Phil Gramm to Retire From Senate

By Carol Tobias, NRL PAC Director

Pro-lifers will lose a strong advocate for life. On September 4 Texas Senator Phil Gramm (R) announced he would finish out his term, but not seek re-election in 2002, ending a 24-year congressional career.

Gramm is the third United States senator to announce that he will not seek re-election next year. Pro-life Senators Strom Thurmond of South Carolina and Jesse Helms of North Carolina announced earlier that they would retire when their terms are up. Thurmond has served in the Senate since 1954. Helms was first elected in 1972.

Gramm was first elected to the U.S. House of Representatives as a Democrat in 1978. In 1983, Gramm switched parties and resigned his seat, winning the special election as a Republican. The following year, he successfully ran for an open Senate seat. He has since been re-elected twice by comfortable margins.

Over the years, Gramm has co-sponsored a Human Life Amendment to prohibit abortion, except to save the life of the mother. He also co-sponsored President Reagan's President's Pro-Life Bill to repudiate Roe v. Wade and to permanently prohibit federal funding of abortion, except to save the life of the mother.

Early in President Bill Clinton's first term, Clinton tried to enact a national health care plan. Many members of Congress, both Republican and Democrat, opposed it because the plan would have required that all working Americans and their employers purchase abortion-on-demand insurance (as part of a federally mandated benefits package), with government- mandated "premiums" deducted directly from their paychecks.

Sen. Gramm was one of the first to criticize the plan for rationing health care for senior citizens and denying lifesaving medical treatment to those who need it most. Gramm was a fervent and instrumental voice against the plan, which contributed to its demise.

In 1996, Gramm unsuccessfully sought the Republican nomination for president.

Over the years in letters to constituents, Gramm consistently stated his pro-life position, offering support for various pieces of pro-life legislation. In one such letter, Gramm wrote, "While Congress has no direct jurisdiction over the decisions made by the courts, I believe the right to life is paramount and will continue to do everything within my power to protect it."

While Texas pro-lifers will work hard to make sure that Sen. Gramm is replaced with another pro-lifer, his dedication, perseverance, and leadership will be missed.