Lieberman Opposes Child Custody Act

Senator calls bill ‘political ploy’ 
 
WASHINGTON- Late last night Senator Joe Lieberman (D-CT) made the following statement in opposition to The Child Custody Protection Act. Speaking prior to the vote, Lieberman called the bill “a political ploy played at the expense of young women in the United States.” The Senate passed the Child Custody Protection Act yesterday by a vote of 65 to 34. The bill is expected to go to conference with the House.

“This bill is another direct attack on the reproductive rights of women and it turns its back on protecting vulnerable young women that often face threats of personal harm,” Lieberman said. The full record statement is below.
 
Mr. President, I rise today in opposition of The Child Custody Protection Act, S.403. This bill is not about reducing the numbers of abortions in America. S.403 is about politics played at the expense of young women in the United States. S.403 would make it a Federal crime for adults other than guardians to transport a minor across state lines to obtain an abortion This is not nearly as simple as it may sound. S.403 is another direct attack on the reproductive rights of women. It turns its back on young women who do not inform their parents about their decision to obtain an abortion even if they face threats of personal harm. S.403 would criminalize grandmothers, religious leaders, aunts and uncles, and doctors fighting for the health and well being of young women. This bill would take us back to the time before Roe vs. Wade where women did not have the right to control their own bodies and too often were forced to seek an abortion at any cost.

The supporters of S.403 want us to believe that there is a significant problem with young women being transported involuntarily over state lines to receive unwanted abortions without their parents’ consent. But this is not what this bill is about. The majority of young women involve their parents in a vital decision such as this. In fact, over 60% of young women involve their parents in their decision to have an abortion. For adolescents 14 years and younger, the number is 90%.

So what is happening in cases when young women choose not to involve their parents? Studies show that in one-third of the cases where young women do not involve a parent, they fear family violence or being forced to leave the home. Research tells us that almost 50% of pregnant young women with a history of physical abuse report that they were hit during their pregnancy. Unfortunately, the person they were most often hit by was a family member.

The truth is adolescents that are most at risk for teen pregnancy are also the most likely to come from violent homes. Here, they often may not receive the parental guidance they need to make healthy decisions. Therefore, many experts tell us that teens at greatest risk for teen pregnancy also suffer the most from mandatory parental consent laws. These are young women that often do not have access to good parental support and guidance. They are likely to turn to other adult role models in their lives – grandmothers, aunts, cousins, or sisters for that guidance and support.

But S. 403 would send these people – grandmothers, aunts and religious figures - to prison for assisting young women in need. Mr. President, is this the way the nation should be focusing on as a solution to teen pregnancy? Why don’t we work together to reduce the numbers of unintended pregnancies and give people the social supports they need to make healthy choices? Why aren’t the Administration and the Congressional majority talking about finding new pregnancy prevention programs that do not include jails?

Instead, this Administration and the majority in Congress are initiating programs that are reversing the declines in abortion rates that we saw in the late 1990s. The Bush Administration is more concerned with parental notification laws that we know hurt teens and would only affect a minority of cases than with actually preventing abortions. On their watch, abortion rates have stopped declining. In fact, according to government statistics, 90% of the states that attract the most out-of-state abortions actually have moderate to strict parental involvement laws. S.403 will do nothing to keep young women from having to make a difficult choice – it will only make it harder for them.

The American Psychological Association has listed studies that show that parental notification laws increase adolescent stress and anxiety. They increase the likelihood of teenage pregnancy. Parental notification laws also make it more likely that teens will turn to extralegal and unsafe methods of abortion that could result in serious injury.

I wished we lived in a world where parents would always be involved in their children’s health decisions. I would want any young woman in America contemplating abortion to trust her parents enough and feel safe enough to involve them in her decision. Unfortunately, that is not the reality that many of our young women face. They cannot go to their parents for fear of abuse and violence. This bill does nothing to protect these young women by including a strong judicial bypass, and does not take into consideration the difficult situations these young women face.

I cannot even list the numbers of groups that have come out in strong opposition of S.403, but they include the American Civil Liberties Union, the American Academy of Pediatrics, the American Medical Women’s Association, the National Organization for Women, the National Partnership for Women & Families, and the Republican Majority for Choice. I am joining those groups in opposition to S.403.

S.403 is another attempt at curtailing a woman’s right to choose – in this case, young women, who are often the most vulnerable to violence and abuse from those that are supposed to be protecting them. I ask my colleagues to defeat S.403.