[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 163 (2017), Part 1]
[House]
[Page 1165]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                PROTECTING THE UNBORN AND DEFENDING LIFE

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The Chair recognizes the gentleman from West 
Virginia (Mr. Mooney) for 5 minutes.
  Mr. MOONEY of West Virginia. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to speak on an 
issue that I care deeply about: protecting the unborn and defending 
life. This week, I reintroduced the Life at Conception Act.
  I am honored to be the lead sponsor of the Life at Conception Act, 
which simply defines human life as beginning at the moment of 
conception. As a result, unborn babies are entitled to legal protection 
under the Constitution. We had a record number of original cosponsors 
this past Congress, and I pray this bill will pass Congress swiftly.
  I believe that we have a moral obligation to protect the unborn at 
every stage of development. It is something I have always been 
passionate about. I was president of my college's pro-life group, the 
Dartmouth Coalition for Life. I can still remember the conversations I 
had with my fellow students as I discussed the value of human life with 
them. It was a great feeling to know that I was opening eyes to the 
value of all human life one student at a time.
  Protecting life is one of the issues that compelled me to run for 
office. When I first asked for the opportunity to serve you as your 
representative in Congress, I promised I would be a strong defender of 
the unborn. I am proud to say I have delivered on that promise.
  The Life at Conception Act is a crucial part of the long-term battle 
to protect the unborn. It started 44 years ago to the week, in 1973 in 
the Roe v. Wade decision when the Supreme Court asserted that, because 
the beginning of life is not legally defined by Congress, it is up for 
interpretation by the court. The Life at Conception Act simply fills 
that gap and defines that human life begins at the moment of 
conception.
  Even Vice President Joe Biden, a Democrat, recently restated publicly 
his belief that human life begins at conception. There is bipartisan 
agreement on this issue. It is important for Congress to define human 
life because the unborn are the most helpless among us. They need us to 
have enough courage to step up and protect them.
  My bill also sets a standard for promoting and encouraging a culture 
of life. If enacted, it would simply affirm what we all know in our 
hearts and minds to be true: that unborn babies deserve our protection.
  Last year, the Life at Conception Act had 146 cosponsors in the U.S. 
House of Representatives, including my two colleagues in West Virginia, 
David McKinley and Evan Jenkins. I hope that more Representatives will 
join me in promoting respect and protection for all human life.
  I continue to be guided by my faith and values. I look forward to 
working with my colleagues to defend the innocent and give voice to the 
voiceless. I welcome the marchers this week coming for the annual March 
for Life. I thank them for their participation in defending the unborn.

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