Attorney General Eric Holder told a Congressional committee yesterday he is unsure if a federal law stopping after-birth abortions has been enforced.
Congress approved and President George W. bush signed into law a measure known as the Born Alive Infant Protection Act, which requires that appropriate medical care and treatment be given to babies who survive failed abortions. That law should have been used to prosecute abortion practitioner Kermit Gosnell, who killed infants in a gruesome abortion method that involved birthing them and snipping their necks.
But, as a CNS News report indicates, Holder told the House Judiciary Committee yesterday that he has no idea if the Obama administration has ever enforced the law.
“Have you ever enforced this law even one time?” Rep. Trent Franks (R-Ariz.) asked Holder during the committee hearing.
“I don’t know,” Holder replied.
Red State has the transcript of the exchange between the pro-life congressman and President Obama’s top attorney:
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FRANKS: so in, 2002, congress enacted the born alive infant protection act that provides that all federal protections including from your office, sir, for persons apply to every infant born alive. so will you enforce the infant — the born alive infant protection act as attorney general and will you consider carefully what’s happening in clinics across the country like happened at the clinic that Kermit Gosnell ran?
AG HOLDER: Well, like you, I share the many of the concerns that you talked about. I’m a father. I have three kids and I am, interestingly, married to a woman who is an obstetrician, a gynecologist, very accomplished in her field. I have responsibilities as Attorney General to enforce all the laws that Congress passes.
REP FRANKS: Have you ever enforced this law even one time?
AG HOLDER: I don’t know…
REP FRANKS: Will you get back to us on that? Have you ever enforced the Born Alive Infant Protection act even one time?
AG HOLDER: We can examine that and see whether the U.S. attorney’s, um, well, since the law was passed you said in 2002, how many prosecutions there have been under that law.
REP FRANKS: There’s been 18,000 opportunities a year since then approximately. So I’m just wondering if you’ve even enforced it once?
AG HOLDER: I don’t know whether there was enforcement during the Bush administration or the Obama administration since the passage of the law in 2002. I just don’t know what the statistics are.
With news that another Kermit Gosnell, Douglas Karpen, is killing babies after abortions in Texas, the Obama administration has clearly failed in its duty to enforce this federal law and protect infants from abortions that are essentially infanticide.
