CONCORD – House Speaker William O’Brien (R-Mont Vernon) and House Majority Leader Pete Silva (R-Nashua) today offered the following comments on Governor Lynch’s veto of House Bill 1679, legislation to ban partial birth abortions under state law. The procedure has been banned under a federal law passed in 2003, a law that was upheld by the U.S. Supreme Court in 2007’s Gonzales v. Carhart decision.
House Speaker William O’Brien
“Partial birth, or late term, abortion is an assault on the respect for life that is critical for a functioning society. The actual details of this procedure are too grizzly to discuss in polite company and is an affront to our basic sensibilities about humanity. There is a good reason why former liberal U.S. Senator Daniel Patrick Moynihan, a Democrat, described the procedure as ‘infanticide,’ as the method repels most decent people. It is unfathomable that Governor Lynch would veto this responsible bill. Overriding this veto will be a priority, and I would hope that all the gubernatorial candidates of both parties will join in our efforts.”
House Majority Leader Pete Silva
“Once again, the Governor has sided with liberal interest groups over the best interests of New Hampshire citizens. Partial-birth abortion is something that is so out of bounds that the U.S. Supreme Court vocally upheld the federal ban on this procedure. This veto shows that the Governor has lost touch with the people and he has picked the right time to move on. This issue should be something that Republicans and Democrats agree to work together to pass this law to protect the unborn babies of New Hampshire.”