Senate won't censure Chinese forced abortions

On September 13, by a vote of 43 to 53, the Senate rejected a measure calling on China to cease forced abortions and sterilizations. The provision was proposed as a nonbinding sense of Congress amendment to HR 4444the bill approving Permanent Normal Trade Relations (PNTR) with China-so would not have legally affected China's PNTR status.

Sponsor Sen. Jesse Helms (R.-N.C.) stressed the need for at least voicing opposition to the Chinese practices in light of numerous reports and testimony regarding population control policies, which he called "revolting" and "shameful:"

"But the pending amendment is not merely about life," he said, "it seems to me it is about liberty. Bureaucrats terrorizing women into unwanted abortions or medical operations permanently depriving them of their capability to have children, it seems to me, is the ultimate appalling affront to freedom. . . . The question that comes to my mind is, Can the Senate proceed to award China with permanent trade privileges while refusing to express our revulsion at a basic violation of women's freedom?"

Sen. Bob Smith (R.-N.H.) argued that passing the current amendment would in no way endanger the bill's passage. "Forty million children have died in this country alone from abortion. . . . So maybe we should not be too surprised that the Senate is willing to look the other way while they do it in China. We should not be real surprised. But someday I pray that I will be able to stand here and say thank you to at least 67 of my colleagues who put a stop to it. Maybe that day will happen some time in my lifetime. 1 sure look forward to it:'

For many pro-PNTR members, however, the substance of any amendment was not important. They opposed them all because, eager to finish PNTR this year, they wanted the Senate to pass the measure exactly as it came from the House so that no conference committee would be needed to iron out differences.

A "yes"vote was a vote to amend the China PNTR bill with an expression of the sense of Congress that the President should urge China to cease killing unborn children against their mothers' consent. A "no" vote was a vote to leave the bill unchanged.

FOR THE AMENDMENT: 43

REPUBLICANS FOR (24): Abraham, Ashcroft, Banning, Bums, Campbell, Collins, DeWine, Gregg, Helms, Hutchinson (Ark.), Inhofe, Jeffords, Kyl, McConnell, Santorum, Sessions, Shelby, Smith (N.H.), Snowe, Specter, Thompson, Thurmond, Voinovich and Warner.

DEMOCRATS FOR (19): Bayh, Boxer, Breaux, Byrd, Conrad, Dodd, Dorgan, Edwards, Feingold, Harkin, Hollings, Kerry (Mass.), Kohl, Leahy, Mikulski, Reed (R.1), Reid (Nev.), Sarbanes and Wellstone.

AGAINST THE AMENDMENT: 63

REPUBLICANS AGAINST (29): Alard, Bennett, Bond, Brownback, Chafee, Cochran, Craig, Crapo, Domenici, Enzi, Fitzgerald, Frist, Gramm (Tex.), Grams (Minn.), Grassley, Hagel, Hatch, Hutchison (Tex.), Lott, Lugar, Mack, McCain, Murkowski, Nickles, Roberts, Roth, Smith (Ore.), Stevens and Thomas.

DEMOCRATS AGAINST (24): Baucus, Biden, Bingaman, Bryan, Cleland, Daschle, Durbin, Feinstein, Graham (Fla.), Inouye, Johnson, Kerrey (Neb.), Landrieu, Lautenberg, Levin, Lincoln, Miller, Moynihan, Murray, Robb, Rockefeller Schumer, Torricelli and Wyden.

NOT VOTING (4): Akaka, Gorton, Kennedy and Lieberman.

Copyright Human Events Publishing, Inc. Sep 29, 2000
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