Jane Harman: “I want to commend her on her extraordinary testimony. I think no one could have addressed more carefully and better the…”

“I want to commend her on her extraordinary testimony. I think no one could have addressed more carefully and better the issues underlying this bill than she did. I just strongly endorse it and hope that our colleagues are listening and will oppose this bill. I am the mother of a 26-year-old daughter and a 17-year-old daughter. I am also the mother of a 28-year-old son and a 19-year-old son. I work very hard to earn their trust, and I try very hard to provide for them a moral framework in which they will make wise choices for their lives. When I first learned about this issue some years back, my immediate instinct was to oppose the notion that parents could not or should not be consulted when a daughter makes a decision about an abortion, not just across State lines but in a State. I then consulted my own daughters and they said, Mom, we would talk to you, but think about all the kids who cannot talk to their parents. Our colleague from New York has spelled out those circumstances. They are dreadful and shameful, and my view after consulting my own children is that for the children of others, we must stop this vicious legislation.”