Michigan Catholic bishops are urging voters to reject a proposed Constitutional amendment that would establish a “right” to abortion in the state.
“We are committed to defeating this extreme proposal that allows abortions up to the moment of birth and invalidates every common sense limit on abortion, such as parental consent, health and safety regulations on abortion clinics, and more,” declared the Michigan Catholic Conference (MCC) in a Sept. 9 Twitter post.
The MCC, the public policy arm of the state’s Catholic bishops, also tweeted out a post by the pro-life group Citizens to Support MI Women and Children, which called the proposed measure the “Anything Goes Abortion Amendment.”
“Vote NO on Proposal 3 and keep this confusing, radical language that will create an unlimited right to abortion,” the group exhorted.
The group said the proposal would also “invalidate current, medically unnecessary abortion restrictions, including: Physician-only laws, which only allow licensed-physicians to provide abortion care.”
Michigan Right to Life is similarly appealing to voters to reject the amendment titled Reproductive Freedom for All.
The amendment “is not about reproductive freedom, which already exists” and would “radically distort Michigan’s Constitution to create a new unlimited right to abortion, which would spill over and affect many other issues,” the group declares on its website.
The group also said the “poorly worded amendment would repeal dozens of state laws, including our state’s ban on tax-funded abortions, the partial-birth abortion ban, and fundamentally alter the parent-child relationship by preventing parents from having input on their children’s health.”
In July, Michigan Governor Gretchen Whitmer (D) used her line veto power to remove state support for adoption agencies, pregnancy facilities, and maternity homes proposed as alternatives to abortion.
Before signing the state budget, Whitmer eliminated a $2 million adoption tax credit, $10 million to promote adoption “as an alternative to abortion,” $3 million for a maternal navigator pilot program, and $700,000 for the Real Alternatives pregnancy program, which promotes “childbirth, alternatives to abortion, and grief counseling.”
A stalwart supporter of a right to abortion-on-demand, Whitmer said she is “pulling out all the stops” to enshrine abortion rights into Michigan state law.