Idaho Gov. Brad Little slammed pro-abortion Gov. Jay Inslee of Washington this week for opposing legislation to protect underage girls from being trafficked across state lines for abortions without their parents’ knowledge.
The response came after Inslee wrote to Little earlier this month, urging the pro-life Republican governor to veto the anti-trafficking bill, KREM 2 reports. Little signed the pro-life legislation anyway.
Responding in a letter this week, Little told Inslee that the new law does not criminalize interstate travel for abortion, as some have wrongly claimed; it protects underage girls from being taken across state lines — often by abusers or human traffickers — for abortions without their parents’ knowledge or consent, according to the local news.
“Why do you not support that?” Little asked the Democrat governor. “The national media’s and your efforts to exaggerate and misrepresent the bill only further complicate the process. It is a disservice to our citizens.”
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Little also dismissed Inslee’s baseless claims that Idaho pro-life laws are causing residents to leave the state, the report continues. He said Idaho has “the right and duty” to protect the most vulnerable from abortion, including unborn babies and young girls.
“It is hard to imagine why someone would leave Idaho for Washington when your state is home to sky high taxes, crime and public encampments,” Little wrote. “Meanwhile, Idaho has turned back more tax relief per capita than any other state, we’re one of the safest states in nation …”
The Idaho governor also enclosed a highlighted copy of the Tenth Amendment to the U.S. Constitution, telling Inslee it was for his “convenience.” The Tenth Amendment outlines the right of states to pass laws protecting their citizens.
ID Governor Brad Little slams Inslee for taking issue with HB 242 which prohibits taking minors out of state for abortion without parental consent.
“Why do you not support that?” pic.twitter.com/RXJ43RC4Kh
— Conservative Ladies of WA (@CLofWashington) April 20, 2023
Idaho protects unborn babies from abortions, while Washington state allows unborn babies to be aborted for basically any reason without limits.
The new Idaho anti-trafficking law creates a crime called “abortion trafficking,” which bans an “adult who, with the intent to conceal an abortion from the parents or guardian of a pregnant, unemancipated minor, either procures an abortion … or obtains an abortion-inducing drug” for the minor.
Anyone found guilty of trafficking a teenager for an out-of-state abortion would face up to five years in prison.
Inslee claimed in his letter to Little that the bill could have “many unacceptable consequences that cannot be cured,” according to the report.
But Idaho state Rep. Barbara Ehardt, the lead sponsor of the bill, said it will protect children and parents.
“We are only looking to continue to protect our children and our parental rights,” Ehardt said earlier this spring. Since abortion is illegal in Idaho, “it would be taking that child across the border, and if that happens without the permission of the parent, that’s where we’ll be able to hold accountable those that would subvert a parent’s right,” she continued.
The law is modeled on a portion of National Right to Life’s post-Dobbs model legislation to protect unborn children. Missouri was the first to pass such a law.
“HB 242 protects parents’ rights to be involved in their minor daughter’s decision,” said Carol Tobias, president of National Right to Life. “No minor daughter should be without her parents’ guidance and HB 242 would protect the right of parents.”
The pro-life organization Stanton Health Care, which helps pregnant women, also supports the new law.
“With abortions virtually banned in Idaho, Planned Parenthood and other organizations are actively coaching and luring women across state lines for abortions. This is abortion trafficking,” Linda Thomas, director of community outreach, told LifeNews.
