Washington D.C., Jun 6, 2013 / 12:26 pm
By a vote of 6 to 4, the U.S. House Subcommittee on the Constitution and Civil Justice approved a bill on Tuesday that would ban abortions after 20 weeks of gestation.
The bill, introduced by Congressman Trent Franks (R-Ariz.), is based on mounting evidence which indicates that unborn children can feel pain at 20 weeks gestation and possibly earlier.
Rep. Franks said he hoped the recent trial of Philadelphia abortionist Kermit Gosnell had created a "teachable moment" on the reality of late-term abortions in the U.S. Gosnell was convicted last month of murdering babies who survived his late-term abortions. He was accused of mistreating patients and running an unsanitary clinic with blood-stained rooms and filthy equipment.
"We, as a nation, find ourselves at a point at which we don't offer unborn children even the most basic protections – even protections we extend to animals and property," Franks said in a press release.