Slotkin stands against bill to penalize abortion doctors

THURSDAY, April 25 — Republican pressure is mounting for legislation that would penalize doctors if they don’t try to save the lives of children born during failed abortions. But a modest rally outside the office of Democratic U.S. Rep. Elissa Slotkin earlier this afternoon isn’t likely to generate results on the House floor.

The Susan B. Anthony List — a national nonprofit ultimately set on ending abortion in the U.S. — gathered a few dozen pro-lifers earlier this afternoon outside Slotkin’s Lansing office on Saginaw Street. The goal: Encourage “moderate” Democrats like Slotkin to sign a petition that forces a vote on anti-abortion legislation.

“This is common-sense, reasonable legislation that just says we need to protect babies and give them the same level of care that would be given to premature infants born at the same age,” said Susan B. Anthony List spokeswoman Mallory Quigley. “It’s important to have consequences when doctors fail to act on this.”

The Born-Alive Abortion Survivors Protection Act would mandate up to five years in prison and fines for doctors that fail to provide adequate medical treatment to infants born alive after a failed abortion attempt. Democratic leaders have refused to allow a vote on the matter. The only other avenue? Force their hand.

A discharge petition — with 199 signatures — essentially requires an endorsement from every Republican and a few Democrats to bring the bill to the House floor. It’s an admittedly steep hill to climb, Quigley said, but she hopes to garner enough bipartisan support to gain national traction and pass the legislation into federal law.

“This protects babies from medical abandonment and outright killing,” said Jill Stanek, national campaign chairwoman for the Susan B. Anthony List. “This is about the fate of a poor, helpless child.

“Slotkin presents herself as a moderate. This should be an easy decision for her to make. Why the hesitation?”

Slotkin has no intention of signing the discharge petition, according to a spokeswoman for her office.

But that doesn’t mean pro-life advocates are willing to surrender their cause in the face of a challenge. Other Democrats might still sign onto the discharge petition, Quigley said. Too many lives are at stake to give up, she contended.

“There are several moderate, Democrats who ought to support this,” Quigley added. “This should be common ground. It’s bipartisan. If giving protections for children that are born alive impacts a woman’s so-called right to choose, how far are we willing to go to defend that right? A majority of Americans think we’ve gone too far.”

Republicans, The Associated Press reports, hope the bill will be politically damaging for Democrats from moderate districts who oppose the move and see it as a way to energize conservative, anti-abortion voters. Proponents of the legislation insist additional safeguards are needed to protect children from birth.

Opponents, however, have argued that those living births are phenomenally rare and that added consequences for doctors are unnecessary and only put them at undue risk of lawsuits and criminal prosecution. The legislation also threatens to chip away at abortion rights in general, according to national pro-choice advocates.

The discharge petition requires 218 legislators to sign on before the bill can come to a vote. Even if all 197 Republicans climb aboard, it’ll still require 21 Democrats to push back against their own House leadership and force a vote on the legislation. And national reports ultimately paint a dismal likelihood of its success.