The Benefit and Need for Fair National Abortion Legislation
There was once a rabbit by the name of Hector. Hector was an unusual rabbit because he does not live with other rabbits. Hector lives in a town of elephants who for the most part disregarded Hector because he was not like them and he was the only rabbit in this town. He has for all his life lived with these elephants even though he does not look like, eat like, talk like, or even run like them. There was one Elephant that did not recognize Hector but she elephant did not like having him around. This elephant, Poppy, thought that Hector was annoying to have in their town because he used resources and got all that he needed even though the town was very poor and many of the elephants in the town were struggling to get by with even the essentials of life. Poppy had always been annoyed with how Hector would run around making annoying sounds with his little rabbit feet. All of a sudden, one day, Poppy decided that she could have no more of Hector being a part of their community so she decided that she would get rid of Hector in order to have more resources for her and her family as well as get rid of this “nuisance” that was Hector. Hector Lived in a very small house on the outside of town and that same night when Hector was sleeping Poppy rumbled and tumbled to the house of Hector and with all of her might destroyed his tiny little house. Luckily Hector had heard rumors of what Poppy had been saying about him and decided to sleep in a friend's house that night. The next day the townspeople saw the destruction that Poppy had done and took Poppy down to the courthouse to put her in front of judge Hernandez the town judge. Hector had heard the news and he also went to the courthouse to state his side of the story. During the trial Poppy claimed that she did nothing wrong by attempting to murder Hector because she was protecting herself and her family by creating more resources for them. However, Hector was outraged by this argument and simply said that he had the same right to live in this town as everyone else did. After the testimonies Judge Hernandez pondered both arguments and came to the conclusion that due to the fact that Hector was not an elephant then he did not have the same rights as the rest of the town and ruled in favor of Poppy.
The moral of this story is that it is hard to define at what point does something become a part of the world around it even if it does not look the same, eat the same, or communicate the same. The topic of abortion is very similar to this story as it allows for one parties rights to take over those of another party which is how states, one way or the other, have dealt with abortion legislation in the past. It is time for change. Abortion is one of the most polarized political topics in the United States is dealt with in a increasingly flawed process. By leaving abortion legislation up to the states women have been hurt by not being able to attain a safe abortion as well as women have been hurt by having ever increasing ease in attaining an abortion which is why there is a need for a fair bipartisan congressional committee to define the start of life as well as create a law that can decrease the damage done to the women of America.
Abortion within the last century has become one of the most debated and polarized political commentaries in the United States especially in regards to its moral justification. Over six hundred thousand abortions are performed in the United States every year (quote here). The amount of abortions conducted in the United States is a major reason why this issue is so politically charged as well as why this topic demands so much political focus and attention. Another reason for the amount of attention given to abortion is the delicate medium needed between the rights of a woman and the rights of an unborn child that is asserted while making any type of legislation regarding abortion.
The history of abortion gained strength and exigence during the women’s rights movement of the 1960’s. The first and only true abortion legislation put in place on a major scale was the Supreme Court case Roe V. Wade. This case was a dispute between… Through almost one hundred years of major disputes on the national stage over abortion only one major national legislative decision has been created.
Some states tend to make it more difficult for women to get an abortion procedure by making it very costly and requiring the woman to travel long distances to get a safe abortion. With strict state laws making it very difficult to get an abortion, some women decide that a home abortion is a better option; therefore, causing an increase of unsafe home abortions, which may lead to death (mom and/or baby) and infertility in the mother. The causes of mortality of abortion patients in countries such as the United states is not that of the abortion itself, but the way that the abortion must be carried out (Grimes).
Many other states make it far too easy and affordable to get an abortion. Abortions in general can lead to long term mental effects that can influence future relationships of the women as well as their overall mental health. Compared to the general public, women who have had an abortion have “significantly higher” anxiety scores than both women who have had a miscarriage, and the general population of women who have carried their babies to full term (Ekeberg). This is yet another example of how states have failed in their attempts to make abortion restrictions that reduce governmental tensions and controversy over abortion.
However, some states have created abortion laws that ease the tension between citizens and the government. For example only five states have no gestational limit, only another eleven states prohibit private insurance companies from covering any abortion costs, finally only another eleven states make it possible for a minor to get an abortion without the consent of parents or guardians (An Overview of Abortion). Therefore, many of the states have laws that are bipartisan when regarding abortion. The majority of states have a gestational limit of 20 to 24 weeks which is a reasonable number with the ability to decrease the number of abortions happening in late pregnancy.
Because the state governments have proven their inability to make abortion laws that satisfy the general public, Congress and the national government should determine a national law in the middle ground of each extreme and begin implementation in order to increase safety and release tensions. These differences in state laws pose problems to a woman wanting an abortion in a state where she will have limited accessibility to one, which could lead her to attempt a dangerous home abortion or have to drive a very long way to have a safe abortion potentially being very costly to her and/or her family. However, in other extreme states many women have several abortions due to the availability and low cost of each one. This high abortion rate can have a mental and even physical toll on the mother. These extreme consequences of individual state abortion laws have caused harm to many women as well as trouble for the national government as people call for them to take action.
