Can any commonsense abortion restriction survive Iowa’s radical courts?
That’s the question facing every Iowan following the State Supreme Court’s shocking Planned Parenthood v. Reynolds ruling.
By declaring abortion a “fundamental right” that can only be restricted under “strict scrutiny,” five, unelected judges effectively amended the Iowa Constitution to insert a standard so tough, it threatens every abortion law in Iowa.
The decision paves the way for partial-birth abortion, late-term abortion (all the way to the day of a baby’s birth!), abortion for minors without parental knowledge, removing medical safeguards for women seeking abortion, and even compelling taxpayers to fund elective abortion.
The overwhelming majority of Iowans, if given the chance, would protect women and children from gruesome, late-term and partial-birth procedures. We would insist abortion clinics maintain basic safety standards. We can’t imagine being compelled to pay for abortions.
But unelected judges have effectively refused Iowans that chance and reserved for themselves the “right” to overturn virtually any abortion protection.
That’s why ALL Iowans, regardless of their position on abortion, can support the Protect Life Amendment.
Though the bill’s final language has yet to be voted on, the Protect Life Amendment being recommended to the Iowa Legislature:
- Does not change any current Iowa law
- Does not ban any abortion
- DOES ensure that unelected judges cannot invent a carte blanche right to abortion or the tax-funding of abortion in the Iowa Constitution
Get the facts on the Iowa Supreme Court ruling and why an amendment is needed by clicking here!
Iowans need to understand: The Planned Parenthood v. Reynolds decision goes way beyond Roe v. Wade.
The ruling was so extreme that Iowa Supreme Court Justice Mansfield – who supported allowing “telemed” abortions without even a doctor present – wrote a scathing dissent of the Court’s “fundamental right” decision.
“With its decision today, the Court has elevated one extreme of this debate to a constitutional level and has made any meaningful compromise on this issue all but impossible,” Mansfield warned. “The majority cites no other court that has accepted this line of thinking.”
Put simply, the Protect Life Amendment is needed to correct a court decision so radical, it shocked lawyers and scholars alike.
“Without this amendment, unelected judges will have the power to throw away common sense, ignore We the People, and practically dictate dangerous abortion policies that harm both women and their babies,” explained Chuck Hurley, vice president and chief legal counsel for The FAMiLY Leader. “No matter how you view abortion, that’s wrong. We the People of Iowa, and not unelected judges, should decide how Iowa regulates abortion.”
“That the Court would undermine protections for fully-formed, full-term babies in the womb is just appalling to the vast majority of Iowans,” said Drew Zahn, director of communications for The FAMiLY Leader. “By now, we’ve heard all the arguments about abortion. But there’s one truth we can’t argue away. That little girl in her mother’s womb – she’s a baby, and she deserves protection.”
We need you! Your donation of even $3 tells Iowa’s legislators we can count YOU as someone who is willing to support the Protect Life Amendment. Let’s show lawmakers that We the People mean business. Let us COUNT ON YOU with just $3 today!
What’s next: The Iowa House and Senate need to pass the Protect Life Amendment in 2021, and then pass it again in 2022. Only then would it be brought before Iowa voters for ratification. The amendment does not require the signature of Iowa’s governor.
In recent years, the people of Louisiana, Tennessee, West Virginia, and Alabama have added similar amendments to their state constitutions, and Rhode Island ratified a similar amendment in 1986.
