Life Advocacy Briefing

E.R.A. Goes Down Again

PRO-LIFE U.S. SENATORS WERE SUCCESSFUL on April 27 in blocking cloture on a joint resolution “to revive the Democrat-backed Equal Rights Amendment (ERA),” reports Ashley Sadler for LifeSiteNews, “in spite of the fact that the deadline for ratification expired decades ago.

“Conservatives have slammed the ERA,” notes Ms. Sadler, “arguing it would work as a trojan horse to protect abortion and LGBT ideology under federal law.”

Though 51 Senators did vote to advance the resolution, the cloture (closing debate) motion required 60 to favor it. We publish the voting record at the close of this Life Advocacy Briefing.

Your Tax $ ‘at Work’

THAT ABORTION HOTLINE WE WARNED YOU ABOUT LAST WEEK … The news has now come out that the Biden Regime is “offering” a grant to operate the hotline to the tune of $1.5 million. Pro-life vendors need not apply, as “the hotline operator,” reports Matt Lamb for LifeSiteNews, “must provide ‘neutral, factual information and nondirective counseling on each of the options.’ As if information on prenatal vitamins is the same,” scoffs Mr. Lamb, “as where to get an abortion.”

Rep. Mace Steps Up the Assault

SEEMINGLY SELF-ANOINTED AS LEADING G.O.P. SPOKESMAN FOR ABORTION, US Rep. Nancy Mace (R-SC) has now attacked Florida’s new state-level “heartbeat” abortion ban, calling the new law to protect babies who are well enough developed to show evidence of life via a detectable heartbeat “‘not compassionate,’” reports Matt Lamb for LifeSiteNews.

This even though the newly signed Florida law has loopholes jeopardizing babies conceived in sex crimes or conceived incidental to human trafficking, provided they have not gestated beyond 15 weeks. The law does require, notes Mr. Lamb, that “the mother can provide necessary documentation.”

An official summary of the bill explains, notes Mr. Lamb, that the reporting (documentation) requirements are needed “‘to ensure violent perpetrators are held accountable for their crimes against women and girls and to help prevent repeated sexual assault, abuse and violence against rape, incest and human trafficking survivors.’” After all, without such a requirement, doing away with the child also does away with evidence of the crime, something which pro-life advocates seldom explain and which Rep. Mace apparently does not understand.

In her interview with NBC’s “Meet the Press” host Chuck Todd, notes Mr. Lamb, Rep. Mace claimed to be “‘pro-life’ and ‘conservative.’” She also said, reports LifeSiteNews, “‘I work with Democrats all the time’” and “said she supports some ‘gestational limits’ at 15 or 20 weeks,” whatever that means.

But, reports Mr. Lamb, “she has actively opposed efforts to restrict access to dangerous RU-486 abortion drugs. She said states should ignore a ruling at the time by a federal district judge that prevented the nationwide distribution of abortion drugs throughout the country. That case,” notes Mr. Lamb, “is still working its way through the court system, and abortion drugs remain available after the Supreme Court refused to uphold the nationwide injunction” in response to an emergency petition.

It is no wonder the Representative from South Carolina has landed herself an interview with the liberal “Meet the Press” program. As Mr. Lamb notes, “[Rep.] Mace has repeatedly used a national platform to criticize pro-life Republicans … [and] blamed pro-lifers for the losses” in the closer-than-expected 2022 Congressional midterm elections.

Creative Approach

STUDENTS FOR LIFE OF AMERICA (S.F.L.A.) HAS TAKEN A NEW TACK on seeking to thwart the marketing of the abortion pill in America. The group has filed a citizen’s petition with the federal Food & Drug Administration (FDA), reports Bridget Sielicki for Live Action, “asking the agency to prohibit the use of the abortion pill drug mifepristone [RU-486] until further studies have been done to better understand [the drug’s] effect on the environment.”

The petition argues, reports Ms. Sielicki, that the abortion drug “is potentially causing harm to critical habitats and endangered species as it is disposed into the waterways.”

The SFLA, in a Facebook post, notes Live Action, offered details from its complaint. “‘Since mifepristone … was approved in 2000,’” reads the post, reported by Ms. Sielicki, “‘the FDA has failed five times to test for environmental impacts of chemical abortion. In other words, the FDA skipped over the crucial steps of evaluating the effects of these drugs on the environment five times. Federal agencies proposing actions that could impact ecosystems that are home to endangered species are required to consult with the Services to determine if these actions will harm the list of nearly 1,500 individual species.’”

Said SFLA president Kristan Hawkins in the Live Action report, “‘The FDA has shown itself to be an incredibly lawless agency in disregarding the Endangered Species act and recklessly approving chemical abortion pills in 2000. … FDA officials never checked whether government-sanctioned corporate dumping of medical waste was hurting our environment. The Pro-Life Generation demands environmental justice for the aquatic, animal, plant and human lives put at risk by the FDA’s neglect.’”

