A group of Republican Senators introduced the Pain-Capable Unborn Child Protection Act once again, a piece of legislation that would ban abortions after 20 weeks gestation. Led by Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-SC) the lawmakers deem the legislation “common sense” policy on abortion, citing an unborn child’s ability to feel pain at 20 weeks into a woman’s pregnancy.
Republicans in the upper chamber have tried numerous times to pass this legislation unsuccessfully, and the vast majority of the caucus has historically supported it. Reintroducing the measure in the opening days of the Biden administration, Graham said that the legislation would put the country on “the right side of history.”
“I am proud to once again introduce the Pain-Capable Unborn Child Protection Act. There are only seven countries that allow wholesale abortions at the 20-week period, including China and North Korea. The United States should not be in that club,” he said.“I don’t believe abortion, five months into pregnancy, makes us a better nation. America is at her best when she’s standing up for the least among us, and the sooner we pass this legislation into law, the better. We are on the right side of history.”
BREAKING: Senator @LindseyGrahamSC re-introduces Pain-Capable Unborn Child Protection Act:
— Susan B. Anthony List (@SBAList) January 27, 2021
"I don’t believe abortion, five months into pregnancy, makes us a better nation... The sooner we pass this legislation into law, the better."#TheyFeelPain pic.twitter.com/RzmthwTwbH
The legislation is cosponsored by 43 Republican Senators. As previous versions of the act have, it includes exemptions to the 20 week statute for victims of rape and incest, and for cases where the life of the mother is endangered. The act clearly mandates that a woman who manages to obtain an abortion illegal under this legislation will not be prosecuted; the responsibility would lie with the abortion provider.