On Tuesday both of Arkansas’ U.S. Senators and three of the state’s U.S. Representatives co-sponsored federal pro-life legislation in Washington.
U.S. Sen. Lindsey Graham (R – SC) filed the Pain-Capable Unborn Child Protection Act generally prohibiting most abortions after the fifteenth week of pregnancy — when experts say an unborn baby can feel the excruciating pain of abortion.
U.S. Senators John Boozman and Tom Cotton from Arkansas are co-sponsoring that measure.
Arkansas congressmen French Hill, Rick Crawford, and Bruce Westerman are co-sponsoring that measure.
Now that the U.S. Supreme Court has reversed Roe v. Wade, state legislatures and congress are free to make abortion policy.
In Arkansas, abortion generally is prohibited except to save the life of the mother — which means thousands of women and unborn children will be protected from abortion in the years to come. That’s something to celebrate.
Articles appearing on this website are written with the aid of Family Council’s researchers and writers.
Politics can be a dirty business, and it is unfortunate that some people are willing to say things that are untrue to help their cause.
Take for example a recent political piece by the Democratic Party of Arkansas saying that state Sen. Jane English, Rep. Carlton Wing, and Rep. Karilyn Brown, “Voted to mandate pregnancy for survivors of rape or incest.”
Republicans MANDATED victims of rape and incest — including minors who are young girls — carry their pregnancies to term. Jane English, Karilyn Brown, and Carlton Wing sponsored this horrific and extreme abortion policy.
This good law that passed last year had more than 40 sponsors and co-sponsors.
Almost every member of the legislature voted for it, and Governor Hutchinson signed it into law.
Public opinion polling shows Arkansans overwhelmingly oppose abortion.
Seventy-nine percent of likely voters in Arkansas believe abortion should be either completely illegal — without exception — or legal only under certain circumstances.
Arkansas’ abortion laws reflect that.
Arkansas law generally prohibits abortion, but it makes exceptions for complications like an ectopic pregnancy or miscarriage and for circumstances when the mother’s life is in jeopardy.
Above: Rep. Nicole Clowney (D – Fayetteville) discusses efforts to introduce legislation in Arkansas to add exceptions to state laws against abortion (Photo Credit: YouTube).
On Tuesday State Representative Nicole Clowney (D – Fayetteville) participated in a discussion panel on abortion at the Fayetteville Public Library.
During the panel, Rep. Clowney said that her colleagues in the general assembly will introduce at least four measures during the upcoming legislative session that would change the exceptions in Arkansas’ abortion law.
Rep. Clowney was part of panel hosted by the University of Arkansas – Fayetteville Education Association / Local 965 — a union for employees at the U of A in Fayetteville.
During the panel, Rep. Clowney said she anticipates four different measures amending Act 180 to be introduced during the upcoming legislative session:
One measure would add exceptions for rape to the law.
A second would add exceptions for incest to the law.
A third measure would add exceptions for lethal fetal anomaly to the law.
A fourth measure would change the exception for the life of the mother into an exception for abortions “caring for the health of the mother.”
Taken together, these changes would upend the state’s pro-life laws and could open the door to abortion on demand in Arkansas.
In other states, exceptions for a woman’s health or for fetal abnormalities have been interpreted very broadly.
Health exceptions in particular could apply to nearly any situation. That is part of the reason why Arkansas’ pro-life laws historically have exempted situations where the the mother’s life is at risk rather than situations where an abortionist believes her health is somehow being affected by the pregnancy.
These sorts of broad exceptions may effectively permit elective abortions in Arkansas.
As we have written before, rape and incest are evil. A woman who is raped is a victim in every sense of the word, but the unborn baby is totally innocent. Abortion doesn’t heal the wounds that rape or incest leave behind, and sexual predators may actually coerce their victims into having abortions to conceal rape or incest. It is not right to kill an unborn baby because the baby’s father was a rapist.
Public opinion polling shows Arkansans overwhelmingly oppose abortion. Seventy-nine percent of likely voters in Arkansas believe abortion should be either completely illegal — without exception — or legal only under certain circumstances.
Act 180 of 2019 reflects that. It generally prohibits abortion, but it makes exceptions for certain serious medical complications like an ectopic pregnancy or miscarriage and for circumstances when the mother’s life is in jeopardy.
Below is a video recording of Rep. Clowney’s comments regarding legislative efforts to amend Arkansas’ pro-life laws.
Articles appearing on this website are written with the aid of Family Council’s researchers and writers.
