Ralph Lee Abraham: “This is an important point to clarify. The violation of this act is not the performance of an abortion. The violation of…”

“This is an important point to clarify. The violation of this act is not the performance of an abortion. The violation of this act is the transportation of a minor across state lines to obtain an abortion without involving that minor's parent as required by the law of her home state. The abortion provider would only be in violation of this act if the provider actually conspired to transport or assisted in transporting the minor across state lines to obtain an abortion without the parental involvement that the minor's home state required. Providers who had not engaged in any such activities related to the transport of a minor would not incur any criminal liability or face any new legal responsibilities under this legislation. Mr. President, I rise today to offer my strong support for the Child Custody Protection Act of 1998, which would make it a crime to transport a child across state lines to circumvent a state law requiring parental involvement or a judicial waiver for a minor to obtain an abortion.”