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Looking Forward to the 2011 State
Legislative Sessions Part Four of Four By Dave Andrusko In Part Two today, I've included a first-rate analysis written by Dr. David N. O'Steen, NRLC Executive Director, that was distributed at Tuesday's important State Legislative Strategy Conference. Using polling data and election results, Dr. O'Steen persuasively makes the case that there is widespread public support for pro-life initiatives.
The day of the conference, the day after, and the day after the day after have brought newspaper stories about pro-lifers on the move in various states. Had that not happened it would not have changed the validity of the analysis, but because it has the good news has added a exclamation point to Dr. O'Steen's argument. For example, and without getting into detail, Montana illustrates both what the Movement can hope to accomplish affirmatively and what It needs to defeat. According to the Missoulian newspaper, thanks to an improved state legislative balance pro-lifers are looking to pass protective measures in the House and Senate. There are a host of measures listed in the article, including several that have failed in the pass but have better prospects today. They include parental consent for girls younger than 16 to have an abortion and a measure to "require women to undergo an ultrasound before abortion procedures." On the negative side, "Rep. Dick Barrett, D-Missoula, is introducing legislation to implement a 2009 Montana Supreme Court decision to allow this procedure [assisted suicide] when a terminally ill patient requests it," the Missoulian reported. When that decision came down on December 5, 2009, we noted that Montana, which has the highest suicide rate in America, had become the third state where doctors can legally kill their patients. Montana District Court Judge Dorothy McCarter ruled that the state constitution includes the right to assisted suicide. McCarter declared that the "Montana constitutional rights of individual privacy and human dignity, taken together, encompass the right of a competent terminally (ill) patient to die with dignity," according to the Associated Press. McCarter's decision is, to put it mildly, on shaky legal grounds, which is no doubt why Rep. Barrett is promoting his bill. Hopefully our improved stature in the Montana Legislature allows us to pass protective laws and defeat anti-life measures such as this. Please send your comments on Today's News & Views and National Right to Life News Today to daveandrusko@gmail.com. If you like, join those who are following me on Twitter at http://twitter.com/daveha. |
