Group drops controversial post cards in response to Senate Democrats’ abortion votes
By Cheryl Sullenger
Santa Fe, NM – During a Sunday Senate committee meeting laced with heavy emotion, two pro-life bills were tabled, leaving the out-of-control New Mexico abortion industry without accountability.
After clearing the House with strong bi-partisan support, two measures, HB 390 (Late-Term Abortion Ban) and HB 391 (Parental Notification for Abortion), landed in the Democratically-controlled Senate Public Affairs Committee, chaired by Sen. Gerald Ortiz Y. Pino.
Sen. Pino is a staunch supporter of “Catholics for Choice.” Earlier this month, Pino’s committee killed a bill that would have required that abortionists maintain local hospital privileges. Attendees of the hearing said he cut off expert testimony from the bill’s supporters and refused a fellow legislator’s request to allow the playing of 911 recordings that described numerous life-threatening abortion injuries suffered by women at New Mexico abortion facilities.
Pino’s antics continued during the Sunday hearing.
Pino appeared to lecture the 200 citizens who gathered for the hearing and incorrectly stated that “the Bible has no scriptural basis for when life begins!”
After a chorus of “boos” erupted, Pino slammed down his gavel and “chastised” those in attendance for being “disrespectful” and threated to have attendees “evicted” from the hearing, according to Bud Shaver of Protest ABQ.
However, Pino, seemed to have no problem showing disrespect for Alan Sanchez, spokesman for the New Mexico Conference of Catholic Bishops, publicly rebuking him and the three New Mexico Bishops for attempting to “force Roman Catholic teachings upon people of other faiths like Hindus, Muslims, and even atheists.”
“Common-sense legislation involving parental notification before minor girls can get abortions and protecting viable babies that could survive if birthed is more of a human rights issue than one of Catholic dogma. Certainly opposition to late-term abortions transcends religious affiliation. Even those who describe themselves as ‘pro-choice’ have difficulty with late-term abortions,” said Newman, “And as for parental notification, one would be hard-pressed to find a parent of a minor girl that would not want to be notified if a clinic was about to conduct an abortion on their child.”
Another committee member, Democratic Sen. Daniel Ivey Soto, accused his pro-life constituents of being “unprincipled,” even though he recounted how he was fascinated with observing his own daughter through ultrasound every chance he got while she was in the womb.
In addition to support from the New Mexico Conference of Catholic Bishops, both bills were also supported by Gov. Susana Martinez, who vowed to sign them if they reached her desk.
Voting 5-3 along party lines, the committee tabled both bills, which killed any prospect of passage in this legislative session.
In response, Protest ABQ dropped postcards calling out Senate Democrats who voted to keep unpopular late-term abortions and ensure abortions continue to be secretly done on minor girls without parental knowledge. The postcards showed images of the remains of a baby who died from a late-term abortion and an autopsy photo of a woman who died from a botched abortion, both of which could be avoided in New Mexico if Democrats had not blocked the legislation.
Senate Democrats issued a press release condemning the postcards as “extreme” and “violent,” complaining that young children might be exposed to the images.
“It is laughable that these pro-abortion politicians would hide behind the feelings of little children when they just cast votes to make sure more little children die,” said Newman. “The real ‘violent’ and ‘extreme’ acts of brutality are taking place inside New Mexico’s abortion mills, with the full blessing of Sen. Pino, Sen. Soto, and others. Voters need to remember that the next time these folks are up for re-election,”
New Mexico has perhaps the most liberal abortion climate in the nation, allowing abortions throughout all nine months of pregnancy without restriction or oversight. This has led to the establishment of the largest late-term abortion facility in the U.S., Southwestern Women’s Options, in Albuquerque, which solicits abortion customers from all 50 states.
Lack of abortion standards and oversight has also attracted the Texas abortion chain, Whole Women’s Health, which set up shop in Las Cruces for the purpose of encouraging women to cross state lines in order to avoid Texas abortion laws, such as parental consent before abortions on minors and a 24-hour waiting period.
“As long as New Mexico continues to ignore their duty to protect women and their babies from unscrupulous and predatory abortion businesses, they will continue to attract the bottom-of-the barrel abortionists,” said Newman. “And along with them, we can tragically only expect more abortion injuries and deaths at New Mexico abortion facilities.”
