[Congressional Record Volume 143, Number 64 (Thursday, May 15, 1997)]
[Senate]
[Pages S4515-S4516]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                     THE PARTIAL-BIRTH ABORTION ACT

  Mr. THOMAS. Mr. President, I am sorry we have moved into some of our 
time, but I will be very brief and cover the points I want to make. I 
am real pleased today to be joined by three of my associates in support 
of H.R. 1122, the Partial-Birth Abortion Act. I am going to be very 
brief. It has been talked about to a great extent. Everything, 
probably, has been said. But there is one thing that sticks in my mind 
that I think is important about this discussion and this vote that will 
come up.
  We did this last year, you will recall. It passed by significant 
numbers in the Senate. President Clinton vetoed the bill that was 
passed in the 104th Congress. I just want to mention the reasons that 
he gave for vetoing the bill.
  First, he said it was only necessary in ``a small number of 
compelling cases.'' The fact is that is not factual. The fact is that 
has changed. The fact is, there are facts that show, for instance, in 
New Jersey, that there were more than 1,500, just in the one State. So 
that reason for vetoing is not true. It is not true.
  The second one was to protect the mother from ``serious injury to her 
health.'' The fact is, in the vast majority of cases when the partial-
birth technique is used, it is for elective purposes, and that, also, 
has been shown to be true.
  Third, the President said, to avoid the mother ``losing the ability 
to ever bear further children.'' The facts have now shown it is never 
necessary to safeguard the mother's health or fertility; that there are 
other procedures that are available. I think these are compelling, 
compelling arguments. These are the reasons the President vetoed the 
bill that have subsequently been found not to be factual.
  I yield time to the Senator from Nebraska.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from Nebraska.
  Mr. HAGEL. Mr. President, I rise today to offer my full support for 
the Partial-Birth Abortion Ban Act. I am proud to be an original 
cosponsor of this important legislation.
  I thank my distinguished colleague from Pennsylvania, Senator 
Santorum, for his leadership on this issue.
  This debate, of course, is about abortion, which I strongly oppose. 
But it is about much more than that. It is about doing what is right. 
It is about values.
  And it is about a civilized society standing against a heinous 
procedure that is used to kill a mostly born child--a procedure that, 
as even some advocates of abortion rights have conceded, comes 
dangerously close to murder.
  The debate about abortion raged in America long before I began my 
service in the Senate. It will continue long after the Senate votes on 
this bill to ban one specific abortion procedure.
  It will continue until America comes to grips with the moral crisis 
that

[[Page S4516]]

