U.S. Senate's Rejection of Born-Alive Bill, Pain-Capable Bill Shows How Extreme Congressional Democrats Have Become, says FRC

WASHINGTON, Feb. 25, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- Today, the U.S. Senate rejected the Born-Alive Abortion Survivors Protection Act and Pain-Capable Unborn Child Protection Act, despite the best efforts of Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell and other pro-life leaders.  On the same day the Senate voted on these bills, Family Research Council released a newly-updated version of its publication, "Born-Alive Abortion Survivors: Just the Facts." Based on data from the only eight states that require reporting on babies born alive after an attempted abortion, FRC has identified at least 170 additional born-alive abortion survivors, beyond the 143 abortion survivors reported in the CDC's death statistics. Earlier this month, FRC's Director of Life, Culture, and Women's Advocacy, Patrina Mosley, testified before the Senate Judiciary Committee about the need for stronger protections for babies born alive after botched abortions.

Family Research Council President Tony Perkins made the following comments:

"Refusing to support a measure that would provide life-saving care to an infant who survives an abortion and is born-alive, is condoning infanticide.  Continuing to allow this practice of either actively or passively allowing born-alive babies to die as Virginia Governor Northam has advocated is crossing the line from civilized to barbarous.  The efforts in Congress to protect these babies should not stop, and voters have a moral duty to vote against those who condone infanticide," concluded Perkins.

Patrina Mosley, FRC's Director of Life, Culture, and Women's Advocacy, and a co-author of our updated publication, remarked:

"As we document in our newly-updated issue brief, and as I recently testified before the Senate Judiciary Committee, infants are indeed being born alive after botched abortions. We have documented over 300 cases of such infants, and yet Congress has still failed to adequately protect them."

Connor Semelsberger, FRC's Legislative Assistant for federal pro-life advocacy, and a co-author of our updated publication, added:

"Today, with few exceptions, Democrat Senators refused to acknowledge that these infant patients both inside and outside the womb deserve protections under the law. Given the opportunity to pass even the most widely supported pro-life measures, Democrats balked, showing just how far removed they are from the rest of America."

To read FRC's newly-updated publication, visit https://www.frc.org/bornalive.

SOURCE Family Research Council