Senate Bill 6: Unborn Child Protection Act
Roe v. Wade has divided this nation since the U.S. Supreme Court issued its 1973 decision in making abortion legal in this country.
Roe v. Wade struck down a Texas statute banning abortion. The court twisted the 14th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution to make it say woman’s “right” to an abortion was implicit in the right to privacy.
Under Roe v. Wade, abortion – a wrong not a right -- became retroactive birth control.
It seems possible that Arkansas may be the state that brings a new case to the Supreme Court that could see Roe v. Wade overturned.
The Arkansas Senate passed Senate Bill 6 that would outlaw abortion in Arkansas except for when it is needed to save the mother’s life.
The Senate passed the Arkansas Unborn Child Protection Act by a vote of 27-7.
Of that 27 who voted for it, all were Republicans except Larry Teague, a Democrat from Nashville. I’ve known Teague for many years. He is a friend so I know that he is a man with a conscience.
Republican Missy Irvin of Mountain View did not vote — which was a way of voting against it with out actually voting against it.
Former Republican-in-name-only turned independent Jim Hendren managed to be excused from the Senate at the time of the vote.
That is another way of voting against it without voting.
Hendren is the nephew of Gov. Asa Hutchinson and recently changed his party statue in hopes of avoiding a Republican primary he could not possibly win when he runs for governor in 2022.
While there are many co-sponsors of S.B. 6, Sen. Jason Rapert (R–Conway) and Rep. Mary Bentley (R– Perryville) are the key sponsors of the legislation.
“Arkansas is asking and pleading that the U.S. Supreme Court take a look at this and make a decision that once again allows the states to protect human life,” Rapert said.
Planned Parenthood opposes the bill and said saving babies is not important during a pandemic.
What a shock that Planned Parenthood, the largest provider of abortion in America, is against a bill that would prevent killing babies.
Planned Parenthood is also one of the largest donors of cash to Democrat candidates in the nation.
S.B. 6 is expected to pass in the Arkansas House of Representatives and land on the governor’s desk.
In a recently released statement, Hutchinson said exemptions for rape and incest have been included in the past and he may not support the bill because rape and incest exceptions are not included.
“The legislature has historically included rape and incest as exceptions to abortion prohibitions. It makes sense to add the exceptions because if you are going to do a direct challenge to Roe v. Wade, then it is important to have exceptions that the public generally supports. As a former member of Congress, I supported the Hyde amendment that prohibited taxpayer funds from being used for abortions, but it always included the exception language for rape and incest. I will continue to watch how the bill proceeds through the House.”
If you don’t recognize the old “some of my friends are for it and some of my friends are against it and I am with my friends” statement, that’s it.
If the bill becomes law, there is no doubt it will be challenged in federal court. What ever the verdict at the local level, it would be appealed to the Eighth Circuit Court of Appeals in St. Louis and then to the U.S. Supreme Court.
If the Supreme Court agrees to hear such an appeal, the verdict with conservatives in the majority could be an overturn of Roe v. Wade.
An overturn means abortion would go back to being the responsibility of state legislatures.
Jerry Cox is the founder and president of Family Council. He began Family Council in 1989 after a successful effort to amend the Arkansas Constitution to prevent the use of public funds for abortions.
Cox — a friend of mine— has continued to fight against abortion since that time. He had Family Council issue the following statement that sums this up brilliantly:
“If enacted, S.B. 6 would save thousands of unborn children every year and give the federal court system an opportunity to overturn Roe v. Wade and other pro-abortion decisions. This is an opportunity for Arkansas to be a real leader in the effort to end abortion in America. Many people have been saying for almost fifty years that abortion should be illegal. The time has come for us to make it so.”