In a notable display of partisan dynamics, Senator John Fetterman, a Democrat representing Pennsylvania, alongside his fellow Senate Democratic colleagues, successfully obstructed the progression of the “Born-Alive Abortion Survivors Protection Act” in a vote held on Wednesday.
This controversial measure aimed to mandate that medical practitioners proactively seek to preserve the life of an infant delivered alive during an attempted abortion, while also securing the immediate hospitalization of the newborn.
In a bold assertion reflecting his stance on reproductive rights, Fetterman articulated, “I’ve always stood on the side of Roe and a woman’s right to make her own health care choices. It’s absurd to mandate criminalization because of those choices. Any bill that does so, including the Born-Alive Survivors Protection Act, is a NO from me,” in a declaration posted on the platform X.
JOHN FETTERMAN AND LINDSEY GRAHAM ADVOCATE FOR THE DESTRUCTION OF IRAN’S NUCLEAR PROGRAM
The outcome of this legislative attempt unfolded in a tight 52-47 vote, wherein 52 members of the Republican Party voted in favor of advancing the bill, while 45 Democrats and the two independents aligned with the Senate Democratic Caucus stood in opposition, effectively halting the bill’s progress.
The language within the proposed legislation stipulates that any healthcare provider present at the time of a live birth amidst an attempted abortion must “exercise the same degree of professional skill, care, and diligence to preserve the life and health of the child as a reasonably diligent and conscientious health care practitioner would render to any other child born alive at the same gestational age,” alongside ensuring “the child born alive is immediately transported and admitted to a hospital.”
Importantly, the legislation explicitly states that it would not permit the prosecution of the infant’s mother.
“The mother of a child born alive described under subsection (a) may not be prosecuted for a violation of this section, an attempt to violate this section, a conspiracy to violate this section, or an offense under section 3 or 4 of this title based on such a violation,” the bill’s text specifies.
Pro-life advocates expressed stark disapproval of Fetterman’s decision. Lila Rose, the president and founder of Live Action, lamented, “You just voted against medical care for a crying infant, begging for help, struggling to survive after a failed abortion. You have believed the leftist lie that killing babies – in this case now a BORN baby struggling for his life – is ever acceptable. Pure evil,” in a vehement tweet.
President of Students for Life of America, Kristan Hawkins, exhibited her sentiments through a strategically placed handshake emoji adjacent to “Fetterman” and “Infanticide.”
Katie Glenn Daniel, serving as the director of legal affairs and policy counsel for Susan B. Anthony Pro-Life America, responded directly to Fetterman’s comments, asserting, “My dude, it’s literally called the Born-ALIVE Abortion SURVIVORS Protection Act. A baby is born, breathing and squirming, and you voted to deny her the life-sustaining healthcare that she would be owed if she was born under any other circumstance.”