Contributing to the Delinquency of Minors

MAY IS ‘NATIONAL ADOLESCENT HEALTH MONTH’ by someone’s declaration, so guess what the Biden Regime has featured as focus of the first week this month? You guessed right: “Sexual & Reproductive Health,” reports Ben Johnson for The Washington Stand.

Teen sex promotion is tied, of course, to an Internet website operated by the federal government – your tax dollars at work – which, notes Mr. Johnson, “connects teenagers and minors – ‘especially’ low-income and minority Americans – to Planned Parenthood facilities.”

And the Biden Regime is “promot[ing] [to teenagers] the use of potentially abortion-inducing forms of ‘birth control,’ promot[ing] contraceptive use as the best way to improve mental health*,” writes Mr. Johnson, “and link to contraception ‘information’ sheets funded by Big Pharma and Google.”

*Life Advocacy Briefing editor’s note: Please note the tie-in to “mental health,” which has become a major focus as a “solution” to such societal ills as drug abuse, violent crime, obesity … you name it. The excuse du jour for leftwing government policies.

Victories in Kansas

BOTH HOUSES OF THE KANSAS LEGISLATURE HAVE VOTED to override the veto by Gov. Laura Kelly (D) of HB-2264, which, writes Rebekah Chung for KSN-TV, “requires physicians to tell women that a drug-induced abortion can be reversed.

The House voted April 26 to override the veto by a margin of 84 to 40. The Senate followed suit the next day, voting 29 to 11,” writes Ms. Chung, to enact the right-to-know legislation.

“‘Women deserve the right to know if they choose to reverse their medical abortions,’ said Rep. Bill Clifford (R-Garden City), who carried the bill, during debates in the House,” reports Ms. Chung.

One of the Democratic lawmakers, Rep. Melissa Oropreza of Kansas City, was quoted by Ms. Chung as arguing, “‘These types of bills are going to drive providers out of our state because it’s state-mandated misinformation [sic].’” Oh well.

At about the same time, the Kansas Senate by a vote of 31 to 9 overrode a Kelly veto of “a bill that requires emergency care,” writes Ms. Chung, “for infants born alive after a failed abortion.” The House had just voted 87 to 37 to override the veto, creating Kansas’s “Born-Alive Infants Protection Act.”

Mississippi Presses On

MISSISSIPPI GOV. TATE REEVES (R) HAD A FIELD DAY recently, signing three pro-life/family bills at a news conference.

HB-510, according to a news release from the governor’s office, “increases transparency for foster parents, expands communication opportunities with professionals and makes the Mississippi Dept. of Child Protection Services personnel more readily available for foster parents. Additionally, it helps ensure that the educational needs of foster children are being met and provides access to available resources for parents.

“HB-1671 expands the tax credit for pregnancy resource centers across the state,” notes the release, “from $3.5 million to $10 million.”

And SB-2696, the release continues, “creates an income tax credit for qualified adoption expenses. The program will cover a maximum of $10,000 worth of adoption expenses for those who adopt a child from Mississippi … .”

Mississippi’s 15-week abortion ban – already in law – was the measure which the US Supreme Court upheld in its Dobbs decision last June, overturning the deadly Roe v. Wade edict.

Gone but Not Forgotten

NOTORIOUS LATE-TERM ABORTIONIST LeROY CARHART passed into eternity on April 28. Long-time readers of Life Advocacy Briefing may recall numerous reports and investigations of “complications” among his customers in Bethesda, Maryland, and in Bellevue, Nebraska. Said Mike Seibel, lead counsel for the Abortion on Trial lawyers team, quoted by Jean Mondoro for LifeSiteNews, “‘We do not wish loss on anybody. … We pray he converted prior to his death and hope his work does not continue on.’” Amen.

Fighting for What’s Right

April 29, 2023, commentary by Kathy Athearn for The Washington Stand, a publication of Family Research Council

             The Supreme Court’s Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Org. decision was historic – a victory that the pro-life movement had been working towards for nearly 50 years. Yet as Family Research Council and its allies emphasized, the work is not done. Continued advocacy is needed to protect the unborn and to support their mothers and fathers – especially in states where abortion is legal. Several of these states don’t even ensure that infants who survive abortion are given proper medical care.

             Yet during the 2022 midterm elections, some Republican candidates seemed hesitant to speak about abortion, and the GOP gained far fewer Congressional seats than expected. Now, as we enter the 2024 election season, political consultants are advising Republicans not to talk about abortion, because it’s a supposed liability.

             But that’s not what the numbers tell us. As FRC Action Vice President Brent Keilen talked about with FRC President Tony Perkins on “Washington Watch” recently, 11 governors on the 2022 ballot signed meaningful pro-life legislation, and all 11 of them won re-election by significant margins. These were not deep-red, Republican states – they were battleground states like Georgia, Florida, Iowa and Ohio. On top of that, Keilen pointed out that the only US Senate seat to flip party control in November was in Pennsylvania, where the Republican candidate, Dr. Mehmet Oz, was more liberal on the Life issue.

