[Congressional Record Volume 149, Number 41 (Thursday, March 13, 2003)]
[House]
[Page H1815]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                       BAN PARTIAL-BIRTH ABORTION

  (Mr. PITTS asked and was given permission to address the House for 1 
minute and to revise and extend his remarks.)
  Mr. PITTS. Mr. Speaker, today, our colleagues on the other side of 
the building will vote on a bill banning the barbaric procedure of 
partial-birth abortion. Partial-birth abortion is one of the most 
violent and gruesome acts known to mankind.
  Despite what its supporters say, several thousand times a year in the 
United States healthy babies and healthy mothers in the fifth and sixth 
months of pregnancy undergo this horrific procedure. As we seek to lead 
the world against tyranny and in support of basic human rights, we must 
recommit ourselves to promoting the basic human rights of the most 
vulnerable among us, the most innocent and defenseless members of the 
human race. We have a chance to stand up for what is right, to stand 
against what is wrong. We have a chance to defend those who need it 
most, to stand against those who seek to harm them.
  Partial-birth abortion is not rare, partial-birth abortion is not 
safe, partial-birth abortion does not foster a respect for human life. 
It degrades us all. Partial-birth abortion must be banned. Let us pass 
the bill.

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