The only way to keep the effects of individual state laws from affecting the general public is by petitioning the government to revise its national laws concerning abortion, and scientifically determining the start of life through national legislation. I propose that a bipartisan joint committee be created and tasked with the mandating of nonpartisan regulations by which states must abide in order to keep national medical funding. This would incentivize states to follow the law supplied by the national government. The bipartisan joint committee would help to ensure the passage of the law through both chambers of congress as well as help ensure that both parties are represented in the legislation. If abortion laws were centralized, then the rate of unsafe home abortions would dramatically decrease protecting both the women and future children in the United States (Grimes). Another benefit of centralized legislation is that full term pregnancy would be presented as more of an option to women in America. The national government has the power to save and improve the lives of countless women by making a law that mandates and regulates abortion procedures. If the national government created this mandate then the mental problems of multiple or one abortion would decrease because these procedures would be equally regulated making a full term pregnancy more of an option.
Many state governments have failed in making reasonable abortion laws which has resulted in the harm of women, as well as, a legal and financial burden for the national government making it necessary that they take action with concern to abortion laws. This action needs to be in the form of a law by Congress stating abortion regulations as well as a definition of life. Skeptics may propose that this national decision on the aspect of abortion would not be possible because of the divided partisan views of political leaders. However, many national laws have become successful over very controversial subjects including racism (Civil Rights Act of 1965), Slavery (13th Amendment), and gay marriage (Obergefell V. Hodges). Why can these subjects be successfully addressed by the national government and not abortion? I propose that a bipartisan joint committee be created and tasked with the mandating of nonpartisan regulations by which states must abide in order to keep national medical funding. This would incentivize states to follow the law supplied by the national government. The bipartisan joint committee would help to ensure the passage of the law through both chambers of congress as well as help ensure that both parties are represented in the legislation.
This legislation would need several elements to truly ease this politically charged debate in a new and unfound fashion. To begin this legislation needs to have a definition of when life truly begins in order to begin to determine when the child in the womb attains basic human rights. This definition of life cannot be attained through the knowledge of just congress and the national government, yet with the help of the scientific community and studies on when and how life can be defined in a completely independent fashion is the only way to define a true start to life. This is the first and most important step to defining the legislative process to creating a new and less polarized abortion regulation. The right to life and the right of choice are the two major arguments on the topic of abortion in the United States. With a definition on when life truly begins within the womb this topic would make these two arguments completely invalid. This finding would define when the woman’s right to have control over their body ends due to the human child being created in the womb gaining basic human rights including that of the right of life. This definition of life can only be attained through the scientific method as that is the most successful and equal means of determining and defining the information that we are given and that we find. This is the most important and beneficial step of the process in making more informed decisions on legislation that defines abortion regulations.
The second most important step in creating more morally appropriate and physically attainable abortion legislation is creating an arena of equality in which these regulations can be crafted. This area of equality will most effectively be achieved through a bipartisan joint committee created in both the house and Senate of the United States congress. The creation of this joint committee would be the first step towards creating any abortion legislation because it will increase the chances of the proposed legislation through both the House and the Senate. This increased ability for passage through both the house and senate is due to the fact that a joint committee in congress is one that includes representatives from the House of Representatives and Senators from the Senate. Therefore, having both legislative bodies present in the committee at the same time will ensure that both of the body’s concerns are addressed and compromised upon.
The proposed committee should also be one bipartisan in nature. This bipartisanship will help to create an area in which compromise is not only expected but completely necessary. This working together of both parties is necessary for the implementation of this bill as it will require the two very divided parties to cooperate and have a closer working relationship. This legislation is necessary to begin to heal the rift between the Conservatives and Liberals in the United States. For the Past century the rift between these to sections of society has only began to widen and become more treacherous. This Legislation will not only help to solve the problem of abortion in America but it will also help to ease the tension between the two main parties by forcing some cooperation and compromise between the two.
The main pushback of the legislation will be from the state lawmakers themselves. This is due to the fact they would feel as if they are losing the power that is rightfully theirs which will be difficult to overcome however this legislation will provide gestational limits, limits on when and how a woman can attain an abortion as well as regulations regarding the smaller issues contained within the topic of abortion. Due to the fact that the state will most likely disregard the legislation there must be measures set up in order to enforce this law when it comes to states following the proposed legislation. These “consequences” of a state not following the regulations put on abortion would be the state as a whole losing fifty percent of their overall funding from the national government. This would prompt the states to follow the provided regulations even if they do not agree. These consequences would be enforced no matter whether it was on the more liberal or the more conservative side.
Overall Abortion being one of the most influential yet controversial topics in the History of the United States prompts more results from the national government. These results need to come in the form of national legislation on the topic of abortion therefore effectively taking the power of unequal treatment (with regards to abortion) away from the states. This legislation needs to come in the form of a congressional bill proposed by a bipartisan joint Committee in the Congress of the United States. There will be pushback by the states as they have lost the ability to control abortion within their own states, however, the benefits that will come from a national abortion laws for women as well as babies will tremendously outweigh the pushback from the states. This pushback can easily be solved by writing into the legislation that if the states do not comply with the regulations set forth by the national government then they will lose fifty percent of their funding for all schools, roads, and services. Even though abortion is such a large topic when it comes to within the United States there are other problems pressing the national government as well and most of these can be traced back to the divided nature of the two main national parties. This polarizability between parties can begin to heal with a fair national abortion law because it will provide a space of communication and compromise which in turn will open conversation of other topics just by dealing with a longstanding conflict.