Bill That Would Punish Doctors Who Don’t Attempt To Save An Infant After A Failed Abortion Blocked In Senate
The topic of abortions later in the term, as well as infants who survive the procedure, have rejuvenated the abortion debate in recent weeks. But critics say that Republicans are being disingenuous forcing votes such as the one that failed in the Senate on Monday targeting doctors who perform the procedure. "This bill is not about protecting infants, as Republicans have claimed — because that is not up for debate and it is already the law," said Sen. Patty Murray (D-Wash.). "This bill is government interference in women’s health care, in families’ lives, and in medicine on steroids."
The Associated Press:
Dems Block Senate GOP Bill On Infants Surviving Abortions
Senate Democrats on Monday blocked a Republican bill that would have threatened prison for doctors who don't try saving the life of infants born alive during abortions. The measure seemed doomed from the start but offered the GOP a chance to appeal to conservative voters. The vote was the latest instance in which Republicans have tried to go on offense on the issue and put Democratic abortion-rights lawmakers in an uncomfortable position. Supporters said the measure presented lawmakers with a simple, moral choice. (Fram, 2/25)
The Washington Post:
Senate Blocks Bill On Medical Care For Children Born Alive After Attempted Abortion
The bill would require a health-care practitioner to “exercise the same degree of professional skill, care, and diligence to preserve the life and health of the child” as he or she would to “any other child born alive at the same gestational age.” The bill includes criminal penalties, a right of civil action for an affected mother and a mandatory reporting requirement for other health providers. Opponents of the bill argued that it represented an unjustified attack on abortion rights, preventing doctors from exercising their best medical judgment and exposing them to possible lawsuits or prosecution. (DeBonis and Sonmez, 2/25)
The Wall Street Journal:
GOP’s ‘Born Alive’ Abortion Bill Fails To Advance In Senate
Republicans, including the bill’s sponsor, Sen. Ben Sasse (R., Neb.), argued the bill doesn’t restrict access to abortions but rather focuses on the care of fetuses that are “born alive” during such procedures. “It isn’t about new restrictions on abortion, it isn’t about changing the options available to women. It’s just about recognizing that a newborn baby is a newborn baby, period,” Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell said Monday. (Jamerson, 2/25)
The Hill:
Trump Claims Democrats ‘Don’t Mind Executing Babies After Birth’ After Blocked Abortion Bill
President Trump on Monday ramped up his attacks against Democratic senators over abortion after the Senate failed to advance an anti-abortion measure on Monday. "Senate Democrats just voted against legislation to prevent the killing of newborn infant children," Trump claimed on Twitter on Monday. "The Democrat position on abortion is now so extreme that they don’t mind executing babies AFTER birth." (Wise, 2/26)
Politico:
Senate Defeats Anti-Abortion Bill, As GOP Tries To Jam Dems
Sanders, Harris, Warren, Booker and Gillibrand all voted against the measure. Sherrod Brown, another Democratic senator exploring a White House bid, complained to POLITICO that the vote was held in bad faith. "This is pure Mitch McConnell. It's all aimed at keeping his base in line, while the president grows increasingly unpopular," the Ohio Democrat said. "We're not doing infrastructure, we're not doing health care. We're not doing anything that matters to help our country. It's just votes on abortion and other kinds of divisive votes he's going to bring." (Ollstein, 2/25)
CQ:
Senate Abortion Legislation Falls Short
Anti-abortion groups like the Susan B. Anthony List have said they hope this vote will get senators running for the Democratic nomination in 2020 on the record on this issue. The bill “is carefully crafted to target, intimidate, and shut down reproductive health care providers,” said Minority Leader Charles E. Schumer, D-N.Y. “My Republican colleagues have said some incendiary things about opposing this bill. Let me be very clear. Many of these claims are false. It has always been illegal to harm a newborn infant. This vote has nothing to do with that.” (Raman, 2/25)
Meanwhile —
CNN:
They Had Abortions Late In Their Pregnancies. These Are Their Stories
Strangers have called them monsters, trolled them on social media and said their living children should be taken away. Their darkest moments are judged and politicized by figures who know nothing about them. They feel like involuntary pawns in an ugly, vicious game they didn't ask to play. Women who've had abortions later in their pregnancies are "bonded in a sisterhood through a club nobody ever wanted to be a part of," one woman said. She was one of half a dozen women who recently shared their stories with CNN. They chose to speak up after President Donald Trump called on Congress to pass legislation that would ban "late-term abortion," a phrase derided by ob-gyns. (Ravitz, 2/25)