makes abortion just another sign of the times.
  This debate itself may rise and fall, but my view on this matter is 
straightforward--I believe America should ban partial-birth abortion 
because it is wrong.
  For too long, our society has drifted too far from that simple 
conclusion. In this body--as in this country--we are adept at weighing 
and debating the pros and cons. We know how to balance competing 
interests. We know how to strike compromises. But do we think often 
enough about the consequences of our actions?
  I fear we have strayed from seeking straightforward answers to tough 
questions. We have too often strayed from making public policy based 
solely on what is right.
  The vote we are about to cast is about banning a specific method of 
abortion. But the debate in which we are engaged is about larger 
questions.
  Have we become coarsened by a society that cheapens life--from our 
failure to stop violence in our streets to our unwillingness to keep 
violence from our television screens?
  Have we come to accept what should never be acceptable--a society 
where drug use is termed recreational, and irresponsible behavior is 
just a sign of the times?
  Have we lost the basis of a civil society? Are we no longer willing 
to stand up and say enough is enough?
  Mr. President, I came to this Senate with a firm belief that we can 
make a real difference for America's future. I have no doubt we can put 
our financial books in order--by cutting spending, cutting taxes, 
cutting regulations, and balancing the budget.
  But can we put our values in order? If we, as leaders, fail to do 
what is right and fail to stop what is wrong, will we really have left 
a better America for our children and our grandchildren?
  I think not.
  For two centuries, America has rested on a value system anchored by 
personal responsibility. Our society has always been underpinned by 
respect for others, respect for self, faith in God and family, and 
helping those in need. We have always held these values important--
worth struggling for and worth fighting for.
  People of good character stood up for these values in their own 
lives, and in their communities. They expected their leaders to stand 
up for them as well.
  Mr. President, I have every confidence that this body will vote to 
outlaw this gruesome procedure because the goodness of our people will 
demand it. Just as families across America wake up every day and try to 
do the right thing, so they are expecting their leaders to do the same.
  The vote we will cast on this issue is important. It goes to the 
heart of who we are as a people and who we want to be as a Nation.
  I hope we will all take pause, in this body and throughout America, 
to reflect on what type of society we have become and what type of 
society we want to leave for our children and grandchildren.
  Thank you, Mr. President. I yield the floor.
  Mr. BUMPERS addressed the Chair.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from Arkansas.
  Mr. BUMPERS. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent the 12 minutes 
remaining for the Democratic side be divided 5 minutes to Senator 
Bingaman and 5 minutes to the Senator from Arkansas, who will share it 
with the Senator from Georgia, Senator Cleland, and 2 minutes to the 
Senator from Wisconsin, Mr. Kohl.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Is there objection?
  Mr. THOMAS. Reserving the right to object, is there time left on our 
original 10 minutes?
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator has 3 minutes and 42 seconds.
  Mr. THOMAS. I wonder if it would be possible for us to go ahead and 
finish and then do it as the Senator described?
  Mr. BUMPERS. Is the Senator objecting to the request?
  Mr. THOMAS. No, sir, I am asking that we finish the 10 minutes we 
were allocated and then transfer to you to do it in the method that you 
asked.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Is there objection? Without objection, it is 
so ordered.
  The Senator from Oregon is recognized.
  Mr. SMITH of Oregon. Mr. President, in that I only have 3 minutes 
remaining, I am going to put aside my written remarks and, frankly, 
speak from the heart.
  I rise today, first, to thank Senator Santorum for his leadership on 
this issue but, more important, to stand with those who stand for the 
principle of life today on this very important bill. I have 
consistently supported this principle and have tried to listen with 
some care and compassion to those who advocate the other view. I heard 
them say things like, ``Let's make abortion safe, legal, and rare,'' 
except for the fact that when it comes to doing anything to make it 
rare, I seldom see them helping us in this endeavor. Conversely, I have 
tried very hard to reach out on issues of education and prevention to 
try to make abortion rare.
  Today presents us with an opportunity not to end abortion but simply 
to ban one incredibly gruesome procedure and to make all unborn 
American children safe from this procedure.
  It is clear, because of testimony that has come out, that the 
partial-birth abortion is anything but rare in this country, and today 
we need to make it impossible.
  I refer to the statement by the Surgeon General C. Everett Koop, a 
man much admired for his service in health care in this country, who 
said:

       Partial-birth abortion is never medically necessary to 
     protect the mother's health or her future fertility. On the 
     contrary, this procedure can pose a significant threat to 
     both.

  As I ponder partial-birth abortion, I come to the conclusion that 
Americans must be bigger than this procedure performed on the most 
innocent among us. We are bigger than this, and I believe that 
Americans today in the United States will rise above this procedure to 
make it unlawful and to contribute towards the common desire of those 
who are pro-life and pro-choice to make abortion rare.
  Thank you, Mr. President.
  Mr. BINGAMAN addressed the Chair.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from New Mexico.
  Mr. BINGAMAN. I thank the Chair.
  (The remarks of Mr. Bingaman pertaining to the introduction of S. 748 
are located in today's Record under ``Statements on Introduced Bills 
and Joint Resolutions.'')
  Mr. BUMPERS addressed the Chair.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER (Mr. SMITH of Oregon). The Senator from 
Arkansas.
  Mr. BUMPERS. I thank the Chair.
  (The remarks of Mr. Bumpers and Mr. Cleland pertaining to the 
introduction of S. 745 are located in today's Record under ``Statements 
on Introduced Bills and Joint Resolutions.'')
  Mr. KOHL addressed the Chair.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from Wisconsin.
  Mr. KOHL. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent for 2 minutes.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered. The 
Senator from Wisconsin is recognized.

                          ____________________