Kay Bailey Hutchison: “I am pleased the debate on Priscilla Owen is beginning to give her side of the story. We are finally getting past the…”

“I am pleased the debate on Priscilla Owen is beginning to give her side of the story. We are finally getting past the sweeping mischaracterizations about her that have been put forward in the news media for years by interest groups--those who say she is outside the mainstream, or she is an extremist. But now on the floor of the Senate we are getting down to specifics. Every single time we have been able to examine a specific criticism of a particular opinion by Justice Owen, that criticism has been clearly and decisively refuted. Justice Owen is a careful and thoughtful jurist. She is an extremely talented intellect. She uses her ability to read every statute and enforce it fairly. She is the very model of a judge who interprets the law and does not legislate on the bench. Let's get to the heart of the matter. One of the major criticisms of Justice Owen is her effort to interpret a 1999 law passed by the Texas State legislature requiring parental notification before a minor can obtain an abortion. Most of the groups opposing Justice Owen strenuously opposed passage of that law in the first place. But the Texas legislature did approve a parental notification requirement with a strong bipartisan majority, favoring it in both the Texas House and Senate. The House was controlled by Democrats at the time, and it required any minor seeking an abortion to notify at least one parent, or receive permission from a judge to bypass that step.…”