Party Fowl: Dems Protect Roosters, Not Chicks
February 15, 2013 - Friday
On a scale of children to chicken, who do you think gets more protection in this country? Based on the last eight years of interstate legislation, roosters rule the roost. Back in 2007, it took just one try to outlaw the transporting of animals across state lines for cock- and dog-fighting. Believe it or not, 212 Democrats co-sponsored that bill. Do you know how many co-sponsored last year's ban on transporting young girls across state lines for abortions? Three. Apparently, humane treatment has its limits--especially if that treatment interferes with the Left's radical abortion agenda.
Pro-lifers have spent the better part of eight years trying to give America's daughters the same security as its animals through CIANA, the Child Interstate Abortion Notification Act. It operates on the basic assumption that if schools can't take children on a field trip without parents' permission, people shouldn't be able to take young girls over state lines for secret abortions either. Yesterday, Senators Marco Rubio (R-Fla.), Orrin Hatch (R-Utah), and Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) introduced CIANA for the fourth time, hoping that this year Democrats will take Americans' concerns seriously. More than 80% of parents think that they should be informed before their daughter is whisked away to another state for a decision as life-changing (and life-destroying) as abortion.
In America, most children can't get their ears pierced without a mom or dad's consent. What parent would say that's more dangerous than undergoing major surgery? Even if you support abortion, wouldn't you want to know if your daughter were having one? "We've taken into consideration appropriate exceptions and safeguards," said Sen. Hatch, "and we feel that this is legislation a vast majority of Americans can agree on. This bill is a legitimate, constitutional way... [to] help protect children and support parents." In this latest version of CIANA, it would be illegal to bypass the parental involvement laws of a girl's home state. It also orders parents to be notified at least 24 hours in advance of any abortion for an out-of-state minor.
Of course, the same people who say there's a war on women are the very ones opposing this common sense bill to protect them. And while the Left kicks and screams that CIANA infringes on "choice," the reality is that this measure isn't anti-abortion--it's pro-parent. Moms and dads deserve to be involved in their daughters' life and death decisions--especially when sexual predators and the abortion industry are working so hard to exploit our kids. Win or lose, Senator Rubio says, "This is never going to be a political issue for me. I don't care if [the vote] is 90-10 or 99-1. The fundamental issue of life is one that I will never change my opinion on." President Obama said it's time to come together and protect children. Tell him to prove it by encouraging Congress to support this bill.
Pre-K Not O-K with Experts
President Obama may have taken his plan on the road, but there are still plenty of empty seats on the federal preschool bandwagon. People across the political spectrum are skeptical of an idea whose modest results come with a not-so-modest price tag. "In all," NRO tallied up, "taxpayers already spend an estimated $25 billion on some 45 federal day-care and pre-school programs annually." And that's on top of the $10 billion low-income families already receive for child care.
Most experts think the President would just be replicating the failure of states like Georgia and Oklahoma, where leaders have implemented the early education the President wants--but without positive results to show for it. After pouring hundreds of millions of taxpayer dollars down the preschool drain, the Heritage Foundation explains that in Oklahoma, kids' reading scores actually dropped after universal Pre-K was implemented. And Head Start, the closest thing to the President's "zero-to-five" education plan, was a $181 billion bomb by even the government's standards.
Unfortunately for taxpayers, scientific evidence doesn't seem to factor much into this administration's decision-making (see embryonic stem cells). The Left is more interested in getting children away from their parents and into a government-controlled environment than it is about real success. Otherwise, the concerns of leading scholars like Russ Whitehurst--who called any statistical benefits of Pre-K education "thin empirical gruel"--might matter more.
As the President's own HHS spelled out, programs like Head Start are educational fools' gold. The advantages typically evaporate by the first grade--whereas the benefits of the intact family on a child's well-being last a lifetime. What kids need are parents--not preschool. That's why FRC developed the hugely popular child tax credit to make it easier for parents to raise children at home. Based on the proposal the left-wing Center for American Progress released last week, Obama's Pre-K plan would cost $10,000 per child ($98,400,000,000 over 10 years)--which FRC's Dr. Henry Potrykus points out, has less influence on a child's well-being than an institution that costs taxpayers nothing: the intact family. What our four-year-olds need more than anything is a loving, secure home with a married mom and dad who love each other. Access to education is important, but not as important as access to strong, stable families.
** On Friday's edition of "Washington Watch with Tony Perkins," Shared Hope International Founder and President Linda Smith joined us to talk about the growing problem of sex trafficking in America and around the world. Also, The Heritage Foundation's Hans von Spakovsky discusses what's up with the DOJ's collection of voter information. FRC's own Ken Klukowski wrapped up the show with an update on the case in which public prayer was ruled a violation of the First Amendment. Click over to TonyPerkins.com to listen!
*** And finally, some good news for a Friday! Ken Klukowski celebrates another court victory over the ACLU in his Breitbart piece, "Federal Court Dismisses Lawsuit against Ten Commandments Display." Also, if you're a fan of the Oscar-nominated film Lincoln, don't miss Ken Blackwell and Bob Morrison's new op-ed, "Democrats Claiming Lincoln."