Political Quotes

“Madam Speaker, I thank the gentlewoman for her ardent work on this important cause. However stark Americans' differences of opinion can be on the matter of abortion generally, there has been long, bipartisan agreement that Federal taxpayer funds should not be used to destroy innocent life. The Hyde amendment, named for its chief sponsor, former House Judiciary Committee Chairman Henry Hyde, has prohibited the Federal funding of abortions since 1976 when it passed the House and Senate that was composed overwhelmingly of Democratic members. It has been renewed each appropriations cycle with few changes for over 40 years, supported by Congresses controlled by both parties and Presidents from both parties. It is probably the most bipartisan, pro- life proposal sustained over a longer period of time than any other. It is time the Hyde amendment was codified in the U.S. Code. H.R. 7, the No Taxpayer Funding for Abortion and Abortion Insurance Full Disclosure Act, sponsored by Representative Chris Smith of New Jersey, would do just that. It would codify the two core principles of the Hyde amendment throughout the operations of the Federal Government; namely, a ban on Federal funding for abortions and a ban on the use of Federal funds for health benefits coverage that includes coverage of abortion.…”