Democrats in Congress Aim to Repeal Pro-Life Hyde Amendment

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Last month the LA Times reported that Rep. Nancy Pelosi and other Democrats in Congress intend to repeal the Hyde Amendment next year.

The Hyde Amendment is a provision in the federal budget that prevents Americans from being forced to fund abortion procedures with their tax dollars. It contains exceptions for cases of rape or incest or when the mother’s life or physical health are in jeopardy.

Every year since 1976 Congress has attached some version of the Hyde Amendment to the federal budget to prevent taxpayer-funded abortion.

Public opinion polling has shown again and again that Americans don’t want to pay for abortions with their tax dollars. In spite of that, the Hyde Amendment has come under attack from pro-abortion groups and politicians in recent years.

For example:

For years the Hyde Amendment was viewed as a reasonable compromise between pro-life and pro-abortion politicians, but it’s clear that pro-abortion groups no longer see it that way.

Abortion advocates often have said, “If you don’t like abortion, don’t have one.”

Without the Hyde Amendment, even if you don’t like abortion and don’t have an abortion, you could still be forced to pay for an abortion with your taxes.

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A.G.’s Office Defends Pro-Life Laws in Court

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On Wednesday attorneys with Arkansas Attorney General Leslie Rutledge’s offices made arguments in favor of three pro-life laws in court, according to the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette.

The arguments were made via teleconference before a three-judge panel from the Eighth Circuit Court of Appeals.

The laws in question are:

  • Act 493 of 2019, prohibiting abortion after the eighteenth week of pregnancy, except in cases of rape, incest, or to save the life of the mother.
  • Act 619 of 2019, prohibiting abortion of an unborn baby solely because the child has Down Syndrome.
  • Act 700 of 2019, requiring abortion doctors to be board certified or board eligible OB/GYNs.

These laws passed with overwhelming support from state lawmakers in 2019.

However, after the measures passed, abortionists at Little Rock Family Planning Services filed a lawsuit with the help of the ACLU to have the laws overturned.

U.S. District Judge Kristine Baker in Little Rock issued an injunction blocking the state from enforcing the laws.

Following that decision, Attorney General Rutledge’s office appealed to the Eighth Circuit to vacate Judge Baker’s injunction.

The three judges now presiding over the case are Judge James Loken of Minneapolis; Judge Bobby Shepherd of El Dorado, Arkansas; and Judge Ralph Erickson of Fargo, North Dakota.

Judge Erickson has served on the Eighth Circuit since President Trump nominated him in 2017. President George H. W. Bush nominated Judge Loken for the Eighth Circuit in 1990, and President George W. Bush nominated Judge Shepherd in 2006.

In April Judges Erickson and Shepherd ruled that Arkansas could restrict surgical abortion amid the COVID-19 pandemic; Judge Loken dissented in that decision. In light of that, it’s possible these judges will let Arkansas’ three pro-life laws stand.

As I’ve said many times, I don’t know of any attorney general’s office in America who is doing more to fight for the right to life than Arkansas’.

This team has tirelessly defended good laws like these. Arkansas has won some major, pro-life victories, and I am confident that more victories are ahead.

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Funding Planned Parenthood

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John Stonestreet, Radio Host and President of the Colson Center for Christian Worldview.

As the election looms closer, Christians should know both why they should vote and how to think through candidates and issues.

At the very top of the list is the sanctity of human life. The Trump administration has taken clear steps to protect the unborn—from judges appointed to executive actions to showing up at the March for Life. Yet, it is still true that Planned Parenthood, as LiveAction President Lila Rose recently tweeted, “under the Trump Administration . . . receives more money today than they did under the Obama administration. It’s time to hold [Planned Parenthood] accountable for their crimes against children.”

Planned Parenthood officials have admitted under oath that they participate in partial birth abortion and the sale of body parts—both federal crimes . We must let the administration know that any tax dollars going their direction is simply unnacceptable.

And we must press pro-life candidates on how they plan to end abortion funding.

Copyright 2020 by the Colson Center for Christian Worldview. Reprinted from BreakPoint.org with permission.

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