Within the Democratic Party, especially among the field of its 2020 presidential hopefuls, there has been a push underway to repeal the Hyde Amendment, a provision which bans the use of federal funding for abortions, with exceptions to save the life of the woman, or if the pregnancy arises from incest or rape.
During an appearance on Huntsville, AL’s WVNN on Thursday, Rep. Martha Roby (R-AL) explained she was aware of the trend and would continue to be on the side of the “voiceless” when it came to the issue of abortion.
“I will say at the outset that this is tremendously concerning,” Roby said on “The Jeff Poor Show.” “Even Democrats that are pro-choice – to have supported the Hyde Amendment in the past are now backing away from that position. And for those of us in the pro-life movement, this very, very concerning. Of course, the Trump administration has demonstrated a strong commitment to defending the unborn. But still, the Democrat majority in the House – our efforts continue to face real challenges. I’m continuing to do everything I can to advance protections for the unborn, and as I’ve said on your show so many times, I consider it a tremendous privilege to get to be the voice for the voiceless.”
Roby offered details on amendment she had put up for consideration to “uphold the spirit” of the Hyde Amendment in the District of Columbia known as the Dornan Amendment, which has been in place in some form since 1979.
“If we allow DC to fund abortions using, quote, ‘their local funds,’ otherwise known as taxpayer dollars,” she explained. “I’m very concerned about this. This is a step in the opposite direction. It’s an erosion of all of our efforts to fight for this long-standing policy. It’s our job to uphold the Constitution, the basic duties of government and guard the innocent. This comes at a time, you mentioned, where you’re seeing more and more Democrats, prominent Democrats running for president and otherwise step out in opposition to policy that has been long outstanding.”
The Alabama congresswoman attributed these impulses of Democrats to a “panic” that the landmark 1973 Roe v. Wade Supreme Court decision could be overturned given the composition of that court.
“There has been a panic since the last Supreme Court justice was confirmed amongst the pro-abortion crowd because they feel more threatened than ever that Roe v. Wade might be revisited by the court,” Roby said. “And I think there’s a high probability based on cases that are pending all across the country where there have been legal challenges. And there have been opinions written by lower courts that have to uphold Roe v. Wade because it is the current law of the land. But you’ve seen dissenting opinions or dissent within the opinion where judges have pointed out that Roe v. Wade was incorrectly decided in the first place. So there are cracks, and it is causing panic. And so, you’re seeing pushback like never before.”
“And remember, they don’t talk about this as being pro-abortion,” she continued. “They talk about this as women’s health care. Every argument that I have heard in the appropriations committee, or on the floor of the House – I’ve heard my colleagues, the folks that are for abortion, they don’t want to call it abortion. They want to call it women’s health.”
Roby said that often offers an opportunity for her to rise and ask, ‘Who is there to defend the person who cannot defend themselves?’ which she said somehow always gets left out of the conversation.
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