Mazie Hirono: “I am glad to join Senator Stabenow, who was on the floor just now, to respond to the shameful lies and gross…”

“I am glad to join Senator Stabenow, who was on the floor just now, to respond to the shameful lies and gross exaggerations that have been claimed by some on the other side of the aisle. Earlier this week, we voted on legislation that some of my colleagues claimed was needed to outlaw infanticide--the killing of babies. How absurd. It is, and has always been, illegal to kill any human, including infants. So what was in that legislation we voted on earlier this week? To honestly discuss the bill, we need to have a factually and medically accurate conversation about abortion. A healthy fetus becomes potentially able to live outside the womb at about 24 weeks of pregnancy. Very few abortions occur after that--less than 1 percent--and generally are performed either because the fetus has a fatal condition or the pregnant woman's life or health is at severe risk. These are heartbreaking situations involving very wanted pregnancies--hardly the time for the heavy hand of government to reach into our wombs. Under this bill, doctors will be required to resuscitate infants born with fatal conditions, even if the parents did not want these measures that could prolong their infant's suffering and instead wanted to spend the limited time they had with their baby comforting their child and holding them close. How dare anyone pretend to know what care is best for these families instead of trusting them and their doctors to decide.…”