You've Done it Before — Do it Again
On June 4, the House is expected to debate the Partial-Birth Abortion Ban Act of
2003 (H.R. 760), sponsored by Rep. Steve Chabot (R-OH). The bill prohibits partial birth abortion (PBA), the gruesome and inhumane procedure that begins as a breech delivery of an unborn child and ends in infanticide.
Congress has debated and voted on PBA many times since 1995. President Clinton
twice vetoed the ban, first in 1996 and then again in 1998, and each time the Senate narrowly fell short of the two-thirds requirement to override the vetoes. We finally have a President who will sign the bill, but Congress must vote again to put it on Bush's desk.
On March 13, the Senate passed the companion bill (S. 3) with a vote of 64 to 33
(Senate Roll Call Vote 51). After House passage this week, the bills will be conferenced to eliminate the Senate-approved Harkin amendment reaffirming Roe v. Wade.
Defeat Phony Substitute Amendment
Reps. Steny Hoyer (D-MD) and Jim Greenwood (R-PA) are expected to offer a phony
substitute amendment. This counterproposal is a killer amendment because it would place no
limits on partial-birth abortions in the fifth and sixth months of pregnancy, when the vast
majority of partial-birth abortions occur. It would also permit partial birth abortions if the abortionist asserts that the baby is not "viable" or in cases to preserve the woman's "health." Reps. Hoyer and Greenwood admitted that their proposal would allow third-trimester abortions even for (in their words) "mental health" reasons.
Action Items
Call your Representative TODAY!
- Urge them to vote for and speak in favor of the Partial-Birth Abortion Ban Act of 2003 (H.R. 760).
- Tell them to reject the phony Hoyer/Greenwood substitute amendment.
Every Representative should be called, but special attention should be given to Members elected in 2002 and the following: Bono, Boswell, Capito, Cramer, Tom Davis, Doggett, Dunn, Foley, Gibbons, Granger, Hobson, Isakson, Kaptur, Lampson, Leach, Jerry Lewis, Lynch, McNulty, Pascrell, Deborah Pryce, Ramstad, Reyes, Ross, Snyder, Sweeney, Upton, Visclosky, Walden, and Heather Wilson.
Eagle Forum
UPDATE: House Passes Partial-Birth Abortion Ban Act of 2003 