{"database": "press", "table": "releases", "rows": [["https://chrissmith.house.gov/news/documentsingle.aspx?DocumentID=415846", "The Washington Stand article on Smith Special Order'Hyde Amendment Approaches 50th Anniversary Having Saved almost 3 Million Babies'", "2026-09-18", "2026", "2026-09", "Republican", "House", "NJ", "Christopher H. Smith", "S000522", "chrissmith.house.gov", "chrissmith", "https://chrissmith.house.gov/news/documentquery.aspx", "scraper", "By Quinn Delamater\n\nPublished September 18, 2026\n\n\u201cAn innocent, defenseless human life, in a caring and humane society, deserves better than to be flushed down a toilet or burned in an incinerator.\u201d Such are the words of Henry Hyde, the former U.S. congressman from Illinois who tirelessly championed life and introduced the Hyde Amendment in 1976. Almost 50 years later, the legislative rider faces the opportunity to be renewed again.\n\nFor a half-century, the Hyde Amendment has stopped taxpayer dollars from funding abortion.\n\nOn Wednesday evening, Rep. Chris Smith (R-N.J.), co-chair of the Congressional Pro-Life Caucus, hosted a Special Order on the House floor to acknowledge the upcoming 50th anniversary of the Hyde Amendment on September 30. \u201cThe promise of America is that life is not just for the privileged, the planned, or the perfect,\u201d Smith said, quoting Hyde. \u201cThis may sound odd, even ironic; you are here in the flush of victory. And yet it is precisely now that I ask you to contemplate the possibility of defeat, perhaps even the necessity of defeat. If you don\u2019t know the principle or the policy for which you are willing to lose your office, then you are going to do damage here.\u201d\n\nQuena Gonz\u00e1lez, senior director of Government Affairs at Family Research Council, explained to The Washington Stand that Smith and Hyde have a history. \u201cRepresentative Chris Smith served with Representative Henry Hyde for 26 years; he\u2019s been a tireless defender of the unborn in Congress for 45 years and comes as close as anyone to carrying Hyde\u2019s inimitable mantle.\u201d\n\nAfter the Roe v. Wade decision in 1973, the U.S. government paid for an estimated 300,000 abortions each year via Medicaid. According to the Charlotte Lozier Institute, since the Hyde Amendment\u2019s first enactment in 1976, approximately 2.7 million lives have been saved.\n\nDuring Wednesday\u2019s event, Rep. Chip Roy (R-Texas) asserted that society has a duty to protect the unborn. \u201cLife matters. Who are we as a people if we cannot stand up in defense of the most innocent form of life there is \u2014 a child in the womb of its mother? That should be our calling. And we should be able to unite as human beings in defense of the defenseless.\u201d\n\nLegislative Assistant for FRC\u2019s Government Affairs Chantel Hoyt praised what House members shared during the Special Order. \u201cI appreciated seeing Representative Chip Roy connect this important anniversary to the toll that chemical abortion is taking,\u201d she told TWS. \u201cIt\u2019s encouraging to see members like Representative Chris Smith carrying on Henry Hyde\u2019s legacy and seeking to not only retain but build on the protections of the Hyde Amendment.\u201d\n\nRep. Tracey Mann (R-Kan.) observed during the House event that he believes that abortion is not consistent with the Constitution. \u201cHyde should not be viewed as the finish line for the pro-life movement. It\u2019s the floor. It\u2019s a bare minimum compromise,\u201d he shared. \u201cAmerica is founded on the self-evident truth that every person is created equal and endowed with our creator with an inherent right to life. That right is the foundation of every other right that we enjoy. As a father, I believe that every child is fearfully and wonderfully made by God. Every life has value, every child has purpose, and no child is a mistake.\u201d", 1, "2026-09-19T09:11:33Z", "2026-09-19T09:12:45Z"]], "columns": ["url", "title", "date", "year", "month", "party", "chamber", "state", "member_name", "bioguide_id", "domain", "scraper", "source", "date_source", "text", "has_text", "collected_at", "updated_at"], "primary_keys": ["url"], "primary_key_values": ["https://chrissmith.house.gov/news/documentsingle.aspx?DocumentID=415846"], "units": {}, "query_ms": 0.762042123824358, "source": "dwillis/congress-press", "source_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press", "license": "MIT", "license_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press/blob/main/LICENSE"}