Yesterday, the U.S. Senate defeated a bill that would have outlawed abortions after 20 weeks, the point by which preborn children can feel horrific pain. A majority of senators (51) supported the bill, but 60 votes were required to overcome a Democrat filibuster.
As a result, the United States remains one of just seven countries, including North Korea and China, to allow abortions after 20 weeks.
While the bill is now defeated, it’s ramifications will continue to be felt throughout the 2018 elections, as was evidenced by the partisan divide in the vote. Only two Republicans (Susan Collins of Maine and Lisa Murkowski of Alaska) voted against the bill, while only three Democrats voted in favor.
What is noteworthy about those three Democrats is that all of them – Joe Donnelly of Indiana, Bob Casey of Pennsylvania and Joe Manchin of West Virginia – are in competitive re-election races in 2018. They all claim to be pro-life but have spotty records on life-related votes. Since 2012, Sen. Manchin has just a 50 percent voting record on life issues, while Senators Casey and Donnelly have voted pro-life a meager 23 percent, according to the National Right to Life Committee.
But while those three senators at least voted pro-life yesterday, other Democrats in pivotal races this year voted to in favor of late-term abortions. These include Sherrod Brown of Ohio, Heidi Heitkamp of North Dakota, Claire McCaskill of Missouri, Tina Smith of Minnesota, Debbie Stabenow of Michigan, and Jon Tester of Montana. Two other pro-abortion Democrats who are in potentially competitive races in 2018 – Tammy Baldwin of Wisconsin and Bill Nelson of Florida – did not vote.
Please click here to find out how your state’s 2 senators voted. Then call one or both of your senators and respectfully share your appreciation or disappointment. You can reach them at the Capitol switchboard at (202) 224-3121. Feedback and accountability are critical to making continued progress on life, so make your voice heard today!
After eight years of mostly bad news for pro-family values coming out of Washington, we’ve been hearing a lot of surprisingly good news in just the past week.
Autumn Leva, Director of Policy for Family Policy Alliance, highlights recent positive advances on the life issue, religious freedom and the rule of law.
You can send a message to your U.S. Senators quickly and easily through our Action Center.
That’s also where you can send a thank you note to President Trump.
Your voice is needed to cut millions in funding to abortion giant
Planned Parenthood’s top officials – who have enriched themselves at the expense of aborted babies and fleeced taxpayers – know the country is growing weary of funding their abortion fiefdom.
The desperation of the nation’s leading abortionist became clear this spring, when Planned Parenthood poured more than $730,000 into the special election for Georgia’s 6th Congressional District. It was an effort to elect Jon Ossoff, a die-hard abortion supporter. But it was also a play to send a message to Congress to not cut the more than $500 million of taxpayer funding to Planned Parenthood.
But then Jon Ossoff lost – thanks in part to your support that allowed Family Policy Alliance to turn out pro-life voters. And suddenly, the message to Congress is that Planned Parenthood’s marketing isn’t selling so well to voters these days.
It also draws into question the ethics of a group – which gets a huge share of its budget from Congress – spending enormous sums to elect the very members that control those purse strings.
Now members of Congress are coming under enormous lobbying pressure from Planned Parenthood and a host of liberal allies. That’s because the Obamacare-repeal bill would stop funding to Planned Parenthood for the next year.
As pro-lifers, this is the opportunity we’ve been waiting for – to stop sending more than half-a-billion dollars to an organization responsible for hundreds of thousands of abortions every year. But to get this bill across the finish line, YOUR help – your voice – is needed! Here’s what you can do:
- Send a message to your two U.S. senators, urging them to support a repeal of Planned Parenthood funding.
- Please share this message with as many friends as possible. To overcome the power of the abortion lobby, it will take an enormous outcry from citizens who care about protecting life.
Thanks for making your voice heard!
Judge Neil Gorsuch’s nomination to the Supreme Court made history today when Senate Democrats led the first successful filibuster of a Supreme Court nominee. Though the vote to end the debate over Gorsuch so that Senators could vote on his confirmation was bipartisan, Republican leadership was still forced to alter Senate rules in order to ensure Judge Gorsuch’s confirmation.
As of today, the Senate had required 60 votes to stop a filibuster. By using the “nuclear option,” Majority Leader Mitch McConnell forced a rule change so only 51 votes were needed to the stop the stall tactic. The vote to confirm will likely happen on Friday.
“Senate Republicans did the right thing by changing the rules in order to ensure Judge Gorsuch’s nomination,” said Autumn Leva, policy director for Family Policy Alliance. “Judge Gorsuch repeatedly demonstrated his faithfulness to the rule of law and the Constitution while being grilled by Senate democrats during confirmation hearings. He is an objective, constitutionally minded judge we need serving in our highest Court.”
If confirmed, Gorsuch will serve in the seat vacated by the late Justice Antonin Scalia. Many Democrats who voted against confirmation today were part of a unanimous vote to confirm Gorsuch when he was nominated to an appellate court.
“Though we don’t yet know how Judge Gorsuch would rule on a particular case,” Leva said, “it’s encouraging that his writings and lower court rulings have already affirmed that business owners don’t have to give up their religious freedom in order to earn a living, and that human life is sacred.”
Out of the 23 positions in the Trump administration that need Senate confirmation, seven have been given a vote. The latest was Education Secretary Betsy DeVos, whose tie vote was broken by Vice President Mike Pence.
We’ve created a graphic showing who’s in and who’s still waiting in the wings.
Elite media outlets are declaring a Supreme Court seat was “stolen.”
In his Stoplight® commentary, Stuart Shepard shares some questions you can ask your friends who echo that narrative.
Ask your U.S Senators to confirm Judge Gorsuch.