A YEAR AFTER DOBBS DECISION, HYDE-SMITH WEIGHS STATE OF PRO-LIFE MOVEMENT

WASHINGTON, D.C. – In advance of the first anniversary of the U.S. Supreme Court ruling that overturned Roe v. Wade, U.S. Senator Cindy Hyde-Smith (R-Miss.) today delivered a floor speech on the state of the pro-life movement and its work to support mothers who choose life.

Hyde-Smith’s remarks accompanied actions by pro-life lawmakers to stop Democratic efforts to force pro-abortion legislation through the Senate and to combat increasingly radical Biden administration policies on abortion.  Saturday, June 24, marks the first anniversary of the landmark decision in Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization.

“While the Dobbs decision did not end abortion in America, it took a monumental step in returning the issue back into the hands of the people and their elected representatives,” said Hyde-Smith.  “Today, as a result, 14 States are protecting unborn children through all nine months pregnancy, and several others now protect babies at the point where they have a heartbeat at six weeks, still others at 12 weeks.  One recent study found there were more than 24,000 unborn children saved from abortion in the first 9 months since Dobbs.  That’s 24,000 miracles—because that’s what a child is—a miracle.”

Hyde-Smith, chair of the Senate Pro-Life Caucus, also said Congress has a responsibility to stop “the Democrats’ extreme pro-abortion agenda” and to advance policies to “support pregnant mothers in choosing life.”

“It saddens me deeply that Democrats in Congress continue to advocate for appalling legislation that would impose legalized abortion on demand up until the moment of birth across all 50 states.  Their legislation is even more radical than Roe was, and would eliminate even the most modest pro-life protections, like parental involvement laws and bans on sex-selective abortions,” Hyde-Smith said.  “Democrats cannot name a single limit on abortion they support.  Not one.”

Prior to delivering her speech, Hyde-Smith took several actions to advocate pro-life positions, including:

• Hyde-Smith on Wednesday objected to and stopped an effort to pass the UPHOLD Privacy Act (S. 631), one of four pro-abortion bills that Democrats attempted to pass by unanimous consent in the Senate.  She was joined in this effort by U.S. Senators Mike Braun (R-Ind.), Mike Lee (R-Utah), and Ted Budd (R-N.C.).

“This bill presents a solution in search of a problem.  Unfortunately, it appears that the intent of this legislation is to treat abortion as health care, to prevent pro-life entities from sponsoring ads designed to help provide women and girls with trustworthy support during pregnancy, and to make it harder for states to enforce their own laws protecting life and the most vulnerable,” Hyde-Smith said.

• Hyde-Smith also cosponsored legislation introduced by U.S. Senator Roger Marshall, M.D. (R-Kan.) to stop the Biden administration from cherry-picking federal leases or property buildings based on the “legality or availability” of abortion services.  This legislation comes in response to reports that in retaliation to Alabama’s strong pro-life laws, the Biden administration is considering moving the location for the U.S. Space Command headquarters from Huntsville, Ala., to a state that permits abortion on demand.

“The best interests of taxpayers and government operations should not be held hostage to the Biden administration’s tunnel vision on a radical abortion agenda.  Directing government actions based on the availability of abortion on demand isn’t good policy or fiscally sound,” Hyde-Smith said.  “Senator Marshall’s bill is timely and necessary, unfortunately.”

• Hyde-Smith also joined U.S. Senator Marco Rubio (R-Fla.) and others in a letter to Health and Human Services (HHS) Secretary Xavier Becerra regarding the Biden administration’s effort to deliberately exclude parents from Title X family planning services for minors by advising clinics to deliberately leave them in the dark as their children receive advice on sex, birth control use, pregnancy testing, sexually transmitted diseases, and other important questions about sex and family formation.

“Healthy parental involvement is one the most powerful protections for children’s health.  More important, parents have a right to oversee their children’s development and to be involved in their health decisions.  Violating this right is detrimental to children and, in this case, it is against the law,” the Senators wrote.

• Hyde-Smith and U.S. Representatives Chris Smith (R-N.J.) and David Rouzer (R-N.C.) last week led a bicameral congressional letter opposing the HHS Proposed Rule “HIPAA Privacy Rule To Support Reproductive Health Care Privacy,” 88 FR 23506, published on April 17, 2023.  The letter signed by 30 lawmakers asserts that the proposed rule far exceeds its authority to implement HIPAA, expands federal bureaucracy power to override state pro-life laws, and undermines the Dobbs decision.

“This Proposed Rule far exceeds the power HHS was given by Congress to implement HIPAA.  It massively expands the power of the federal bureaucracy to illegally override pro-life state laws and to undermine the decision of the Supreme Court in Dobbs.  If finalized, the Proposed Rule will suppress compliance with Court orders and hamper necessary and legitimate investigations by law enforcement while protecting sex abusers and traffickers and individuals flooding the mail with deadly abortion drugs.  We urge HHS to immediately withdraw this dangerous and irresponsible regulation,” the lawmakers wrote.