Tim Scott: “first I think we ought to remind ourselves what this bill does. It does not require parental notification or consent…”

“first I think we ought to remind ourselves what this bill does. It does not require parental notification or consent when a minor goes across State lines. What it does is prohibit someone from accompanying them. In this bill, the child can still evade the parental consent laws of the State and go across State lines alone, but this bill would criminalize anybody accompanying them. Mr. Speaker, I want to speak against the closed rule. It prohibits the ability, our ability, to consider some very important amendments. The administration, in a statement of administration policy, has indicated that the senior advisors of the President will recommend a veto unless these amendments are in the bill. In recent letters from the White House Chief of Staff to the House and Senate Committees on the Judiciary, the administration in fact said it would support legislation of this nature if it had these few amendments, specifically an amendment to exclude close family members from criminal and civil liability.”