Moses Bratrud of the Minnesota Family Council (MFC) joined Alpha News to discuss how the legislative session unfolded from a socially-conservative perspective.
The MFC aims to “mobilize Christians to transform Minnesota’s culture so that it cherishes life, affirms religious liberty, and preserves marriage and the family,” according to its website. As part of this activism, the MFC keeps a close eye on key bills proposed in the Minnesota Legislature.
Among the most important types of bills the group looks at are those concerning abortion. Bratrud describes abortion as the MFC’s “biggest single issue,” especially given the increased attention it has received since a draft opinion was leaked last month indicating that the Supreme Court intends to overturn Roe v. Wade.
Bratrud said that despite the audible outrage from the media and pundits, most Minnesotans actually agree that abortion should be more controlled. This is why, he suggested, the Legislature failed to pass any measures increasing abortion access this session.
“A majority of Minnesotans, something like 58-63%, support either abortion being entirely illegal or illegal in most cases or legal … [but] limited to the first trimester,” Bratrud explained.
“I don’t want abortions at all,” he continued, “but we have to read the room and understand that there are Minnesotans who think that abortion should be legal in the first trimester. That’s a fact, but if you put those people together with people who want it to be illegal completely or only legal in a case of rape or incest, then that forms a majority. So that is what the majority of Minnesotans … actually want.”
This is a large departure from what left-wing legislators in St. Paul advocate as they push for increased abortion access and a codification of Doe v. Gomez — which is essentially Roe v. Wade at the state level.
“It’s actually very clear that Minnesotans don’t support abortion on demand in the third trimester,” Bratrud said.
“So I think we can say confidently that Minnesotans do want to see our abortion laws change in a direction that would protect children,” he concluded.
These trends are also mirrored on the federal level, he reported: “a straight up majority of Americans when polled on the case at issue in Dobbs, Mississippi’s 15-week abortion ban, almost 60% of Americans supported a 15-week abortion ban.”
He also spoke on a variety of other issues the MFC is concerned with, including efforts to keep physician-assisted suicide illegal and prevent online gambling companies from marketing to children.
Kyle Hooten
Kyle Hooten is Managing Editor of Alpha News. His coverage of Minneapolis has been featured on television shows like Tucker Carlson Tonight and in print media outlets like the Wall Street Journal.
