For reasons never directly explained to RLM,
House Speaker
Jase Bolger refused to take a vote on S.B. 1156 & 1157 over the
final days of
the legislative session. While more than 100 bills were addressed
during a marathon
20-hour session spanning all day Thursday and until nearly sunrise
today, the
two coercive abortion protection bills were left to die and will
have to be reintroduced
in the new session starting in January. Bolger is term-limited and
will not be
returning to the legislature in 2015.
Kudos to Senate Majority Leader Randy
Richardville and lead
bill sponsor, Senator Judy Emmons, who went the extra mile trying
to get this
legislation through in the waning days of this session. They
demonstrated true
commitment and leadership to the prolife cause.
It is a disappointing finish to an otherwise
historic 4-year
legacy of passing prolife legislation under the current House and
Senate
leadership. Under Speaker Bolger and Majority Leader Randy
Richardville, RLM
was able to promote more significant prolife legislation than at
any other time
in our history. Both Bolger and Richardville are term-limited and
will not
return to the legislature in 2015. Right to Life of Michigan will
be working
with new leadership.
In 2011, after 15 years of effort, a ban on partial birth abortion was finally secured in Michigan law. In 2012, we passed
the
unprecedented Prolife Omnibus bill, putting four separate bills
together into
one. In 2013, the House and Senate approved our citizen petition
legislation to
remove abortion coverage from Obamacare plans and all health
insurance in
Michigan. Passage of the Coercive Abortion Protection Act would
have been a
crowning piece to this remarkable run of prolife legislation.
Some adversity only serves to strengthen
resolve. Right to
Life of Michigan will be back in 2015 to complete the mission of
protecting
women and girls from coerced abortions.
