Members of the pro-life community, including a number of U.S. Senators, came together at a press conference in Washington D.C., on Tuesday to push for a bill that would ban abortion after 20 weeks.

"This legislation, which according to five major national polls is supported by the majority of Americans, would protect babies and women from the horrific violence of abortion beyond 20 weeks," said Marjorie Dannenfelser, president of the Susan B. Anthony List, a national pro-life political organization, referring to the Pain-Capable Unborn Child Protection Act (S. 1670).

Dannenfelser was joined by Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, Senator Lindsey Graham, and other national pro-life leaders who called on Majority Leader Harry Reid to bring S.1670 to a vote in the Senate. The House version of the bill was passed in June 2013 by an overwhelming majority.

The Susan B. Anthony List president reminded the audience that at 20 weeks, an unborn child in the womb measures about five to six inches and weighs about nine ounces.

"The baby can hear sounds – including his mother's voice, heart and even her growling stomach if she's hungry! The baby can hear sounds outside her mother's body as well – and will cover her ears with her hands if it gets too loud," Dannenfelser continued.

"At this point in pregnancy, doctor's already recommend parents talk to their baby and play music for them. These simple acts recognize the humanity and existence of the child well before their birthday."

Currently, 13 U.S. states have 20-week abortion limits to protect unborn children more than halfway through pregnancy.

The push for the bill comes nearly one year after Philadelphia abortionist Kermit Gosnell was found guilty of murdering three babies born alive in his clinic, which has been dubbed the "house of horrors."

Pro-choice groups such as Planned Parenthood have spoken out against the proposed legislation, however, and said that nearly 99 percent of abortions occur before 21 weeks of pregnancy.

In a list of issues it has with the bill, the organization wrote on its website that the 20-week ban is "unconstitutional and a clear attempt to challenge Roe v. Wade at the expense of the health of our nation's women."

It adds that it is dangerous to suggest criminalizing doctors for up to five years in jail for performing such abortion procedures.

"Sen. Graham is not a doctor, and he shouldn't have the right to take options away from doctors in dangerous medical situations, or force a woman to carry a pregnancy to term with no chance of survival," Planned Parenthood argues.

"Worse, the bill criminalizes doctors, with imprisonment of up to five years, fines, or both. Doctors oppose these laws because they prevent them from giving their patients the best health care possible in an individual situation."

Abortion remains a divisive issue in the U.S., with a number of studies and polls commissioned to test American attitudes toward the practice.

A Gallup graph showing the change of attitudes over the years shows that for the past four decades, Americans have largely supported abortion only under certain circumstances, with the latest survey in 2013 noting that 52 percent of respondents hold that view, while another 26 percent support abortion under any circumstances and 20 percent say it should be illegal in all circumstance.

In 2013, 48 percent of respondents also identified with the pro-life group, compared to 45 percent with the pro-choice category.

Quinnipiac, National Journal, Huffington Post, NBC/Wall Street Journal, and Washington Post/ABC News surveys have found, however, that the majority of Americans do not support late-term abortions.

Dannenfelser concluded her speech by urging the Senate to stand up for humans rights of children late in pregnancy.

"The few, mere inches that separate a child in the womb from a child outside the womb should never determine whether its intentional 'demise,' as Gosnell used to say, is permitted by law," she said.

"Americans overwhelmingly oppose late-term abortions and the law should follow their instinctive resistance to this dehumanizing and degrading practice."

by Steven Ertelt | Washington, DC | LifeNews.com | 5/9/14 10:11 AM

The pro-life brothers who were set to be the stars of the next HGTV reality television show “Flip It Forward” have a refreshing response to the cable network cancelling the program because of their pro-life beliefs.

HGTV has canceled a new reality television show, Flip It Forward, that was scheduled to debut on Home and Garden Television this October, after learning the stars of the show are pro-life. During the program, brothers David and Jason Benham would be helping families purchase dream homes they otherwise couldn’t afford.

Home and Garden Television has decided to cancel the show after pro-abortion activists outed the brothers as pro-life. The pro-abortion group People for the American Way tagged the brothers as “anti-choice” extremists in an article on their web site and includes comments one of the brothers made about God abhoring abortion.

The network confirmed it was dropping the show, saying on it’s Facebook page: “HGTV has decided not to move forward with the Benham Brothers’ series.”

In response, the Benham brothers issued a statement saying they are “saddened” by HGTV’s decision.

“The first and last thought on our minds as we begin and end each day is; have we shined Christ’s light today? Our faith is the fundamental calling in our lives, and the centerpiece of who we are. As Christians we are called to love our fellow man. Anyone who suggests that we hate homosexuals or people of other faiths is either misinformed or lying. Over the last decade, we’ve sold thousands of homes with the guiding principle of producing value and breathing life into each family that has crossed our path, and we do not, nor will we ever discriminate against people who do not share our views.”

