
Sen. James Lankford speaks during a press conference at the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 9, 2025, in Washington, D.C. (Jon Cherry via Getty Images)
THE DAILY SIGNAL | Published January 23, 2025
Every Senate Democrat on Wednesday afternoon voted against protecting the lives of babies born alive after botched abortions.
The Born-Alive Abortion Survivors Protection Act, introduced by Sens. James Lankford, R-Okla., and Jim Banks, R-Ind., states that a baby born alive from a failed abortion deserves the same protection and medical care as other newborns.
“Almost every American agrees that a baby that takes their first breath deserves the same right to life as the rest of us do,” Banks said. “I won’t give up this fight for common sense legislation to save the most vulnerable.”
Senate Majority Leader John Thune, R-S.D., brought the bill to a vote on Wednesday. He spoke on behalf of the bill on the Senate floor prior to the vote, saying he expected Democrats to oppose the bill. He was correct.
Republicans’ motion for cloture on Wednesday failed with a vote of 52-47.
“Democrats are afraid that by recognizing the humanity of the newly born child, they will inadvertently point to the humanity of the unborn child,” Thune said. “And I do understand where they’re coming from. After all, once you recognize the humanity of the newly born baby, it gets a little harder to say that that child wasn’t human just a few minutes ago simply because he or she wasn’t yet born.”
“And so, because there is nothing more important to Democrats than abortion, they will vote against legislation to provide appropriate medical care to babies born alive in an abortion clinic, just in case such a law ends up jeopardizing their cherished, quote, ‘right’ to an abortion,” Thune continued.
Sen. Pete Ricketts, a pro-life senator from Nebraska, also spoke in favor of the bill.
In 2023, House Democrats nearly unanimously voted against the bill. It passed the House 220-210, with one Democrat, Rep. Henry Cuellar, D-Texas, voting with Republicans in favor of the bill, and Rep. Vicente Gonzalez, D-Texas, voting present.
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SOURCE: www.dailysignal.com
RELATED: Senate Democrats block GOP’s ‘born-alive’ abortion bill
THE HILL |Published January 23, 2025
Senate Republicans failed on Wednesday to invoke cloture on a bill legislating care for infants “born alive” during attempted abortions, with the motion largely serving to get Democrats on the record as voting against a bill being framed as anti-infanticide.
Republicans sought cloture on the Born-Alive Abortion Survivors Protection Act, a bill that requires health care practitioners to provide the “same degree of professional skill, care, and diligence” for a child born alive during an attempted abortion, as they would during normal childbirth.
Health care practitioners who fail to comply with the law would face fines and up to five years in jail or both. House Republicans passed their version of the bill when they retook control in 2023. Democrats have routinely criticized “born-alive” bills as being redundant because killing an infant who was born alive following an attempted abortion is already illegal.
Though Republicans gained control of the Senate, their 53-47 majority does not give them enough votes for the three-fifths majority — 60 votes — needed for cloture.
The motion for cloture Wednesday failed with a vote of 52-47. Sen. Bill Hagerty (R-Tenn.) did not vote.
“Senator Hagerty was responding to a family health matter that required his presence. He is a staunch pro-life advocate and would have voted aye,” a spokesperson for the senator told The Hill.
The bill is timed to coincide with the March for Life on Friday, which will bring together anti-abortions activists from across the country and their allies in Washington. Wednesday also marks the 52nd anniversary of Roe v. Wade, which was struck down in 2022.
“We should all be able to agree that a baby born alive after an attempted abortion must be protected, and yet I fully expect that later today my Democrat colleagues will vote no on this legislation,” said Senate Majority Leader John Thune (S.D.).
“They will vote against protection for a living, breathing newborn baby simply because that child has been born alive after an attempted abortion.”
An infant being born alive following an abortion is extremely rare. Between 2003 and 2014, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recorded 143 instances of an infant being born alive after an attempted termination.
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SOURCE: www.thehill.com
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