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Lawmakers Charge
Ahead on Partial-Birth
Abortion Veto Override
by Scott Weinberg,
Special to the Herald
The over-ride attempt will take place in the Senate during the third week of September, according to Santorum and Douglas Johnson, federal legislative director of the National Right to Life Committee (NRLC).
"Partial-birth abortion is nothing but infanticide," said Santorum. "This is one of the most important moral issues of our day. And it is very, very important for Catholics to call their senators."
Santorum's bill contains language drafted by the American Medical Association (AMA) that differentiates between a breech birth and a partial-birth abortion, unlike the original version of the bill that was vetoed by the president in April 1996, then fell 10 votes short in the U.S. Senate in the first override attempt.
During a partial-birth abortion a physician induces a breech birth, then delivers all of the baby except his head. The physician suctions out the baby's brains and the collapsed skull is removed from the birth canal.
Thousands of partial-birth abortions are performed each year in the United States, according to a leading figure in the abortion industry, who admitted to testifying falsely during the first-round override when he said that only a few hundred partial-birth abortions were performed.
A second partial-birth abortion ban was offered in the U.S. House by Rep. Charles Canady (R-Fla.). It passed on March 20, 1997, by a vote of 295-136. The Senate passed Santorum's slightly amended bill 64-36. This was vetoed by Clinton a second time, thus setting the stage in the Senate for a second override attempt.
The pro-life lobby is focused on a handful of senators who failed to support Santorum's bill in the regular Senate vote. They are: Sens. Dale Bumpers (D-Ark.), Joseph Lieberman (D-Conn.), Bob Graham (D-Fla), Max Cleland (D-Ga.), Tom Harkin (D-Iowa), Susan Collins (R-Maine), Bob Kerrey (D-Neb.), Charles Robb (D-Va.), Patty Murray (D-Wash.), and Russell Feingold and Herbert Kohl (both D-Wis). A two-thirds Senate majority is needed to override Clinton's veto.
The purpose of the partial-birth abortion ban is not to challenge Roe v. Wade, according to House Judiciary Chairman Henry Hyde (R-IL).
"It would be very difficult to say that this ban threatens Roe v. Wade, since Roe prohibited infanticide," said Santorum. "Since Roe, the line between abortion and infanticide has become blurred, and the nation and the courts have moved way beyond Roe. V. Wade. We have to move the nation back."
According to NRLC's Johnson, if the over-ride succeeds, federal and state appeals of the ban may reach the Supreme Court at the same time.
"There will be a great impetus at the state level to guard human life," Santorum said.
Laws similar to the federal ban are being vigilantly guarded in at least 23 states. Virginia Attorney General Mark Earley, for example, defended Virginia's parental notification law in the Federal 4th Circuit Court of Appeals, and secured a decision from the federal courts which keeps the state's PBA ban in place.
"It is clear that an overwhelming majority of citizens, including many who have been in the pro-choice camp, oppose this disturbing procedure," said Earley. "All Americans should contact their elected representatives at the state and federal level to express their opinion."
Marie-Josè Ragab of the Dulles Chapter of the National Organization for Women (NOW) spoke against partial-birth abortions this week with State Delegate Richard H. Black (R-Va.).
"The majority of women in NOW oppose this procedure," said Ragab, who was raised Catholic in Paris, where she attended L'Ecole de Jean D'Arc and Notre Dame. "But a handful of NOW leaders have imposed a complete ban on discussing the subject. We must ban this hideous procedure," said Ragab, adding is not afraid of NOW's retribution because she is expressing the views held by the majority of women.
"Abortion is a greater stain on our nation than slavery," said Black, a Catholic who believes in the sanctity of human life from the moment of conception. "We must join together and fight to restore a culture of life in Virginia and across America."
Both Black and Johnson said that the PBA issue will become a litmus test in upcoming elections. Johnson singled out Virginia Senator Charles Robb as being particularly "out of step" with public opinion.
"Robb is taking his marching orders from the pro-abortion lobby," Johnson said. "We live in a democracy and Robb must learn to listen to the voice of the people."
Copyright ©1998 Arlington Catholic Herald, Inc. All rights reserved.
This article was published in the Arlington
Catholic Herald,
200 N. Glebe Rd., Suite 607, Arlington, VA 22203; Vol 23, No 36;
dated Sep 10, 1998, on the page 3.
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letters@catholicherald.com
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A note from the Web Master:
It is noteworthy and honorable that some folks are willing to stand up for a ban on Partial-Birth Abortion. Let us not forget that Abortion is also murder. We must understand that murder is murder no matter the method. Because one method of abortion seems to be horrible does not justify the other methods. We should be horrified and sickened by any Abortion regardless of the method. The Fifth Commandment spells it out clearly: "Thou shalt not kill." A fetus is a person, a human being with a God given soul. Imagine the pain the Lord must feel when any Abortion occurs. Please contact your Senator to let him know how horrified you are that Abortions are legal and to stop Partial-Birth Abortions and all other Abortions as soon as possible.
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