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03.11.2009 11:37 am

Missouri House rehashes abortion debate; fireworks (and Twitter) ensue

St. Louis Post-Dispatch
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Bryan Pratt

Bryan Pratt

JEFFERSON CITY — The House of Representatives today passed Speaker Pro Tem Bryan Pratt’s bill criminalizing what it calls abortion coercion.

The debate, which once again got a bit personal, lasted about an hour.

“Please join me to reduce the number of abortions in the state of Missouri,” Pratt said to his colleagues.

Cynthia Davis, R-O’Fallon, and Beth Low, D-Kansas City, who are staunchly on either side of the issue, hashed it out.

“Give me a break, lady,” Low said when Davis said the bill would help women.

“Why are you against giving women information?” Davis asked.

The argument spiraled into both yelling, “You don’t know what you’re talking about!”

Then Davis said, “You do not know diddly squat, when–” at which point she was cut off by the presiding Representative.

Bel Nor Democrat Don Calloway also criticized the bill and its sponsors.

“I would like to give a rousing congratulations to Missouri Right to Life… They have shown who runs this body,” he said. “I think it’s disgusting — I think it’s immoral what we’ve decided to do” with the lobbyists.

Calloway said the bill is “criminalizing parenting, criminalizing pastorship, criminalizing mentorship, criminalizing friendships.”

“Can you show me where in the bill it criminalizes friendship?” Pratt asked.

The bill passed with 115 votes, which is more than enough to override a veto.

Incidentally, a few Representatives were twittering while this was going on. Some excerpts:

Republican Scott Diekhaus (@sdieckhaus):

  • Looks like Rep. Calloway is receiving an education from Rep. Pratt.
  • Very heated and emotional debate on abortion bill. Rep. Davis is likely crossing the line and making attacks personal.

Democrat John Burnett (@johnburnettkc):

  • Speaker gavels Cynthia Davis down for being rude in abortion debate.
  • Beth Low and Cynthia Davis debating abortion.This is worth the price of admission.

Follow me at @roseannmoring.

12 comments

Comments are closed.

can we outlaw twittering in the capitol? I like to at least imagine that our elected officials are thoughtful.

— Richard
11:46 am March 11th, 2009

We’re approaching 40 years since Roe V. Wade.
Can we move onto something else now?
Like jobs, education, housing, healthcare, energy, etc.

— Garrison
12:19 pm March 11th, 2009

Is it really appropriate for an allegedly unbiased journalist to link to her twitter page - and have the foremost comment on that page be from Bound for Life?

That just seems wrong to me.

— edl
12:41 pm March 11th, 2009

Just to clarify for those not on Twitter, another person cannot comment on your page. My latest tweet was a reply to Bound for Life, which asked how the bill was going. My tweet literally said: “@Bound4LIFE Passed 115-43″

On a related note, I welcome Twitter questions from everyone, so if you want to know what’s going on, feel free to tweet me.

— Roseann Moring
1:18 pm March 11th, 2009

So now we have the precursor legislation to compulsory pregnancy. It is obvious that women are incapable of making informed decisions and must be “protected” from those who may confuse them with such information. These poor suffering women must be “protected” by their moral and religious “superiors”.

And we are worried about Osama bin Laden and Al-Qaeda style terrorism.

Can you say overturned in the State Supreme court?

— RHarnack
2:31 pm March 11th, 2009

One other thought: Can we have the addresses of all 115 who voted for this? We can then publish them in every clinic as an “alternative care giver”.

— RHarnack
2:34 pm March 11th, 2009

I can not believe that this is how the Republican leadership chooses to spend its time. I can think of a hundred issues that are more important. I wish this legislature only met every five years!

— Tracy
2:45 pm March 11th, 2009

CYNTHIA DAVIS is a courageous woman who is looking out for women and their babies. Roe V. Wade was a poor decision that has cost the lives of countless babies. Just because it has been in place for nearly 40 years doesn’t make it right.

Point to consider: If a pregnant mother is gunned down, the gunman in charged with two counts of murder. But if a doctor aborts a baby of the same gestational age from a mother’s womb, that is somehow legal?

We can dress up abortion in all kinds of civil liberties and right to privacy arguments, but in the end, it is the senseless death of a baby.

— Mo Healthcare Advocate
8:03 pm March 11th, 2009

Mo Healthcare Advocate,

Do you advocate allowing the State to provide healthcare for mothers and children who earn less than $9,000. per year? If not, why not?

— D. Walker
9:25 pm March 11th, 2009

D. Walker: That’s a red herring, and you know it. The only reason you bring up that tired line of “reasoning” is because you know it makes absolutely no sense to charge a gunman with two counts of murder, when the mother can execute the same death sentence on the life in the womb and not only get away with it legally, but have people advocate that the government pay for it. You didn’t even answer the question.

RHarnack: Try making an argument based in logic rather than emotion. Why are pro-abortion folks so upset that women might actually have a chance to get some information? The woman can turn down the offer of information if she wants. All that part of the bill does is mandates that the abortionist gives her the chance to view the information if she wants to. Wow. Sounds like that’s equivalent to terrorism.

— SMC
10:57 pm March 11th, 2009

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