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Catholic News Service |
Washington --- Taking up the Partial-Birth Abortion Ban Act for the fifth time in three years Oct 20, the U.S. Senate rejected an amendment that would have made exceptions for women facing "grievous injury" to their physical health.
The amendment, proposed by Senator Dick Durbin, D-Illinois, was similar to exceptions opposed by Catholic leaders during earlier debates following presidential vetoes of the legislation in 1996 and 1997.
The 61-38 vote on the Durbin amendment followed an emotional day of debate in the Senate about partial-birth abortion and a wide range of other life issues. The Senate continued its debate on the legislation Oct. 21.
Shortly before the debate began, Cardinal William H. Keeler of Baltimore sent a letter to each Senator urging passage of the partial-birth abortion ban, calling the procedure "more akin to infanticide than abortion."
"To allow this to continue unchecked violates every principle of human rights and decency this country has always stood for," said the cardinal, who chairs the U.S. bishops' Committee for Pro-Life Activities. "So unique and brutal is this procedure that the majority of those Americans who are pro-life and those who describe themselves as pro-choice agree that it ought to be banned."
In a partial-birth abortion, the unborn child is partially delivered, feet first, before surgical scissors are stabbed into the base of the infant's head. The child's brain is then removed by suction, allowing for easier delivery of the collapsed head.
Cardinal Keeler said that it became clear during national debate over partial-birth abortion that the procedure is never medically necessary. Even the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists, which opposes the ban, has said partial-birth abortions are never necessary to save a woman's life or preserve her health, he noted.
"Partial-birth abortion has only one purpose: to destroy the lives of children who are inches away from being completely born alive," the cardinal said. "Please vote for S. 1692 and ban this indefensible procedure once and for all."
Catholic senators played key roles in the Oct. 20-21 Senate debate. Sen Rick Santorum, R-PA, sponsored the legislation and was floor manager for the debate; key amendments were proposed by Durbin and Sen. Tom Harkin, D-Iowa, who are also Catholics.
The Harkin amendment, which was debated Oct. 21, would add to the bill a "sense of Congress" declaration that the 1972 Roe vs. Wade decision which ended most state restrictions on abortion "was an appropriate decision, ... secures an important constitution right ... (and) should not be overturned."
During the October 20 debate, Santorium called the partial-birth abortion ban "a little beacon of hope, a little ray of sanity, of affirmation that life is in fact something to be cherished and not to be brutalized."
But Senator Barbara Boxer, D-CA, said the proposed ban was "an out-and-out attack" on Roe vs. Wade and its philosophy that "the life and health of the mother must be protected."
Opponents of the health exception say that it could be used to make
exception for any perceived threat to a woman's physical or emotional well-being.
Copyright ©1999 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 24, No 44,
page 19, dated November 4, 1999.
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E-mail:
letters@catholicherald.com
Fax: 703/524-2782;
Editorial: 703/841-2590;
Advertising: 703/841-2594;
Circulation: 703/841-2565
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 ordinary everyday run of the mill abortion is also murder. We must understand that aborting the life of a baby is murder no matter the method. Because one method of abortion seems to be horrible does not make the other methods less so. 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 both of your Senators and Representative, via letter or phone,
to let them know how horrified you are that abortions are legal and to
stop, once and for all, Partial-Birth abortions and all other abortions
as soon as possible.
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