Posted on 04/03/2015 7:26:15 AM PDT by Cincinatus' Wife
Wisconsin Governor Scott Walker is once again calling for his state to pass a bill to ban abortions after 20 weeks and protect unborn babies from late-term abortions. Walker recently stepped up to support a similar bill pending in Congress that would ban abortions after 20 weeks nationwide.
“I think it’s highly likely,” Walker told conservative talk radio host Charlie Sykes in an interview about the chances of such a bill meeting success in the Wisconsin state legislature.
“I think that’s a very rational position not only for those of us who are pro-life, but I think most people who have a rational view on this issue think those who oppose it are fairly extreme on this one,” Walker added.
Last month, Walker, a likely pro-life candidate for the Republican nomination for president, burnished his pro-life credentials by issuing a letter saying he would sign a bill to ban abortions after 20 weeks.
“As the Wisconsin legislature moves forward in the coming session, further protections for mother and child are likely to come to my desk in the form of a bill to prohibit abortions after 20 weeks. I will sign that bill when it gets to my desk and support similar legislation on the federal level. I was raised to believe in the sanctity of life and I will always fight to protect it.”
The position is not a new one as Walker co-sponsored legislation in 1998 while he was a member of the Wisconsin state legislature to ban abortions after 20 weeks.
The letter adds:
Life is a value I learned from my parents, and it’s a value I have cherished every day, predating my time in politics. My policies throughout my career have earned a 100% rating with pro-life groups in Wisconsin. Just in my first term I signed numerous pieces of pro-life legislation and I will continue working for every life.
In my past four years as governor, we have made substantial progress in the fight for our pro-life values in Wisconsin. We defunded Planned Parenthood. We prohibited abortion from being covered by health plans in a health exchange. We passed legislation assuring the women and their unborn child are better protected under law – through placing stringent requirements on medical professionals and requiring the provision of thorough and vital information to the mother.
I was raised to believe in the sanctity of life and I will always fight to protect it.
Pro-life groups were delighted by Walker’s letter.“Wisconsin Right to Life is very happy to hear that Governor Walker intends to sign a bill that would protect unborn children who are capable of feeling pain,” stated Heather Weininger, Executive Director of Wisconsin Right to Life. “In light of this excellent news, we urge the Wisconsin State Legislature to pass a bill to protect pain-capable unborn children as soon as possible.”
In 2013, Gov. Walker signed an ultrasound bill (Senate Bill 206, also known as Sonya’s Law) that ensures that women seeking abortions are given the opportunity to see their unborn children through ultrasound. The legislation also requires abortionists to have admitting privileges within thirty miles of their facility. This is the kind of pro-woman, pro-life bill that not only has proven to save the lives of unborn babies, but it has closed down abortion clinics that can’t comply with basic health and safety requirements. Sure enough, abortion centers in Wisconsin closed down after Walker signed the bill into law.
In an ad during his re-election campaign, Walker put forward a clear cut pro-life message showing compassion for women and unborn children: “I’m pro-life. But there’s no doubt in my mind the decision of whether or not to end a pregnancy is an agonizing one. That’s why I support legislation to increase safety and to provide more information for a woman considering her options.”
Walker has been a tireless advocate for women and unborn children, and when the bill passed, Wisconsin Right to Life applauded his efforts to protect citizens in their state.
The former legislative director of Wisconsin Right to Life, Susan Armacost, said “We thank Governor Walker for signing this important piece of legislation into law. Sonya’s Law will empower women to make truly informed decisions regarding how they will proceed with their pregnancies and will protect the lives of women who experience complications after their abortions.”
Since the ultrasound bill helps protect women and provides them with more information, you would think groups like Planned Parenthood and Emily’s List would support it. But instead, they oppose it and say it causes undue burden for women seeking abortions. This is because abortion businesses lose money when women change their mind about abortion. And since 78% of women who see an ultrasound of their unborn baby refuse abortion, its really bad for business.
Since Governor Walker took office in January 2011, the pro-life movement in Wisconsin has made monumental gains. Walker signed into law a state budget that included a provision to prohibit the UW Hospital Authority from being involved in performing abortions and from using taxpayer dollars to pay medical students to learn how to perform abortions. Walker steered Wisconsin Well Woman funds to local counties instead of Planned Parenthood.
Governor Walker also signed bills that allow Wisconsin to opt out of abortion funding under Obamacare, to protect pregnant women from coerced abortions and to prohibit RU486 chemical web cam abortions.
Ultimately, Walker and his record will appeal to pro-life Republicans looking for a replacement for Obama, who has been called the Abortion President.
As Armacost said: “Governor Walker’s deep belief in the sanctity of all human life is evident in the courageous actions he has taken to build a culture of life in Wisconsin. His concern for the most vulnerable members of the human family is reflected in the common sense and compassionate laws he has signed into law. Those initiatives will greatly benefit unborn children, women who are considering abortion and taxpayers of our state.”
Pro-life voters can also be assured that Governor Walker is an effective pro-life governor — after all, abortion activists wished he were dead. But he and his prospects for 2016 are very much alive.
Wisconsin Right to Life provided LifeNews with a lengthy dossier on Walker’s pro-life record, including votes while he was a member of the state legislature:
Abortion Funding: As an Assembly Representative, Walker voted against taxpayer funding of abortions for public employees. As Governor, Walker signed into law a state budget provision to prohibit the UW Hospital Authority from being involved in performing abortions and from using taxpayer dollars to pay medical students to learn to perform abortions. Also as Governor, Walker signed legislation allowing Wisconsin to opt-out of taxpayer-funded abortion coverage under ObamaCare.
