Sen. Elizabeth Warren celebrated Wednesday when Massachusetts lawmakers voted to legalize the killing of unborn babies for basically any reason up to birth in their state.
A pro-abortion amendment to the state budget passed the House last week and the Senate on Wednesday. Among other things, it would expand late-term abortions and allow young girls to abort their unborn babies with their parents’ knowledge or consent.
Warren, a pro-abortion Democrat from Massachusetts who ran for president earlier this year, said she was “proud” of her state for expanding abortions, the New Boston Post reports.
“I’m proud of the Massachusetts House and Senate for passing the #RoeAct to protect and improve abortion access in the Commonwealth,” she wrote on Twitter. “Congress must now step up to protect people’s reproductive rights all across this country, starting with the Women’s Health Protection Act.”
The pro-abortion amendment is similar to the ROE Act, an unpopular bill that languished in committee for more than a year. Using a new strategy to pass the legislation and appease pro-abortion lobbying groups, state pro-abortion Democrats quickly pushed through the anti-life changes in the form of an amendment to the budget during a lame-duck session.
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Currently, Massachusetts prohibits abortions after 24 weeks except if the mother’s life is at risk. The amendment would expand these exceptions, allowing viable, late-term unborn babies to be aborted if they are diagnosed with a fatal anomaly or “to preserve the patient’s physical or mental health” – a definition that can be widely interpreted.
It also would weaken a state law that protects babies who survive abortions from infanticide, and lower the parental consent age from 18 to 16. Additionally, the amendment would allow non-doctors to abort unborn babies.
Democrat leaders argued that immediate action is necessary after pro-life Justice Amy Coney Barrett was confirmed to the U.S. Supreme Court. They fear the high court could restore protections for unborn babies by overturning Roe v. Wade.
In October, Warren pressured state lawmakers to pass the pro-abortion legislation during an online event with pro-abortion lobbyists. Planned Parenthood, NARAL and the American Civil Liberties Union also support the radical abortion expansion.
Meanwhile, pro-life leaders are urging people to call Gov. Charlie Baker and ask him to oppose the pro-abortion amendment. According to the Boston Globe, Baker said he is “unhappy” about the amendment, but he did commit to vetoing it.
“I do share some of the unhappiness that was raised by a number of members of the Republican Party – that putting policy in the budget was something that both leaders in the House and Senate said they would not do,” Baker said Friday. “And it’s pretty hard to argue that this isn’t a major policy initiative that is now in the budget.”
Because the budget amendment passed by a two-thirds majority in both chambers, it could become law even if Baker vetoes it.
Meanwhile, outrage is growing. Earlier this month, more than 300 pastors in the state sent a letter to Baker urging him to veto the bill.
“In 2019 alone, there were 18,593 abortions performed in the Bay State. How much more ‘accessible’ does the murder of unborn children need to be?” they asked. “Abortion ends the life of a human child and puts the physical, mental and emotional health of women, most especially young women, at risk.”
Massachusetts Catholic leaders also criticized the anti-life legislation in a statement last week, according to the Catholic News Service.
“We are concerned that the amendment, if enacted, would expand abortion access in the Commonwealth well beyond what is currently in state law,” said Boston Archbishop Sean O’Malley, Worcester Bishop Robert McManus and Fall River Bishop Edgar da Cunha in a statement. “Abortion at any time, from the moment of conception to birth, is in direct conflict with Catholic teaching and must be opposed.”
A recent poll by Susan B. Anthony List found strong opposition to the Massachusetts legislation. According to the poll, 62 percent of Massachusetts voters oppose late-term abortions, including 49 percent of Democrat and 66 percent of independent voters. The same number, 62 percent, also supports the current state law requiring parental consent before a girl under 18 has an abortion.
Similar legislation passed in New York, Illinois, Vermont and Rhode Island last year, prompting massive outrage. Another pro-abortion bill narrowly failed in New Mexico because of strong public opposition.
ACTION ALERT: Contact Gov. Charlie Baker at 617-725-4005 or email him to ask him to veto the pro-abortion amendment.
