an abortion passed by the Senate from coming up for final passage.

Although Republicans hold a 76-44 majority in the chamber, taking up bills that have been sent over “in messages” from the other chamber require a two-thirds vote on the floor. The Democrats just blocked the House from taking up an unrelated bill as a test-run and plan to fight every bill in an attempt to run out the clock and block the bill.

The Senate voted 22-17 Wednesday in favor of a new government mandate that women seeking abortions must pay for ultrasounds and, in most cases, view live images of the fetus. They also adopted an amendment banning abortion coverage for individuals and businesses who buy insurance under insurance exchanges in President Barack Obama’s health care overhaul passed by Congress earlier this year.

House Majority Office staff director Todd Reid said Democrats had threatened to bring the chamber to a halt in the final two days of session unless they got a pledge from House Speaker Larry Cretul that the abortion bill wouldn’t be brought up. Reid said the House — which has passed the language in past years – would love to take up the abortion bill, but the chamber has taken a break until 11:30 a.m. to try and figure things out.

“We have very little leverage in this process,” said Rep. Kelly Skidmore, D-Boca Raton. “This is our leverage. We’re willing to let our bills due to prove our point.”

The victim of the procedural move is a bill clamping down on identity-theft artists who use pizza-delivery fliers at motels to get credit card numbers. Rep. Mike Horner, R-Kissimmee, has been pushing the non-controversial measure after a wave of such activity broke out last year in Orange and Osceola counties around the theme parks.

Now that effort is on hold.

“The pizza bill blew up the session,” Horner joked. “This is oging to determine how the last two days will turn out.”
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