Reynolds Rebukes Iowa Supreme Court Ruling at Pro-Life Rally

Iowa Governor Kim Reynolds offered some strong criticism of the Iowa Supreme Court’s at a pro-life rally held in the Iowa State Capitol Building rotunda on Thursday morning.

The Prayer Rally for Life was hosted by the Iowa Pro-Life Leaders Coalition, a group consisting of several pro-life organizations in the state such as The FAMiLY Leader, Iowa Right to Life, Iowans for Life, Personhood Iowa, and Restored by Grace.

Reynolds outlined what her administration and the Iowa Legislature has done to advance the pro-life cause to a receptive group of approximately 150 to 200 pro-life Iowans, a pro-abortion heckler watching from the overlook above attempted unsuccessfully to disrupt her remarks by yelling, “keep your hands off my vagina.”

During her speech, Reynolds also explained how the Court’s ruling overturning the 72-hour waiting period for abortions changed the legal landscape for pro-life legislation that led her to decide not to appeal a district court ruling overturning the fetal heartbeat abortion ban.

Reynolds said she did not make that decision lightly, but only after much prayer and consultation with the legal team, pro-life legislators and pro-life leaders in the state.

She said when they passed the fetal heartbeat abortion ban they knew it was going to be an uphill battle in the courts until that Iowa Supreme Court ruling.

“(E)verything changed last June when the Iowa Supreme Court struck down the 72-hour waiting period after concluding in that ruling that the Iowa Constitution provides a right to an abortion and imposes strict scrutiny on all of our abortion laws,” Reynolds said.

“Just imagine, in Iowa, a couple has to wait three days to get married to make sure that they aren’t rushing into that decision. Adoptive parents must wait three days before they can become legal guardians of a baby so the birth mother can fully and carefully reflect on their decision. Yet according to the Iowa Supreme Court an abortion, the taking of an innocent life, can’t wait 72 hours,” she explained.

“That ruling was more aggressive than the United States Supreme Court, Roe v. Wade, and that one ruling makes Iowa and the Iowa Constitution the most abortion-friendly in the nation. And put down the groundwork to put every abortion restriction in danger of being overturned now and in the future,” Reynolds remarked. “I believe and know that they got that decision wrong. And I am here to tell you that because of you, and because we won that election, we are changing that because we are appointing judges to the bench that will adhere to the law and the Constitution of Iowa and the Constitution of the United States.

So far Reynolds has made two appointments to the Iowa Supreme Court during her short time as Governor.

Watch her entire speech:

State Representative Sandy Salmon (R-Janesville) preceded Reynolds. Watch her remarks below:

You can watch Caffeinated Thoughts Facebook Live broadcast of the rally below as well: