Democrats’ abortion agenda has never been clearer during the Coronavirus pandemic. While House Speaker Nancy Pelosi was supposedly crafting a bill to help Americans suffering from the effects of the Coronavirus, she allegedly lobbied for a new slush fund without the Hyde Amendment. The long-standing, bipartisan language has been included in fiscal bills to ensure taxpayer money is not being spent on abortions.
The pro-life amendment was first introduced by former House Representative Henry Hyde in 1976, a few years after Roe v. Wade was decided. The Hyde Amendment restricts any federal funds distributed by the Department of Health and Human Services from paying for abortions. This includes Medicaid and Medicare payments, ensuring abortion is not healthcare. This protects Americans who are opposed to abortions by not forcing them to pay for the horrific procedure.
To say that Pelosi unintentionally left this language out would be far from the truth. She has accumulated nearly thirty-three years of Congressional experience. The Hyde Amendment was already implemented eleven years prior to her arrival. She even served on the House Appropriations Committee having a heavy hand in whether this language was included. She knew exactly what she was doing.
Thankfully, White House leadership did not cave, and the Hyde Amendment was included in the final version of the Coronavirus supplemental.
Democrats in recent years have waged an all-out attack on the Hyde Amendment even making the repeal of the amendment a plank in their platform. It has come up in Democrat debates and town halls. Former Vice-President and Presidential candidate Joe Biden flip-flopped on the issue. During his time in Congress, he voted for the amendment and said that he still supported the measure. When he realized that his campaign contributions would dry up from pro-abortion groups, he back-tracked at a Planned Parenthood event.
Last year, Rep. Barbara Lee introduced the EACH Woman Act which would effectively repeal the Hyde Amendment. While this bill has not made any progress, 181 Democrats have chosen to co-sponsor it.
The Hyde Amendment is certainly not the only measure Democrats incessantly target. Republicans have repeatedly asked for votes on pro-life legislation since Pelosi took leadership a year ago. By July of last year, Republican members had stood on the House floor and asked for a vote on the Born-Alive Abortion Survivors Protection Act eighty different times. This legislation would require medical professionals to provide life-saving measures to infants born alive during an abortion attempt. During that time, they pulled together a discharge petition which would force a vote on this bill after gaining 218 signatures. It still stands short of 14 members.
This year, House Republicans found an opportunity to bring Born-Alive up for a vote on a motion to recommit (MTR). An MTR allows the minority to offer a final measure to a bill that would not be included otherwise. Democrats, of course, voted it down.
Shortly before this vote occurred, votes proceeded in the Senate on Born-Alive and the Pain-Capable Unborn Child Act which protects babies in the womb from abortions after 20-weeks gestation. Previous research has shown that babies at that stage in development can feel pain, and newer research has moved that age sooner. Both measures failed with most Democrats voting in opposition.
The hypocrisy of Democrats’ stance on life is fully on display. They advocate for healthcare for all, fixed drug pricing, mandated paid maternity leave, and strict gun control measures all in the name of saving lives, but continue to work behind the scenes to snuff out life at the beginning stages. They are vocal proponents of women’s rights and empowerment, but hide the fact that abortion is killing little girls and the dreams of their mothers.
Pelosi herself has made it her mission to undermine pro-life efforts that the President has put into motion. She issued a statement condemning the administration’s Title X rule that requires abortion facilities be separate from centers receiving federal funds as well as prohibiting abortion referrals. She calls it a “gag rule”. Ironically, Democrats are barred from saying anything less than unrestricted access to abortion.
Take it from Presidential candidate Tulsi Gabbard who vocalized her disagreement with late-term abortions. She echoed the outdated abortion talking point of “safe, legal, and rare” at a Democrat debate. A chapter of the pro-abortion organization NARAL was quick to pounce on her comments highlighting their desire for unrestricted access to abortion.
Even Gabbard’s stance on abortion is still just the bare minimum.
You would think the movement that is pushing to provide free birth control and comprehensive sex education at young ages would be an attempt to lower the incidences of abortions. But when they ostracize any message of “rare abortions”, they are intentionally undermining their own efforts and showing their true colors. They are no longer a wolf in sheep’s clothing; they have proudly taken off the wool.
Even though children have been spared from the worse symptoms of Coronavirus, they still have not been spared from the Democrats’ agenda to eliminate their lives.
Tabitha Walter is the Political Director at Eagle Forum. You can follow her on Twitter at @tabithadwalter.