{"database": "press", "table": "releases", "rows": [["https://www.lgraham.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/press-releases?ID=E6F52D7A-4FBF-4F7A-834F-83B1E809456D", "Graham: We Cannot Abandon The Unborn", "2022-09-13", "2022", "2022-09", "Republican", "Senate", "SC", "Lindsey Graham", "G000359", "www.lgraham.senate.gov", "graham", "https://www.lgraham.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/press-releases", "scraper", "WASHINGTON \u2013 U.S. Senator Lindsey Graham (R-South Carolina) today made the following statement in response to Andrew McCarthy\u2019s \u201cConfession of Error on My Abortion Post\u201d analysis of the Protecting Pain-Capable Unborn Children from Late-Term Abortions Act.\n\n\u201cI\u2019ve known Andy McCarthy for years. He\u2019s a strong conservative voice on many issues, including national security matters. While we\u2019ve had our disagreements, I\u2019ve always respected his point of view. I have never respected Andy more than I do now.\n\n\u201cAndy took time to actually read the legislation and better understand what we\u2019re trying to accomplish, and I hope others follow suit.\n\n\u201cThe legislation we introduced today, with the support of America\u2019s leading pro-life groups, is designed to create a minimum standard in America when it comes to the unborn.\n\n\u201cI agree that abortion is now in the hands of the states, but it does not mean that Washington is closed for business when it comes to protecting the unborn. While I\u2019m a strong believer in the Tenth Amendment, many abuses have been justified under the guise of states\u2019 rights. I do not believe completely abandoning the unborn under the guise of states\u2019 rights serves the conservative cause or makes us a better nation.\n\n\u201cThe radical Left recently pushed legislation in Washington \u2013 supported by nearly every Democrat \u2013 that will allow abortion up until the point of birth. Their legislation is well outside the mainstream of the world, and I have been working with pro-life groups to produce an alternative.\n\n\u201cThe Protecting Pain-Capable Unborn Children from Late-Term Abortions Act is a rational, scientifically sound answer to this emotional issue.\n\n\u201cThe legislation I introduced is in the mainstream of the developed world. 47 out of 50 European nations have abortion restrictions more protective than 15 weeks. France, Denmark, and Norway are at 12 weeks. Germany, Spain, and Belgium are 14 weeks. There are only 7 nations that allow abortion on demand up until the point of birth \u2013 North Korea and China among them.\n\n\u201cI believe the Republican party should be the party of respecting the Tenth Amendment \u2013 but we\u2019re also a nation greater than the sum of its parts. A great nation should not allow procedures \u2013 in any state \u2013 that will result in the dismemberment of a 15 week developed child unless there were extraordinary circumstances.\n\n\u201cMy bill explicitly says it will not preempt states that have more restrictive proposals on abortion.\n\n\u201cWe know from medical science that babies feel pain because their nerve endings are developed by 15 weeks. That is why health care professionals administer anesthesia when operating on a baby at 15 weeks.\n\n\u201cIt seems to me that prohibiting the dismemberment of a child at this point in time is the right answer for a great nation and places us in the mainstream of developed nations.\n\n\u201cFinally, I appreciate Andy\u2019s second look at the bill and look forward to working with him and others as we address the proper role of not only government but society when it comes to protecting the most vulnerable among us \u2013 the unborn.\u201d\n\n#####", 1, "2026-03-30T01:40:41Z", "2026-04-06T18:29:59Z"]], "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://www.lgraham.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/press-releases?ID=E6F52D7A-4FBF-4F7A-834F-83B1E809456D"], "units": {}, "query_ms": 1.5928689390420914, "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"}