The brothers also said:

“We were saddened to hear HGTV’s decision. With all of the grotesque things that can be seen and heard on television today you would think there would be room for two twin brothers who are faithful to our families, committed to biblical principles, and dedicated professionals. If our faith costs us a television show then so be it.”

Although filming of the program has completed, the brothers are working to make sure they help the families the show was intended to help.

by Steven Ertelt | Washington, DC | LifeNews.com | 5/6/14 1:29 PM

Planned Parenthood abortion clinics have come under fire countless times over the years for not reporting cases of statutory rape to authorities as required by state law. Now, in Arizona, officials says the abortion giant failed again to provide the proper report to authorities about a victim of a young man who is a serial rapist.

Not only did Planned Parenthood intentionally fail to report the rape but, in so doing, it allowed the rapist to rape as many as 18 or more teenage girls, authorities say, making it so the abortion company is partially responsible for victimizing them as well.

According to the Case Grande Dispatch:

Documents obtained from the Pinal County Sheriff’s Office allege a counselor at a health clinic intentionally withheld information about an alleged rape from law enforcement personnel, months before others came forward to stop a Poston Butte High School student from attacking more teenagers.

Tyler Kost, 18, is accused of raping or molesting at least 18 girls, most of them fellow classmates at Poston Butte High School. He is being held without bond in the Pinal County jail.

In forensic interviews with Sheriff’s Office sex crime detectives, a girl who says she became pregnant after Kost raped her last year visited a Planned Parenthood clinic with her mother on New Year’s Eve. According to the report, her mom told the staffer about the sexual assault during the visit.

“The counselor intentionally miscoded the assault as a consensual encounter,” the PCSO report states. “The counselor told them that they did not want the hassle of having to report the assault to law enforcement as they were a mandatory reporter.”

That’s a violation of Arizona law, which requires all suspected sexual abuse incidents be reported to law enforcement.

Naturally, Planned Parenthood denies it did anything wrong, according to an official statement the abortion business released.

In Illinois, the state now requires abortion centers to join legitimate medical facilities in reporting cases of statutory rape to authorities in order for young girls to be protected. That’s something Planned Parenthood opposed.

In Ohio, a lawsuit in which Planned Parenthood was found to have violated an Ohio informed consent law has been “resolved and dismissed,” according to the Alliance Defense Fund allied attorney who filed the suit. ADF-allied attorney Brian Hurley represents the parents of a girl who, at age 14, was brought to a Planned Parenthood clinic for an abortion by the 22-year-old soccer coach who impregnated her.

Earlier this year, a pro-life organization that conducted an undercover investigation in 2002 released additional tapes showing staff at hundreds of abortion centers across the country covering up statutory rape. Life Dynamics released tapes from some of the 813 Planned Parenthood and National Abortion Federation centers it calls across the country. The group placed the calls from Texas, where it is legal to record a phone conversation without the consent of the other party. in the phone calls, an actress portrayed a 13-year-old girl who claimed her 22-year-old boyfriend impregnated her and that she wanted an abortion to keep her parents from finding out.

Also, previously, Live Action footage showed three centers in southern Virginia, a Perth Amboy, New Jersey abortion business and a Planned Parenthood center in Richmond, Virginia all having staffers helping the alleged sex traffickers find information on how to obtain abortions without facing scrutiny and get STD testing for the girls

A Planned Parenthood staffer in New Jersey has already been fired, New Jersey officials are looking into a shoddy abortion center Planned Parenthood referred to in its video, and the Virginia attorney general has received the full footage of the Richmond Planned Parenthood expose’. All three of the new videos clearly show staff willing to aid and abet the sexual trafficking and exploitation of minors and young women and the videos, Lila Rose of Live Action says, provide more evidence of a clear, disturbing pattern of gross misconduct by Planned Parenthood.

The videos have a Roanoke, Virginia abortion facility staffer suggesting the sex trafficker consider going to the health department instead of taking the girls he is victimizing to the Planned Parenthood — because it would be easier to hide the illegal activity.

By SADIE WHITELOCKS

A 25-year-old abortion counselor has filmed herself having a surgical abortion and posted the video on YouTube, saying she wants it to help banish stigma surrounding the procedure.

Emily Letts, who works at the Cherry Hill Women's Center in New Jersey, explains in an article for Cosmopolitan.com that ironically, despite being a sex educator, she hadn't been using any birth control and 'wound up pregnant' by mistake last November. 

In her three-minute YouTube video she is seen being wheeled into the operating theater before being filmed from the waist up as doctors remove the embryo from her womb. She remains awake throughout, numbed only by local anesthetic. 

