April 2nd promises to be a genuinely memorable day. As we’ve reported on multiple occasions, House Republican Whip Steve Scalise (R-La.) and Representative Ann Wagner (R-Mo.) announced last week that the discharge petition for the Born-Alive Abortion Survivors Protection Act will be filed by Whip Scalise on April 2nd during that day’s first vote series.
It is imperative that you contact your House member to urge them to sign the discharge petition. The mistreatment—or, in this case, non-treatment—of abortion survivors must come to an end.
What is a discharge petition? It is the only way around a pro-abortion House leadership that refuses a vote to taken on whether Democrats really believe it is acceptable to treat an abortion survivor differently than a baby born under normal circumstances.
The mechanics are simple. A majority, 218 members, must sign the petition. Democrats are in the majority in the House. At least a few have to summon up the nerve to buck pro-abortion Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi (D-Ca.) who has no interest in having her caucus exposed as—at a minimum—soft on infanticide.
Here is how Rep. Scalise explained the situation last week.
“As Speaker Pelosi refuses to allow a vote on this legislation to defend and protect innocent life, we are taking matters into our own hands. This effort is not just about going on the record, it’s about taking concrete action to end infanticide . Legislation to protect babies born alive during an abortion is supported by over seventy percent of voters of all parties, including Democrats and independents. Rep. Wagner’s Born Alive Act is a truly bipartisan bill that deserves a vote on the House floor. The American people deserve to know where their representatives stand on this issue of life or death.”
Added Rep. Wagner,
“As radical states and legislators have begun promoting not just late term abortions but infanticide, it is more important than ever that we come together to protect America’s women and children with lifesaving medical care during the moments they cannot protect themselves.”
SIGN THE PETITION: Stop Infanticide! Stop Abortions Up to Birth!
The background is crucial. It is as if Democrats have lost all control of themselves. They are proposing (and in the case of New York, passing) bills that legalize abortion up through the 40th week. They also want to enshrine the “right” to abortion in their state constitutions.
Not satisfied to stop there, anti-life Democrats are insisting—demanding—that treatment is optional for babies who survive abortions. This is insanity.
What does the Born-Alive Abortion Survivors Protection Act require? It
- Requires that health care practitioners who are present at the live birth exercise skill, care, and diligence to preserve the life and health of the child—the same degree of care that would be offered to any other child born prematurely the same gestational age. After those efforts, the health care workers must transport and admit the child to a hospital.
- Requires health care practitioners and hospital employees to report violations to law enforcement authorities, reducing the number of born-alive abortions that go unreported.
- Penalizes the intentional killing of a born-alive child through fines or up to 5 years imprisonment.
- Gives the mother of the abortion survivor a civil cause of action and protection from prosecution, recognizing that women are the second victims of abortion and promoting the dignity of motherhood.
Please, please contact your Member of the House of Representatives and ask them to sign the discharge petition.
LifeNews.com Note: Dave Andrusko is the editor of National Right to Life News and an author and editor of several books on abortion topics. This post originally appeared in his National Right to Life News Today —- an online column on pro-life issues.
