Zoe Lofgren: “about 2 weeks ago, Members of this body went to Hershey, PA, to learn how we might disagree in a civilized manner, and I…”

“about 2 weeks ago, Members of this body went to Hershey, PA, to learn how we might disagree in a civilized manner, and I think this issue is challenging and testing the commitments we made at that time to deal and disagree with each other in a way that is respectful and civilized. This is an issue that American people have very strong feelings about, and those strong feelings are shared by Members of this body. I think it is important that we state where we agree and where we disagree because there are some agreements. I do not believe there is a single Member of this body, and I definitely include myself, who believes that abortion ought to be an elective procedure post viability, and to the extent that any of us have suggested otherwise, we should stop doing that because we do not believe that. That is not where our disagreement is. There are those of us in this Chamber who believe, and oftentimes it is a matter of religious belief, that abortions should be made illegal in all cases. I am not among those who believe that. But I respect the Members of this body who do. The disagreement is over who should make the decision to terminate a pregnancy post viability, when a woman's life is in danger or she is facing a serious health consequence, and then prior to viability who should make the decision in every case. There has been a lot of discussion about numbers and who said what when. The issue is this, simply this.…”