Charles T. Canady: “Mr. Speaker, as I have been listening to the debate here today, I have been struck by some of the rhetoric that has been…”

“Mr. Speaker, as I have been listening to the debate here today, I have been struck by some of the rhetoric that has been used. Quite frankly, I have been disappointed by some of the arguments I have heard. I think it is important for the Members to focus on this bill and exactly what it does. This is a very straightforward bill. It is a bill that is designed to deal with a serious problem. As anyone who has listened to the debate will know, that is the problem of minor girls being transported across State lines for the purpose of obtaining an abortion in defiance of parental notification and consent laws. Lest anyone think this is not really a serious problem, I would quote Catherine Colbert, who in 1995, as an attorney with the pro-abortion Center for Reproductive Law and Policy, stated 'There are thousands of minors who cross State lines for an abortion every year.' So this is a practice that is going on on a widespread basis. Despite the fact that over 20 States have parental consent or notification laws, vulnerable teenage girls are still being taken from their families to out-of-State abortion clinics, in disregard of the legal protections the States have provided. Today this House has an opportunity to curb this abuse and to protect the health and well-being of minor girls.”