             Perkins also mentioned that Democrats spent about $358 million on the topic of abortion, while Republicans spent far less – roughly $37 million. This resulted in the national conversation shifting from “protecting unborn children” to “banning abortion.” Why didn’t more Republican candidates talk about the need to protect the unborn? The alternative (supported by the Democratic Party) is abortion for any reason up until the moment of birth at taxpayer expense. This is an extreme position which is opposed by 80% of Americans.

             Science is clear that life begins at conception: the 23 pairs of chromosomes in the zygote are complete; the zygote has a specific genotype that is distinct from both parents; and the child’s sex, size, shape, skin color, hair color, eye color and even to some extent temperament and intelligence are already determined. Between the time the human being begins as a single fertilized cell to the time it becomes an adult (from fusion to maturity), 45 generations of cell division occur, 41 of which occur before birth.

             Being pro-life is both loving and compassionate. Mother Teresa said, “The so-called right to abortion has pitted mothers against their children and women against men. It has sown violence and discord at the heart of the most intimate human relationships. It has aggravated the derogation of the father’s role in an increasingly fatherless society. It has portrayed the greatest of gifts – a child – as a competitor, an intrusion and an inconvenience.”

             The Republican Party Platform also says, “The Constitution’s guarantee that no one can ‘be deprived of life, liberty or property’ deliberately echoes the Declaration of Independence’s proclamation that ‘all’ are ‘endowed by their Creator’ with the inalienable right to life. Accordingly, we assert the sanctity of human life and affirm that the unborn child has a fundamental right to life which cannot be infringed. We support a Human Life Amendment to the Constitution and legislation to make clear that the 14^th Amendment’s protections apply to children before birth.”

             Thankfully, we are starting to hear more emphasis on the sanctity of human life from national GOP leadership, Republican National Committee Chair[man] Ronna McDaniel told Perkins. “We have to show compassion, but we also have to push back on the Democrats. They’re the ones in the position that’s not compassionate. Could you imagine a baby on its due date, saying that [abortion is] okay when it can live a healthy life? Can you imagine knowing now what we know with science – that babies feel excruciating pain at 15 weeks – and not changing our policies? … We should stand right in [the Democrats’] face and say, ‘Tell me, when do you think it’s all right to fight for the unborn? When do you think it’s time for us to stand up for that baby?’ They’ll be silent. They have no answer.”

Senate Voting Record

Procedural Motion to end debate on SJRes-4 to remove the ratification deadline for the ‘Equal Rights’ Amendment – April 27, 2023 – Failed – 51-47 (needing 60) (Democrats in italics; “Independents” marked “I”)

Voting “no”/pro-Life: Britt & Tuberville/AL, Sullivan/AK, Boozman & Cotton/AR, Rubio & Scott/FL, Crapo & Risch/ID, Braun & Young/IN, Ernst & Grassley/IA, Marshall & Moran/KS, McConnell & Paul/KY, Cassidy & Kennedy/LA, Hyde-Smith & Wicker/MS, Hawley & Schmitt/MO, Daines/MT, Fischer & Ricketts/NE, Schumer*/NY, Budd & Tillis/NC, Cramer & Hoeven/ND, Vance/OH, Lankford & Mullin/OK, Graham & Scott/SC, Rounds & Thune/SD, Blackburn & Hagerty/TN, Cornyn & Cruz/TX, Romney/UT, Capito/WV, Johnson/WI, Barrasso & Lummis/WY.

Voting “yes”/anti-Life: Murkowski/AK, Kelly & Sinema(I)/AZ, Padilla/CA, Bennet & Hickenlooper/CO, Blumenthal & Murphy/CT, Carper & Coons/DE, Ossoff & Warnock/GA, Hirono & Schatz/HI, Duckworth & Durbin/IL, Collins & King(I)/ME, Cardin & VanHollen/MD, Markey & Warren/MA, Peters & Stabenow/MI, Klobuchar & Smith/MN, Tester/MT, Cortez-Masto & Rosen/NV, Hassan & Shaheen/NH, Booker & Menendez/NJ, Heinrich & Lujan/NM, Gillibrand/NY, Brown/OH, Merkley & Wyden/OR, Casey & Fetterman/PA, Reed & Whitehouse/RI, Sanders(I) & Welch/VT, Kaine & Warner/VA, Cantwell & Murray/WA, Manchin/WV, Baldwin/WI.

Not voting: Feinstein/CA, Lee/UT.

*Sen. Schumer, as Senate Majority Leader, was no doubt voting “no” for purposes of reserving an opportunity to move to reconsider the vote by which this motion lost. We have no reason to believe that Sen. Schumer has modified his anti-Life stand on the defunct ERA proposal.