[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 162 (2016), Part 1]
[House]
[Pages 477-478]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                             RIGHT TO LIFE

  (Mr. ROKITA asked and was given permission to address the House for 1 
minute and to revise and extend his remarks.)
  Mr. ROKITA. Mr. Speaker, the Declaration of Independence records for 
posterity the fact that we have been given by our Creator certain 
unalienable rights. Among these, of course, are life, liberty, and the 
pursuit of happiness.
  These rights extend to all persons, even those who are physically 
with us, but yet unborn. Indeed, life inside a mother versus outside of 
her is ultimately a matter of geography.
  The rights of the unborn must be protected, and I believe we can 
never speak too strongly for those who cannot speak for themselves. 
Protecting life must be our top priority.
  This debate is more than a simple disagreement about making choices. 
It is a debate about fundamental, God-

[[Page 478]]

given rights, the first of which, of course, is the right to life.
  Mr. Speaker, I believe that this House, the people's House, has no 
higher duty than to protect human life, no matter how big or how small 
it is or where it may be located.
  As we approach the 43rd anniversary of Roe v. Wade, I pray for all 
the families in our Nation who have chosen life and for all the life 
that we have lost.

                          ____________________