Funding Abortion Providers: As an Assembly Representative, Walker voted to prohibit taxpayer dollars from going to organizations that provide or promote abortions. As Governor, Walker signed into law a state budget provision to prohibit Title V taxpayer dollars from going to organizations that perform abortions. Also as Governor, Walker steered funds from the Wisconsin Well Woman program to local counties instead of Planned Parenthood.
Protecting Unborn Children: As an Assembly Representative, Walker voted to recognize an unborn child as a separate victim of a criminal act against the pregnant mother, to prohibit partial-birth abortions, and to protect unborn children at risk due to drug or alcohol use by the mother.
Protecting Families: As an Assembly Representative, Walker voted to strengthen Wisconsin’s law requiring parental consent before a minor’s abortion. As Governor, Walker signed legislation returning sex education curriculum to local control and allowing abstinence-only programs.
Protecting Women: As an Assembly Representative, Walker voted for the Woman’s Right to Know Act which requires that women be given full information prior to an abortion and establishes a 24-hour waiting period. As Governor, Walker signed legislation to protect women from coerced abortions; to prohibit unsafe RU 486 chemical web cam abortions designed to expand abortions into local communities; to require that a woman view an ultrasound of her unborn child 24 hours before an abortion can take place; and to require abortionists to have admitting privileges at a hospital within 30 miles of the abortion clinic.
Alternatives to Abortion: As an Assembly Representative, Walker voted for tax exemptions related to adoption expenses; to improve adoption laws; to expand funding for adoption assistance for children at risk of developing disabilities; and for a provision to allow a woman and her unborn child to be considered as a family eligible for BadgerCare.
Conscience Protections: As an Assembly Representative, Walker authored legislation to strengthen conscience protections for medical professionals and institutions.
Other: As an Assembly Representative, Walker voted in favor of legislation to prohibit lawsuits based on the “wrongful” life of an unborn child and to prohibit the sale of body parts of aborted babies.
Walker should turn the tables on the ‘Progressives’ and use those famous words ‘Safe, Legal and Rare’.
Liberal heads exploding in 3...2...1...
Immoral, unconstitutional legislation. It grants explicit permission to kill babies, all of them, as long as they are killed on the arbitrary schedule of mere men.
God and the Constitution require equal protection for every person.
Every legislator, every chief executive, every judge, has sworn a sacred oath to support and defend that Constitution.
That should be the end of the debate.
Every legislator, every chief executive, every judge, has sworn a sacred oath to support and defend that Constitution.
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Oaths don’t mean much anymore. Politicians are professional liars. They’ll say anything to live off the taxpayer. Who ever holds them accountable?
Abortionists don’t obey these laws anyway, do they?
If we don’t, who will?
You and I believe in accountability, but the reality is we are vastly outnumbered by those who don’t. As long as government is able to appease the masses there will be no accountability.
I’ll worry about those others when those who call themselves “conservatives,” and “Christians,” stop compromising equal protection for the right to life of every child. Because the latter are the main obstacle to stopping this vast holocaust.
After 20 weeks of gestation, the fetus can survive on it’s own, and therefore abortion is same as premeditated murder.
>>Walker should turn the tables on the ‘Progressives’ and use those famous words ‘Safe, Legal and Rare’.<<
Very bad advice. The left will hear only “safe” and “legal” and rarity will go out the window. Better to stick with his sincere convictions and fight to restrict abortions to the extent possible politically, something he’s done a good job of in Wisconsin.
When Planned Parenthood clinics are closing, you’re making significant progress, and the pro-life organizations respect that.
Abortion before 20 weeks of gestation is equally premeditated murder.
It's a mirage. A mirage for which they continue to surrender the only two real moral, constitutional, and legal arguments against abortion on demand to obtain.
This legislation is every bit moral. As a matter of fact, not pursuing it is immoral.
To insist on legislation to ban all abortions is to insist on something unobtainable. To oppose this legislation by insisting on the unobtainable is to cooperate in evil by condemning those it might have saved if passed.
Where this legislation might be considered immoral is if it's author had no further intention of further restricting abortion by subsequent legislation once this legislation passed.
It’s only “unobtainable” because our representatives, including those who call themselves “pro-life,” refuse to fulfill the primary obligation of their oath, which is to provide EQUAL PROTECTION for the right to life of every person in their jurisdiction.
And if you have the governmental power to regulate mass murder, you most certainly have the power to stop mass murder.
And what do you think, prudentially speaking, would be the result of proposing legislation to ban all abortion at this time?
Their alleged intent is meaningless in terms of the law.
The fact is, these bills grant an explicit governmental license to kill babies. All of them.
That's immoral.
That's unconstitutional.
If you surrender the moral basis, and the constitutional basis, you have absolutely no power left to stand in the way of abortion on demand.
Which is the primary reason the bloodbath has continued for more than four decades.
If every Christian, every conservative, would refuse to give any further political aid and comfort to those who compromise equal protection for the life of every person, abortion on demand would stop in this country almost overnight.
That's true but you alleged that the legislation was immoral and intent is a basic tenet of analyzing the morality of an act.
I agree that existing law allowing abortion is immoral. We have many immoral laws.
But in the face of immoral laws allowing abortion, it is not immoral to restrict the reach of those laws if their repeal cannot be immediately accomplished. Again, to not limit their reach when it's possible is in itself immoral.
True. But progress will still be made regardless. The Left can not claim that this will ‘Outlaw’ abortions.
You eat an elephant by small bites. I say use “Progressives’” terms against them. They always seem to outmaneuver conservatives.
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