WI Rep. David Craig on why partial-birth abortion ban will not contain exceptions

Rep. Craig has responded to Wisconsin Right to Life with a legislative memo of his own on why a life-of-the-mother exception in a partial-birth abortion ban is morally unacceptable, medically dangerous and legally unnecessary. Read Rep. Craig’s memo in its entirety here [PDF]. Read Pro-Life Wisconsin’s position on why abortion cannot be permitted in cases of rape, incest or life of the mother here.

Excerpt from Rep. Craig’s memo:
Legal opinions predictably vary on the legal need for a “life of the mother” exception in this bill; however, it is clear that the pro-life and medical communities understand that this 2-3 day procedure is never medically necessary to save the life of the mother. In my communications with attorneys, I found that including the life of the mother exception is, at best, unneeded and omitting it is, at worst, uncharted legal territory. The U.S. Supreme Court did not address whether a “life of the mother exception” was constitutionally necessary in Gonzales v. Carhart. Speaking to the omission of a health of the mother exception in the federal ban, Justice Kennedy stated:

The conclusion that the Act does not impose an undue burden is supported by other considerations. Alternatives are available to the prohibited procedure. As we have noted, the Act does not proscribe D & E. One District Court found D & E to have extremely low rates of medical complications. Planned Parenthood, supra, at 1000, 112 S.Ct. 2791. Another indicated D & E was “generally the safest method of abortion during the second trimester.” Carhart, 331 F.Supp.2d, at 1031; see also Nat. Abortion Federation, supra, at 467-468 (explaining that “[e]xperts testifying for both sides” agreed D & E was safe). In addition the Act’s prohibition only applies to the delivery of “a living fetus.” 18 U.S.C. § 1531(b)(1)(A) (2000 ed., Supp. IV). If the intact D & E procedure is truly necessary in some circumstances, it appears likely an injection that kills the fetus is an alternative under the Act that allows the doctor to perform the procedure. 2

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