Democrats in Virgina made a massive own goal this week- and that was before Governor Northam, a renowned pediatric neurologist, was possibly found to have done blackface OR dressed up in a KKK outfit 30 years ago at a Halloween party.
Virginia Delegate Kathy Tran and Governor Northam both seemed to imply that a new bill proposed in the Virginia House to liberalize abortion restrictions would legalize infanticide of babies as they were being delivered or immediately afterwards. In reality of course, that's not what the bill would have done at all. In fact, comically, the bill wouldn't have made any substantive changes to abortion in Virginia whatsoever. Among the changes were removal of a 1 day waiting period, reduction of physicians required to approve a 3rd trimester procedure from 3 to 1. The only seemingly meaningful change, that abortions in the 3rd trimester previously only allowed for non viable fetuses and for "substantial and irredeemable" threats to the mother's physical or mental health would now be allowed for any threat to the mother's health, is in fact a joke. "Substantial and irredeemable" is not a medical term. Every pregnancy can be a substantial and irredeemable threat to the mother's health. Pulmonary embolism, post partum depression, stress urinary incontinence from vaginal deliveries, bowel obstructions and ureteral transections from c-sections, I could go on for hours. What are the odds that Planned Parenthood can find 3 doctors willing to testify that just about any health risk short of hemorroids is substantial or irredeemable? Near 100%.
Of course, at 34 or 36 weeks with a healthy pregnancy, those same doctors would certainly choose to just do a delivery instead. Apart from possibly Gosnell in Philadelphia, I know of no instance where a viable, healthy fetus at a reasonable gestational age was aborted instead of delivered. It just doesn't happen.
Delegate Tran's comments seem to spark from total lack of knowledge of the medical system and how a pregnant woman at, say, 36 weeks requesting an abortion would likely be treated. Governor Northam just badly explained what he meant, and was selectively quoted. He was, in fact saying that a woman about to deliver a fetus with severe abnormalities that precluded significant survival would be given the option: Allow Natural Death, or full code? When a baby has a life expectency of, say, 5 years at most and would likely need 2 dozen surgeries to get even that far, parents absolutely should get the choice of whether treatment is worth it.
Ultimately, the confusion and rage this week is yet another symptom of our divided political process, where compromise has become a sign of moral turbidity. However, I will still risk proposing one: full legalization of abortion in the 1st and 2nd trimester, for any reason. In the 3rd trimester, the woman will always have the right to have an early delivery, with abortions reserved for indications such as non-viable and severely abnormal fetuses and rare threats to the health of the mother that mandate procedures like a dilatation and evacuation instead of a delivery.
Virginia Delegate Kathy Tran and Governor Northam both seemed to imply that a new bill proposed in the Virginia House to liberalize abortion restrictions would legalize infanticide of babies as they were being delivered or immediately afterwards. In reality of course, that's not what the bill would have done at all. In fact, comically, the bill wouldn't have made any substantive changes to abortion in Virginia whatsoever. Among the changes were removal of a 1 day waiting period, reduction of physicians required to approve a 3rd trimester procedure from 3 to 1. The only seemingly meaningful change, that abortions in the 3rd trimester previously only allowed for non viable fetuses and for "substantial and irredeemable" threats to the mother's physical or mental health would now be allowed for any threat to the mother's health, is in fact a joke. "Substantial and irredeemable" is not a medical term. Every pregnancy can be a substantial and irredeemable threat to the mother's health. Pulmonary embolism, post partum depression, stress urinary incontinence from vaginal deliveries, bowel obstructions and ureteral transections from c-sections, I could go on for hours. What are the odds that Planned Parenthood can find 3 doctors willing to testify that just about any health risk short of hemorroids is substantial or irredeemable? Near 100%.
Of course, at 34 or 36 weeks with a healthy pregnancy, those same doctors would certainly choose to just do a delivery instead. Apart from possibly Gosnell in Philadelphia, I know of no instance where a viable, healthy fetus at a reasonable gestational age was aborted instead of delivered. It just doesn't happen.
Delegate Tran's comments seem to spark from total lack of knowledge of the medical system and how a pregnant woman at, say, 36 weeks requesting an abortion would likely be treated. Governor Northam just badly explained what he meant, and was selectively quoted. He was, in fact saying that a woman about to deliver a fetus with severe abnormalities that precluded significant survival would be given the option: Allow Natural Death, or full code? When a baby has a life expectency of, say, 5 years at most and would likely need 2 dozen surgeries to get even that far, parents absolutely should get the choice of whether treatment is worth it.
Ultimately, the confusion and rage this week is yet another symptom of our divided political process, where compromise has become a sign of moral turbidity. However, I will still risk proposing one: full legalization of abortion in the 1st and 2nd trimester, for any reason. In the 3rd trimester, the woman will always have the right to have an early delivery, with abortions reserved for indications such as non-viable and severely abnormal fetuses and rare threats to the health of the mother that mandate procedures like a dilatation and evacuation instead of a delivery.
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