A pro-life law similar to the one that recently went into effect in the state of Texas may be coming to Minnesota. That is, if state Rep. Tim Miller, R-Prinsburg, has his way.
Miller, who represents District 17A, has not only praised the Texas law but has introduced his own version of it in the Minnesota House, and plans to do so again in the next legislative session.
“My bill would accomplish two things; first, protect the lives of children; second, truly protect women’s health,” he said in a press release this week.
“HF 643 simply states that if you have a heartbeat, you are a human being deserving of life and individual rights.”
Miller is the father of seven children. He’s currently in his fourth term, and serves on the Taxes, Ways and Means, and Agriculture Finance and Policy committees.
Miller explained that while he’s in favor of banning abortion “outright,” heartbeat bills are a great place to start.
“Abortion is the most important issue of our age. Decades from now, future generations will look back and judge us by whether we supported abortion or opposed it.”
Miller has predictably come under intense criticism from Minnesota’s Democratic–Farmer–Labor (DFL) Party.
In a fundraising letter released last week, DFL Communications Director Brian Evans described Miller’s bill as “draconian” and a “threat to the health and reproductive freedom of Minnesotans across our state.”
Miller steadfastly rejects those claims.
“If Democrats truly cared about women’s health, then they would join me in the fight against abortion. Instead, Democrat leaders are lying to women by telling them that killing their child is some form of female empowerment. How shameful.”
“I do not believe anyone can honestly disagree with the obvious fact that when a heartbeat is present, human life is present,” he added in his press release.
And he embraced the DFL’s claim that he wants to “bring a Texas-style abortion ban to Minnesota.”
“Yes, that is my goal,” he said.
One way abortion activists have tried to push their agenda in the state is through the “Just the Pill” organization. The group sends out caravans to rural areas to hand out pills that cause chemically-induced abortions.
Miller said the group’s efforts are repugnant and “deeply wrong.”
“I believe this practice is incredibly sickening, and it puts women’s health at risk. For an organization that is not even legitimate enough to accept insurance to hand out pills which cause chemically-induced abortions is beyond unsafe. Just the Pill is ending the lives of unborn children and putting women in jeopardy,” he said.
“Such disdain for the preciousness of human life has tragically become all too common today.”
Stephen Kokx
Stephen Kokx, M.A., is a journalist for LifeSiteNews. He previously worked for the Archdiocese of Chicago under the late Francis Cardinal George. A former community college instructor, Stephen has written and spoken extensively about Catholic social teaching and politics. His essays have appeared in such outlets as Catholic Family News and CatholicVote.org.
