The Judiciary Committee Approves a Cruel Abortion Ban Directed at Women Who Have No Voting Representation in Congress

Last week, the House Judiciary Committee marked up H.R. 3803, a bill that would ban most abortions at twenty weeks post-fertilization in the District of Columbia. This bill targets women in D.C., women who have no voting representation in Congress. The bill is blatantly unconstitutional as it bans abortions pre-viability and fails to provide any health exception pre- or post- viability. And it has no exception for rape or incest survivors. It’s a bill that basically says: no, we really don’t care about the women who would be affected by this bill.

As with the mark-up of CIANA, the mark-up of H.R. 3803 was incredibly frustrating to watch as the Judiciary Committee rejected common-sense amendments, including an exception to protect the woman’s health and an exception for women who have cancer and “need life-saving treatment incompatible with continuing the pregnancy.” The Committee even rejected Rep. Deutch’s (D-FL) amendment to delete broad language allowing any “current or former licensed health care provider” of a pregnant woman to sue to stop the woman’s provider from performing an abortion. Why it makes sense to give such a wide range of people (including, for example, a high school nurse) the right to veto a woman’s right to an abortion – unless their goal is to just make sure women have no right – I don’t know.

As I have said it before, this bill is cruel. As the mark-up itself revealed, the sponsors of this bill blatantly refuse to take into account the women the bill would affect, about their circumstances, their health. Maybe the woman is like Christy Zink, the only witness the Democrats were allowed at the bill’s hearing a few months back. Ms. Zink bravely told her story of learning during her pregnancy that her son had severe fetal anomalies and her family’s decision to terminate the pregnancy. This bill is cruel because it would deny women like Ms. Zink the dignity and right to make the decision that they felt was best for their families.

And although the abortion ban has been voted out of committee and it may be on the House floor soon, I hope others will see the bill for what it is – a cruel, unconstitutional abortion ban that would hurt D.C. women and their families.