Late-Term Abortion Ban Up for Senate Vote

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WASHINGTON (ChurchMilitant.com) - A bill banning late-term abortions will be voted on in the U.S. Senate.

The Pain-Capable Unborn Child Protection Act (PCUCPA) passed the House of Representatives in October 2017. This was its third time passing the House. The bill has yet to pass the Senate.

It is thought pro-abortion Senate Democrats will filibuster to stop the bill from passing. They have already used filibuster against this bill on several occasions.

The PCUCPA will ban abortion after 20 weeks of pregnancy in most cases. There are exceptions for rape, incest and danger to the mother's life.

During the 2016 presidential campaign, Trump pledged that, if given the opportunity, he would sign the late-term abortion ban into law. In September, he confirmed this was a "high priority" for him.

He also promised to defund Planned Parenthood: a promise which now-President Trump has yet to fulfill.

The bill's 20-week threshold is based on scientific evidence regarding fetal development. The text of the bill explains, "Pain receptors (nociceptors) are present throughout the unborn child's entire body, and nerves link these receptors to the brain's thalamus and subcortical plate by no later than 20 weeks after fertilization."

According to LifeNews, the PCUCPA would save as many as 18,000 unborn children annually if it passes into law.

Unborn babies after 20 weeks are often aborted through dismemberment abortion. The vicious procedure involves ripping the baby's body into pieces and suctioning the remains piece by piece out of the mother's uterus.

Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) set up the vote for PCUCPA in the Senate on Wednesday. The vote will take place in the coming week.

Speaking to his colleagues in the Senate, McConnell mentioned the 45th annual March for Life that took place on January 19, saying, "Last week Americans from all across the country — including many from Kentucky — came here to speak up for unborn children, whom our legal system has denied the right to life. Now, Congress has an opportunity to step forward."

McConnell went on to point out, "The United States is one of just seven countries, just seven, including China and North Korea, that permit elective abortion after 20 weeks. It's time we begin to remedy this obvious and tragic moral wrong."

The senator's home state, Kentucky, recently passed a late-term abortion ban that is very similar to the PCUCPA. Many other states, including Ohio, have put similar legislation in place.

The Commonwealth of Kentucky has the reputation of being a highly pro-life state. Abortion supporters were in a tizzy in 2017 when word got around that there was only one operating abortion mill in all of Kentucky.

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