The video has been watched 36,000 times and has prompted strong reactions from pro-life campaigners as well as those supporting Miss Letts' actions.  

Because she was only in the first trimester of pregnancy, Miss Letts says that she could have swallowed an abortion pill instead of going in for surgery.

However, she 'wanted to do the one that women were most afraid of.'

'I wanted to show it wasn’t scary - and that there is such a thing as a appositive abortion story. It’s my story,' she continues.

She does not state if she was in a relationship at the time, merely stating that the 'guy wasn't involved' in her decision to terminate her pregnancy. 'I knew I wasn't ready to take care of a child,' she notes.

During her abortion Miss Letts - dressed in a hospital gown - practices relaxation techniques such as deep breathing and humming. 

She also talks to a member of staff who stands by the bed holding her hand and supportively rubbing her arm.

Once the short procedure is over, she exclaims: 'Yeah, cool, I feel good. I’m done.'

About a month after her procedure Miss Letts, a former professional actress, candidly reflects about her experience with viewers.

'I don’t feel like a bad person. I don’t feel sad,' she explains, pointing out that many of the patients at her clinic assume that everyone feels guilty after having an abortion. 

'I knew that what I was going to do was right - it was right for me and for no one else.'

Her video has been watched more than 36,000 times since it was uploaded on March 14 and the comments panel has been disabled.

Miss Letts said after she went public with the footage and posted it to Facebook women started sharing their own stories with her.

'I had one women who messaged me saying she'd had an abortion that week and she was plagued with guilt.

'Her boyfriend called her a killer, but she said she was recovering well and appreciated the video.'

However, along with the positive remarks there were also a lot of angry reactions.

'I got... "You deserve to die", "you killed your baby,"' Miss Letts recalled.

According to the National abortion Federation 1.3 million abortions are performed in the U.S. every year, with 20 to 24 year olds accounting for the bulk of procedures.

Like Miss Letts, most abortions (88 per cent) are carried out in the first trimester of pregnancy and fewer than two per cent occur at 21 weeks or later.

After her abortion Miss Letts was fitted with an IUD, a small T-shaped device made from plastic and copper that is placed in the uterus to prevent pregnancy.

'I feel in awe of the fact that I can make a baby. I can make a life, I just want to tell my story,' she concludes.

Gary L. Bauer 

The American public has a macabre fascination with evil, and the media are vocationally inclined to feed that fascination — except when the evil involves abortion.

On April 21, the B.C. Catholic, the archdiocesan newspaper of Vancouver, reported that “bio-medical waste” that included tissue from aborted babies was being shipped from British Columbia to a waste-to-energy facility in Marion County, Oregon. The baby parts were then being incinerated to produce electricity for homes and businesses in the Portland area.

Executives at the energy plant, the Marion County Resource Recovery Facility, claim they did not know until recently that the waste included aborted baby parts. The revelation prompted Marion County Board to call an emergency meeting late last week, after which officials announced that they would temporarily stop all biomedical waste shipments to the incinerator and amend local ordinances to bar any future shipments that could contain fetal tissue.

Though no law had been broken, officials used words like “outraged,” “disgusted,” “appalled” and “horrified” to describe the baby burning. “There are not enough strong words to describe my feelings,” Marion County Commissioner Janet Carlson told a local TV station. “This will not continue … I don’t even want to call it ‘material’; these are babies.”

It is hard to know how many aborted babies were incinerated. According to the B.C. Catholic, 14,000 fetuses are aborted in British Columbia, Canada, every year and most of the remains are sent to the Marion County incinerator. Many of the victims were no doubt first-trimester babies. But Canada is one of the few countries in the world with no legal restrictions on abortion, so it is likely that second- and third-trimester babies were also incinerated for power.

I confess that I felt two waves of anger when I read about this story on a pro-life website. First, I felt sickened by the callousness of an act that seems straight out of a horror movie or Jonathan Swift essay.

But I am also outraged by the sparse media coverage the story has received. This should be front-page news. And I believe it would be if it involved, say, the burning of the remains of household pets or other animals.

But because the story involves abortion — and in particular what most mainstream journalists consider not human beings but rather a mere “clumps of cells” — most of the media have remained silent.

The story garnered attention in some local and pro-life publications, a blurb in the Washington Post and one Associated Press story. Otherwise, it was ignored by the national media. According to a Nexis search, in the week after the story broke, the New York Times did not mention it even once. By comparison, in that week the Times published at least eight stories on the Nevada rancher Cliven Bundy.

The media’s silence is disturbing but far from surprising. An almost identical story surfaced only a month earlier in the United Kingdom. There it was discovered that the fetal remains of more than 15,000 fetuses from abortions and miscarriages were being burned to produce power at British hospitals. The British media reported the story, but there was little coverage of it in the U.S.

