Pro-Life Congressional Leader Talks About Democratic Shut-Out on Abortion
by Steven Ertelt
LifeNews.com Editor
February 26, 2009
Washington, DC (LifeNews.com) — With the debate over the economy and the budget, a Congressional battle on abortion took place with almost no notice. Democratic leaders prevented a respected pro-life member of the House from offering amendments to stop efforts to make taxpayers pay to promote abortions.
Rep. Chris Smith, a New Jersey Republican, hoped to offer amendments to stop the sending of $50 million to the UNFPA, which supports China one-child policy involving forced abortions.
He also hoped to overturn President Barack Obama’s decision to send millions in public funds to groups that promote or perform abortions overseas.
Congressional Democrats prevented Smith from offering the pro-life amendments and allowed no debate and no chance for an up or down vote on them.
Smith, talking about the UNFPA and forced abortions in China on the floor of the House, reprimanded the Democrat leadership for its response to this horrific human rights abuse to Chinese women, children and the family.
“So, how does Congress respond to the UNFPA’s complicity in China’s crimes against women?” Smith asked. “Do we demand reform and protection of Chinese women and children?
“Heck no. We gut the anti-coercion law and write a $50 million check to the UNFPA," he said.
Smith’s amendment would have restored the Kemp-Kasten policy for all organizations, including the UNFPA. Kemp-Kasten directs the U.S. Administration to ensure that no U.S. taxpayer money go to organizations that support or participate in the management of forced sterilizations and forced abortion programs.
“The UN Population Fund has actively supported, co-managed, and white-washed the most pervasive crimes against women in human history,” said Smith who held twenty six hearings on human rights in China as the former House chairman of the Human Rights committee.
“China’s one-child-per-couple policy relies on pervasive, coerced abortion, involuntary sterilization, ruinous fines in amounts up to ten times the salary of both parents, imprisonment, and job loss or demotion to achieve its quotas," he said.
“And through it all, throughout the past three decades, the UN Population Fund has remained China’s chief apologist as well as population control program trainer, facilitator and funder," he added.
Smith told LifeNews.com the Democratic funding bill "gives them $50 million and a slap on the wrist."
Smith’s other amendment would restore the Mexico City Policy, rescinded by Obama in his first week of office.
“As a direct, absolutely predictable consequence of President Obama’s Abortion Export Order a few weeks ago nullifying the Mexico City Policy the number of innocent children forced to die from dismemberment, decapitation, or chemical poisoning by abortion will increase significantly, mostly in Africa and Latin America,” he explained.
“The pro-abortion organizations who will divvy up the $545 million pot of U.S. taxpayer grant money contained in today’s Omnibus bill have made it abundantly clear that they will aggressively promote, lobby, litigate and perform abortion on demand in developing countries. My amendment would have prevented that from pushing abortions as a method of family planning," he added.
Smith pointed out that the American people do not want their taxpayer dollars going to promote and perform abortion overseas.
“According to a Gallup poll released earlier this month, overturning this pro-life policy was the least popular of the President’s actions in his first week in office. In fact 58% of those polled opposed overturning the policy and only 35% supported funding groups that promote or provide abortion as a method of family planning,” he said. “Why not let the American people be heard on this issue?"
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