As of Tuesday, House Democrats have refused to allow a vote on a bill that would ensure the protection of babies born-alive from botched abortions.
In a joint op-ed published at Fox News on Tuesday, Rep. Steve Scalise (R-LA) and Rep. Ann Wagner (R-MO) condemned Democrats’ refusal to allow a vote on the Born Alive Act, which would mandate doctors provide full medical care to babies born alive from abortions, as opposed to leaving them for dead.
“[W]e have called for unanimous consent 24 different times to vote on this important legislation, but Democrats have blocked the bill from being considered every single time,” the Republican lawmakers wrote, adding, “Democrats should have no reason to fear the Born Alive Act — it doesn’t limit abortion, it simply says that babies born alive during a failed abortion should be kept alive and given the same legal protections that we enjoy.”
Scalise has introduced the discharge petition to force a vote on the important legislation, as reported by The Daily Wire’s Josh Hammer last week.
The House minority whip posted a video to Twitter on Tuesday to underscore the need for the American public to know where their representatives stand when it comes to infanticide, particularly due to the Democrat party’s surge in extremist abortion-till-birth efforts.
“You deserve to know: Where does your representative stand on stopping infanticide? I’m filing a discharge petition TODAY to bypass Pelosi & force every member to go on record & tell the American people EXACTLY where they stand on this barbaric practice,” posted the lawmaker, adding the hashtags: #LetUsVote #EndInfanticide.
Pro-life group Americans United for Life issued a statement in support of the legislation on Tuesday. “We encourage Congress to act on the Born-Alive Abortion Survivors Protections act. It’s been treated as little more than political theatrics by its opponents, but it is both substantive and morally urgent. It protects newborns who survive abortions by requiring appropriate care and admission to a hospital,” a statement to The Daily Wire said.
“Current federal law does not adequately protect a born child who survives an abortion and does not currently ensure that child will receive the same degree of professional skill and care to protect the newborn as would be offered to any other child born alive at the same developmental age,” the group added.
In February, Sen. Ben Sasse (R-NE)’s proposed Born-Alive Abortion Survivors Protection Act was blocked by Democrats. The legislation — which would “prohibit a health care practitioner from failing to exercise the proper degree of care in the case of a child who survives an abortion or attempted abortion” — died in the Senate after all but three Democrats — Sens. Joe Manchin (D-WV), Bob Casey Jr. (D-PA), and Doug Jones (D-AL) — voted against it, essentially going on-record as pro-infanticide.
New York was one of the first states to go all-in on abortion after the midterms. Governor Andrew Cuomo, a Democrat, signed and celebrated the passing of the euphemistically-named Reproductive Health Act in January. The legislation legalizes abortion up to the moment of birth, loosens restrictions on who can perform abortions, and strips the murder of the unborn from the NY’s criminal code. In the wake of such abortion extremism, Virginia Gov. Ralph Northam, another Democrat, endorsed infanticide during a radio interview.
There are currently eight states (plus the District of Columbia) in the union that allow abortion up to the moment of birth.