Pelosi Statement on the 32nd Anniversary of Roe v. Wade

Pelosi Statement on the 32nd Anniversary of Roe v. Wade

Washington, D.C. -- House Democratic Leader Nancy Pelosi released the following statement today on the 32nd anniversary of Roe v. Wade:

"Tomorrow, we will observe the 32nd Anniversary of Roe v. Wade, the landmark Supreme Court decision that affirmed a woman's right to make her own reproductive health care decisions.

"Roe v. Wade is based on a woman's fundamental right to privacy, a value that all Americans cherish. It established that decisions about whether to have a child do not and should not rest with the government. A woman -- in consultation with her family, her physician, and her faith -- is best qualified to make that decision.

"Sadly, more than 30 years after the Supreme Court ruled, we still must remain vigilant in defending Roe from assaults by anti-choice lawmakers in Congress and President Bush. In the last year alone, President Bush signed into law the first federal bill to criminalize abortion, promoted policies that block access to family planning and emergency contraception, and steered taxpayer money to abstinence-only programs. The President's Justice Department subpoenaed the private medical records of women to defend his federal abortion ban. At the end of the most recent session of Congress, anti-choice Republican lawmakers slipped a radical change in policy - essentially a domestic gag-rule - into the omnibus spending bill without even a hearing, debate, or separate vote.

"As I have throughout my time in Congress, I will continue to work in the spirit of Roe v. Wade to ensure a woman's right to choose. We must preserve the right to privacy while promoting a comprehensive approach to reproductive health care, including planning for healthy families, preventing unintended pregnancies, and providing comprehensive and medically-accurate sexuality education."

http://www.house.gov/pelosi/press/releases/Jan05/RoeVWade012105.html