In fact, one of the only non-conservative outlets to mention the story was The Wire. But the liberal political website only mentioned it in order to lampoon conservative outrage over the practice. The Wire reporter even labeled conservatives who predicted that something similar could be happening in the U.S. the “conservative freak-out” of the day.

Floyd Mayweather, who faces the heavy-handed Marcos Maidana on pay-per view Saturday night from Las Vegas, tweeted out that his recent breakup stemmed from his fiancee's abortion. The Tweet quickly coaxed a delete.

"The real reason me and Shantel Christine Jackson @missjackson broke up was because she got a abortion," the undefeated welterweight tweeted, "and I'm totally against killing babies. She killed our twin babies."

Reportedly, Jackson, who had received a $10 million engagement ring from the fighter,initially told Mayweather she had miscarried. Since the breakup last year, she has moved on to a relationship with the rapper Nelly. 

The publicizing of such private information, and the pro-life pronouncement, quickly elicited online outrage.

"Mayweather posting that announcement (basically called her a baby killer) plus ultrasound photos on FB is abusive behavior," Sports on Earth writer Jessica Luther tweeted. She labeled Money Mayweather and his online followers "anti-choicers." Another writer sees the Tweet as a potential disqualification for buying the Clippers, an idea the sports world's highest-paid athlete floated earlier this week. "Reminder that Floyd Mayweather is interested in owning the Los Angeles Clippers," Michael Katz wrote at SB Nation. "That seems like a bad idea."

Clippers guard J.J. Redick and Houston Texans running back Arian Foster recently weathered accusations that they pressured girlfriends to abort their unborn children. Mayweather, who certainly can afford an expanding brood, appears as the rare athlete baby-daddy welcoming offspring instead of hiring a medical hit man to exterminate them.

Somehow this makes him a horrible person. Beam me up, Scotty!

by Steven Ertelt | Lubbock, TX | LifeNews.com | 4/30/14 5:42 PM

Here is more evidence that pro-life laws make a difference. When Texas approved a measure that banned abortions after 20 weeks of pregnancy, it included a provision that required abortion practitioners to have admitting privileges at local hospitals.

So many abortion clinics do not have abortion practitioners who can admit patients to hospitals when, as frequent happens, abortions go awry and women are killed or injured by botched abortions. Such abortion clinics must also meet the same kind of standards as legitimate medical centers that perform surgeries, but many abortion clinics are not able to meet those health and safety standards because they offer sub par medical care for women.

It appears the Planned Parenthood abortion business is the latest facility to not be able to properly care for women’s health.

As a result, it’s been bought out by a legitimate health care provider that does not plan to do abortions at the location. This makes the Planned Parenthood abortion center one of many in the state of Texas to close permanently or temporarily due to the pro-life law, again proving pro-life laws protect women and unborn children even if they don’t ban abortions.

From a local media story:

Lubbock women will now have to go elsewhere to access abortion services. Both Lubbock Planned Parenthood locations, including the Women’s Health Center, have closed down as a result of a new Texas law.

Generation Healthcare, a non-profit, pro-adoption group, bought out both of the Planned Parenthood facilities in Lubbock in late October in what was called an “asset transfer.” Generation Healthcare released a media statement reporting that it will not provide abortion services as part of its health care. Generation Healthcare is an arm of Generation Covenant and Adoption Covenant.

The group’s CEO, Merinda Condra, stated in the press release that Generation Healthcare’s mission is to make certain that preventive screenings and routine health care services are available to all women. The release reported that Generation Healthcare assumed ownership and operation of the Briercroft Office Park clinic on Oct. 30. Also effective Oct. 30, all Planned Parenthood Associations of Lubbock board members resigned and the Generation Healthcare board assumed responsibility for the clinics.

Elizabeth Trevino, an administrative assistant with the Nurturing Center in Lubbock, said she believes the bill is a big step for her anti-abortion movement.

“We didn’t win the war,” she said. “It’s not where we would want it to end completely, but it’s one step closer.”

The Nurturing Center is a ministry pregnancy resource center that Trevino said is dedicated to saving the lives of both mothers and babies. The Nurturing Center, funded by donations by churches and the community, provides pregnant women with resources such as baby items, food, clothes, counseling, Medicaid, adoption services and other non-abortion options.

Currently, the center sees five clients a week, but Trevino said she expects the number to increase if the Planned Parenthood clinic in the same neighborhood is shut down.

“You’d be surprised with how many girls we could talk to from next door who are right about to get an abortion,” she said, “and all they want to hear is, ‘We’re here. We’ll help you. We’ll help you through this, we’re here for you.’ And it’s like, ‘Oh God, I don’t have to do this alone. This isn’t what I want to do.’”