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NRL News
Legislators Easily Override Governor’s Veto Continuing to strengthen laws that protect women and unborn babies, the Oklahoma Senate and House overrode Democratic Gov. Brad Henry’s veto of a pro-life bill. The April 17 override, the first in the state since 1994, will allow the law to take effect November 1, according to Tulsa World. Oklahoma has seen unprecedented pro-life success in its legislature since Republicans gained a majority in the House in the 2004 elections, Tony Lauinger, chairman of Oklahomans for Life and Vice President of National Right to Life, told NRL News. Working with almost unanimous Republican support for the right to life and many pro-life Democrats as well, omnibus bills have been successfully enacted into law in each session since 2005. These laws have included many important pro-life provisions, involving parental consent, informed consent, crisis pregnancy counseling, unborn victims of violence, state involvement in abortion, legal definition of abortion, and much more. Gov. Henry signed the bills into law in both 2005 and 2006. However, after he was re-elected in 2006 for the second and final time because of term limits, Henry vetoed the bills in 2007 and 2008. In 2007, pro-life legislators inserted the entire bill into other legislation, and the provisions became law without Henry’s signature, Lauinger explained. This year, Henry vetoed the bill April 16. The next day, the legislature overrode the governor on a 37–11 vote in the Senate and 81–15 vote in the House, the Oklahoma City Journal Record reported. “The enactment of this law is a wonderful affirmation of the sanctity of human life,” said Lauinger. “It is a victory for unborn children, pregnant women, pro-life health-care professionals, and persons with disabilities.” The bill, SB1878, includes several important provisions. One of the most important, since it applies to all women seeking abortions, is the requirement that the abortionist must provide an ultrasound at least one hour before an abortion, make sure the screen is visible to the woman, and explain the images. The woman can refuse to look at the ultrasound if she chooses. “For the baby, it is the last line of defense,” Lauinger said. “For the mother, the ultrasound provides the benefit of important information prior to an act that is irrevocable. A fully informed choice is better than the anguished helplessness resulting from being unable to undo the past.” Gov. Henry cited this provision in his veto message, saying that viewing the ultrasounds could harm a woman pregnant as a result of a crime. “While I support reasonable restrictions on abortion,” Henry stated, “this legislation does not provide an essential exemption for victims of rape and incest.” But pro-lifers contend that even a crime victim has the right to make a fully informed decision. “Abortion does not erase the trauma of a rape,” Lauinger said. “To deny any woman who is pregnant the benefit of information does her a great disservice. She is making a decision about the baby’s life and future that is no less consequential because the pregnancy is the result of rape.” The omnibus bill also includes the “Freedom of Conscience Act,” protecting the right of health care workers and facilities to conscientiously object to performing abortions. “Most who go into the health care field do so for life-affirming reasons,” Lauinger said. “It is essential that health care professionals’ right to decline to be involved in the destruction of an innocent human life be protected.” Another section of the bill requires abortionists to follow guidelines issued by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) when performing abortions using RU486, and provides for thorough reporting of any complications suffered by the aborting woman. “The deaths of several mothers following RU486 abortions have caused concern about the ways in which some abortion practitioners are using the drugs,” Lauinger explained. “In a majority of the deaths documented so far, abortions were not performed in accordance with the approved FDA protocol.” The law also denies claims for “wrongful life” or “wrongful birth,” lawsuits that contend that a disabled baby would have been better off if he or she had never been born. The bill states that “the birth of a child does not constitute a legally recognizable injury and that it is contrary to public policy to award damages because of the birth of a child or for the rearing of that child.” “Such cases severely undermine society’s respect for persons with disabilities, and promote the specter of eugenic abortions,” explained Lauinger. “The pressure in our culture for ‘quality control’ carries over for some to their attitude about babies, and has had a corrosive effect on our society’s respect for the sanctity of human life.” Another provision protects women from forced abortions, requiring a prominently posted sign in abortion clinics stating, “It is against the law for anyone, regardless of his or her relationship to you, to force you to have an abortion.” The abortionist must also speak directly to the aborting woman and inform her that she cannot be forced to have an abortion, and that “an abortion cannot be provided unless she provides her freely given, voluntary, and informed consent.” Lauinger said that pro-life Oklahomans are already considering potential initiatives to pursue in the next legislative session, including the tightening of reporting requirements to garner the most accurate data about abortion and abortion complications. He added that he is grateful for the support of pro-life legislators and most especially for the assistance of Mary Spaulding Balch, NRLC’s state legislative director. “She helps us with every single step,” Lauinger said. “In the last four months we have had over 500 telephone conversations, many of them at midnight. She is so helpful, so patient, so knowledgeable, and so wise. Mary is incredibly invaluable to the unborn child and to all of our efforts” |