by Pravda Gladio

For the first time in Maine, on May 16, Democrats controlling both the House and Senate in Augusta have passed taxpayer-supported abortion services under LD 820.

Many Mainers who objected to the use of taxpayer dollars for abortion attended the Committee Hearings in April and gave testimony.  Mainers testified that they did not want their tax dollars being used to fund abortion, which is an elective procedure 99% of the time.

Democrats advocated for the bill and were lobbied heavily by the abortion industry in Maine.  Planned Parenthood attended the Committee Hearings and brazenly asked for funding by the passage of the bill. They stand to gain a lot of money with its passing into law.

Planned Parenthood makes the bulk of its money from preventing parenthood ironically and has been actively engaged in lobbying efforts in many states with Democratic Party controlled Houses and Senates.  In the last few months, there has been a push in many states for taxpayer funding of their abominable abortion procedure which can be viewed on National Review’s website www.tinyurl.com/truthaboutabortion/ for the public to see.

President Trump has promised voters to defund the abortion provider.  From all indicators, there is no Democratic candidate that can challenge his reelection in 2020, given the strength of the economy and the fact that Trump has delivered on most of his major platform promises thus far, from Economic Revival, Tax Reform, American Energy, Trade Reform, Ending Chinese Trade Deficit and Intellectual Property Theft, NAFTA Reset, and finally canceled Iran Deal and Exited the Trans-Pacific Partnership. He is still trying to deliver the border wall and immigration reform. The Democrat-controlled House of Representatives is blocking his agenda in the House.

The full roll call in the Maine House of Representatives on the legislation can be viewed online here: www.tinyurl.com/820houserollcall

District 140, Calais’s Representative Anne Perry (D), voted in favor of the legislation.  She said “For me, what this bill comes down to is protecting women who are victims. 90 percent of victims of rape, domestic violence, and sexual abuse are women. These women have had their choices taken away, they have had their very will taken away. I cannot take another choice away from them. These victims deserve to make a decision about their pregnancy that is safe for them. Their lives are too important for me to put additional strain on their wellbeing and their chance for a future. For that reason, I chose to support this legislation.”  

District 139  House Representative Will Tuell (R) said "With all of the health care needs that we have, and all of the demands on our system from needing to pay healthcare workers more to making sure that folks have access to life-saving services, to properly investing in the opioid crisis, to making sure that service providers are fairly compensated for the work that they do, I don't think LD 820 should have been passed. Final vote count for our delegation was as follows: (R) Tuell No, (R) Moore No, (D) Perry Yes, (D) Alley No, (R) Javner No." Senator Marianne Moore voted no, and Moore said “Washington County certainly understands that this legislation runs contrary to the Hyde Amendment, there will certainly be Federal repercussions for this legislation. And the funding will have to come totally from the State's General Fund which is already stretched very thin!.”  House Representative Kathy Javner (R) voted No also, Javner said “The passage of LD820, tax-funded abortions, sends the message loud and clear that Augusta is turning a deaf ear to the citizens of the state of Maine. Abortion is legal; however, forcing those of us who are morally opposed to pay for abortions is wrong on every level. Mandating laws and silencing the voice of the Maine people seems to be a trend of this administration. Everyone expected the pendulum to swing; but this, this sends the pendulum spinning.”

There were two heroic Democratic Senators who crossed party lines and voted against the passing of this legislation, Senator Michael Carpenter of Aroostook and Senator Bill Diamond of Cumberland. In voting no, Diamond said, "I believe that the people who opposed the bill have a strong passion regarding the abortion issue and I thought they made a valid point of not wanting their tax dollars to be used for something they oppose on such a personal level.”

State of Maine Legislature
Senate Roll-call #95: LD 820 (HP 594)

Tallies: Yeas (Y): 19, Nays (N): 16,
BELLOWS of Kennebec        D     Y
BLACK of Franklin                 R        N
BREEN of Cumberland             D        Y
CARPENTER of Aroostook             D        N
CARSON of Cumberland            D        Y
CHENETTE of York                 D        Y
CHIPMAN of Cumberland             D        Y
CLAXTON of Androscoggin            D    Y
CYRWAY of Kennebec             R        N
DAVIS of Piscataquis                 R        N
DESCHAMBAULT of York       D    Y
DIAMOND of Cumberland         D        N
DILL of Penobscot                 D     Y
DOW of Lincoln                 R     N
FARRIN of Somerset                 R        N
FOLEY of York                 R        N
GRATWICK of Penobscot             D        Y
GUERIN of Penobscot             R        N
HAMPER of Oxford                R        N
HERBIG of Waldo                 D        Y
JACKSON of Aroostook             D        Y
KEIM of Oxford                 R        N
LAWRENCE of York                 D        Y
LIBBY of Androscoggin             D        Y
LUCHINI of Hancock                 D        Y
MILLEIT of Cumberland             D        Y
MIRAMANT of Knox                 D        Y    
MOORE of Washington             R        N
POULIOT of Kennebec             R        N
ROSEN of Hancock                R        N
SANBORN  H. of Cumberland        D     Y
SANBORN  L. of Cumberland        D    Y
TIMBERLAKE of Androscoggin    R        N
VITELLI of Sagadahoc             D    Y
WOODSOME of York                 R     N