Writing at the Susan B. Anthony List blog, this week Carly Fiorina is speaking out in support of the Pain-Capable Unborn Child Protection Act. Carly draws on both her personal experience and what we know from science to bring clarity to what should be a no-brainer issue. She writes:
About sixty years ago, a decision was made that changed my life. My husband’s mother chose life. She was told that her pregnancy would be difficult and Doctors told her she needed to have an abortion. Being a woman of intense faith and courage, my husband’s mother continued her pregnancy. I cannot imagine how different my life would be had she made a different choice.
Unfortunately, women are faced with this decision every day. These women deserve our empathy, support, and never our judgment or condemnation. They deserve options, ones that are available now more than ever due to advances in modern medicine.
Science supports those of us that believe in the sanctity of life. At 20 weeks, or five months into a pregnancy, an unborn child feels pain. At 20 weeks of life, an unborn child can suck his thumb, yawn, stretch, and make faces. An unborn child at 20 weeks IS a human life. The Pain-Capable Unborn Child Protection Act (S.1670) protects the unborn in limiting abortions after 20 weeks of pregnancy, it is legislation that is vital in protecting the dignity of life.
This isn’t the first time Carly has spoken out on the Pain-Capable bill. Fiorina previously took House Republicans to task for failing to vote on this measure back in January, on the anniversary of Roe v. Wade and the annual March for Life. Fiorina made her remarks at the Iowa Freedom Summit just days after the vote was delayed:
The majority of Americans and the majority of women agree that abortion after five months for any reason at all is extreme. And yet politics, apparently, intervened to prevent the Pain Capable Unborn Child Protection Act from being brought to the floor for a vote. This is disappointing because what it says is once again politics has triumphed over principle and expediency has triumphed over courage. This is not leadership of the House.
Other prospective 2016 candidates should take note. Carly understands that going on offense works and her heartfelt, reasoned approach to this issue is compelling and winsome. In taking a bold stand in defense of women and children, Carly is ushering in a new era of pro-life leadership.
Marjorie Dannenfelser is the president of the Susan B. Anthony List, a national pro-life organization dedicated to electing leaders and advancing legislation to reduce and ultimately end abortion.
