ST. PAUL, MN – On January 19, Minnesota House Democrats approved radical abortion language that would allow abortions until the child’s birth. State Representative Jeff Backer, R-Browns Valley, voted no on the bill, which passed solely with Democrat support.
“As a pro-life legislator, I have been committed to supporting legislation that puts the health and wellbeing of women and the unborn first,” said Rep. Backer. “Bill supporters will say that today’s vote simply codifies abortion access into state law. The truth is that it goes far beyond that and will allow abortions to take place in Minnesota up until the moment of birth, when babies can feel pain and when the chances of significant health complications for the mother greatly increase.”
Backer said the bill makes abortion, which is already legal in Minnesota under Doe v. Gomez, available at any time during a pregnancy without guardrails, which would make our state an outlier in the United States and western world.
Backer also noted that the bill does not require abortion facilities to be licensed by the State of Minnesota nor require second or third term abortions to take place in a hospital, despite the obvious medical risks.
Numerous attempts were made to amend the legislation to show compassion to mothers and the unborn. The proposed changes included requiring 2nd and 3rd trimester abortions to be performed in a hospital, banning partial birth abortions, and banning abortions in the 3rd trimester, with the exceptions of rape, incest, and saving the life of the mother. House Democrats, who are the majority party in the Minnesota House, voted all of them down.
Backer said the Democrats’ radical abortion priorities are out of touch with the average Minnesotan and threaten the safety of mothers and their unborn children.
“Reasonable people on both sides of this issue can agree that certain guardrails are needed. Instead, Democrats have rejected any attempts at compromise and are pushing ahead with the most extreme abortion bill in the country,” said Backer.
The bill now heads to the Minnesota Senate.
###