House Passes Partial-Birth
Abortion Ban, Goes to Conference Next

June 5, 2003—Washington, DC: The House of Representatives easily approved a ban on partial birth abortions on Wednesday, a measure supported by President Bush and championed for nearly a decade by pro-life groups. The House backed the bill with a 282-139 vote -- a 20 vote larger margin than last year that pointed to the pro-life election victories in 2000.

Because the Senate approved the ban with a resolution expressing its support for the Roe v. Wade Supreme Court decision, the bill must go to a conference committee to iron out the differences. Conferees, including pro-life Reps. Henry Hyde (R-IL) and Jim Sensenbrenner (R-WI) on the House side, are expected to delete the pro-Roe provision.

Once that happens, President Bush said Wednesday he would sign the bill. Bush applauded House passage of the ban and said, "Passage of this important legislation is a shared priority that will help build a culture of life in America."

Following his signature, the questions begin.

Gloria Feldt, president of the Planned Parenthood Federation of America, said the organization would file a suit immediately after Bush signs the bill and would seek an injunction to stop its implementation. ``It still doesn't contain an exception for the health of the woman and it criminalizes doctors trying to provide the best care to their patients,'' she said.

Pro-life groups argue would render the law meaningless by allowing all partial-birth abortions to remain legal. The Supreme Court struck down a Nebraska partial-birth abortion ban and agreed the health exemption was necessary. If the bill withstands legal challenges, it would be the first time a specific form of abortion has been criminalized since the Roe decision.

The deciding factor in any Supreme Court decision could be the court's makeup. Justices John Paul Stevens and Sandra Day O'Connor, two of the five who voted to strike down the Nebraska law, are considered among the three justices most likely to retire in the near future, allowing Bush to nominate a pro-life replacement.

Sponsors of the bill included congressional ``findings'' in this new version of the ban that state partial-birth abortions are never medically necessary to protect a woman's health, which they believe will enable it to pass the constitutional test.

"Partial birth abortion is the termination of the life of a living baby just seconds before it takes its first breath outside the womb,'' said Rep. Steve Chabot, the Ohio Republican who is the lead sponsor of the bill. "The procedure is violent. It's gruesome. It's horrific. It's barbaric. It's infanticide."

Under the bill, abortion practitioners could face up to two years in prison as well as civil lawsuits.

The two sides disagree how common it is, but the National Right to Life Committee estimates several thousand a year, ``mostly on healthy babies of healthy mothers.''

Led by pro-abortion Reps. James Greenwood (R-PA) and Steny Hoyer (D-MD), some lawmakers offered a "phony" partial-birth abortion ban that included a health exception. It was defeated 287-133.

The House also defeated 256-165 a motion to send the bill back to committee and add a "health" exception. The vote was also by a larger margin than last year.

"It would be impossible for an abortionist to 'violate' a bill that empowers him to perform third-trimester abortions whenever he asserts that they protect mental health,'' Douglas Johnson of the National Right to Life Committee said in a statement.

Some 30 states have passed bans on partial birth abortions although courts have blocked those laws in about 20 states. The federal legislation, if it becomes law, would apply to procedures in all states.

Democratic president candidate Rep. Dick Gephardt (D-MO), who is pro-abortion, was not present to vote on the ban while Rep. Dennis Kucinich (D-OH) voted against it, confirming his new pro-abortion stance.

Pro-life groups of all stripes hailed passage of the bill. Some of the groups included the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops, National Right to Life, West Virginians for Life, Concerned Women for America, Susan B. Anthony List, Family Research Council, Knights of Columbus, Feminists for Life, Life Resource Network's Women's Task Force, The Second Look Project, Women and Children First, Solidarity with Women, and the Silent No More Awareness Campaign.

ACTION: See how your representative voted on the ban at http://clerkweb.house.gov/cgi-bin/vote.exe?year=2003&rollnumber=242 and how they voted on the phony ban at http://clerkweb.house.gov/cgi-bin/vote.exe?year=2003&rollnumber=240