(Des Moines, IA) HF 2142, a bill that would protect the unborn at the moment of conception, was introduced into the Iowa House on February 2nd. The bill would need to pass out of the judiciary committee this week in order to survive the first funnel.
State Representative Greg Heartsill (R-Melcher-Dallas) is the sponsor of the bill.
“The key to ending abortion in this country is found within the Roe vs. Wade case itself. When this case was before the U.S. Supreme Court, Justice Potter Stewart readily admitted that if a state were to enact a statute which recognized the personhood of the fetus in the womb, then all the rights and protections of the 14th Amendment would apply. House File 2142 employs the rationale of Justice Stewart by simply establishing that human life begins at conception and therefore should be afforded constitutional protections,” Heartsill told Caffeinated Thoughts.
HF 2142 is currently assigned to a three-person subcommittee that consists of State Representatives Matt Windschitl (R-Missouri Valley), Marti Anderson (D-Des Moines) and Walt Rogers (R-Cedar Falls). Windschitl and Rogers have both co-sponsored the bill. Additional co-sponsors include State Representatives Dean Fisher (R-Garwin), Sandy Salmon (R-Denver), Stan Gustafson (R-Cumming), John Wills (R-Spirit Lake), John Landon (R-Ankeny), Joel Fry (R-Osceola), Steve Holt (R-Denison) and John Kooiker (R-Boyden).
The FAMiLY Leader, Personhood Iowa, Iowa Right to Life, and Iowans for Life all support the bill. The Iowa Annual Conference of the United Methodist Church, Planned Parenthood of the Heartland, the ACLU of Iowa, League of Women Voters of Iowa, Interfaith Alliance of Iowa and AFSCME Iowa Local 61 have registered against the bill.
Tim Overlin of Personhood Iowa told Caffeinated Thoughts that pro-life Iowans are encouraged to contact the sponsor and co-sponsors of the HF 2142 and thank them for their stand for life.