Abortionist find a federal judge; 24-hour waiting law tied up in court
By Allen Palmeri
Staff Writer
October 21, 2003
JEFFERSON CITY – Abortion activists know what to do when they lose a legislative battle, said Kerry Messer, president of Missouri Family Network.
"They go judge shopping," he said.
Missouri lawmakers passed a 24-hour waiting period bill and even mustered a two-thirds majority on Sept. 11 to override a veto by Gov. Bob Holden. The winners were ecstatic. The losers, led by America’s biggest supporter of abortion, Planned Parenthood, went "shopping" for a judge much like consumers traveling from store to store comparing the merits of two or three brands. The abortionists’ decision: U.S. District Judge Scott O. Wright of St. Louis.
On Oct. 10, Wright performed as advertised, blocking the new law one day before it was to have gone into effect.
"It’s just another example of judicial activism, usurping the will of the people," said Joey Davis, Missouri state director of Concerned Women for America and a member of First Baptist Church, Branson.
The 24-hour waiting law requires women to wait 24 hours before having an abortion and to undergo counseling with their physician on the health risks involved. Studies have shown that a considerable number of women who wait 24 hours and receive such counseling end up keeping their babies.
Pro-life organizations have estimated that the 24-hour waiting law will save the lives of more than 5,000 Missouri babies each year.
Abortionists who shop for a federal judge like Wright have plenty of options in Missouri, Messer said, thanks to the appointment strategy of former President Bill Clinton who had eight years to appoint abortionist judges to Missouri courts. He took full advantage, Messer said.
Wright, a Clinton appointee, issued a temporary restraining order against the law and scheduled a Jan. 27 hearing on whether to impose an injunction.
"It is sad to see our courts continually counter legislative action that is supported by the people," said Rep. Brian L. Baker, R-Belton and a member of First Baptist Church, Belton.
Abortion activists love the judicial system, said Messer, a lobbyist in the state legislature. They delight in defeating pro-life/pro-family supporters by bypassing legislative action and appealing to judges who share their ideology, Messer said.
One such example is Missouri’s partial-birth abortion law of 1999. Wright was utilized then as well, issuing the first ruling blocking enforcement. The law remains buried in the judicial system. Emboldened by this success, pro-abortion forces have taken aim at the 24-hour waiting law.
Even if a pro-life law manages to make it to the U.S. Supreme Court, relief would be unlikely. The high court, in what pro-life supporters say is judicial activism at its worst, has upheld abortion as a constitutional right even though it is not mentioned in the Constitution.
Uprooting liberal judges requires a long-term strategy, Messer said. Biblically qualified people need to run for school boards, water boards, soil and water districts, county commission and alderman, he said. That would create a pool of statesmen from which biblically qualified governors and presidents would emerge. In time, that would get rid of all the abortion supporters.
Until then, Christian representatives like Baker are resolved to oppose groups, like Planned Parenthood, who tie up every pro-life piece of legislation in Missouri. Baker noted that nearly two dozen states have laws similar to the one that has been dumped into Wright’s lap.
"The idea that the law is vague because of wording, when 20 other states have used nearly identical language that has stood up to the courts, is wrong," Baker said.
"This law’s language aligns with 20 other states. It has withstood the legal test. I believe we can defend this law and I believe women and children will benefit from it."
Attorney General Jay Nixon is charged with defending the law. Messer urged all Missouri Baptists to pray for him. Pray for God to bless Nixon as the government official in step with the majority on this issue.
"We can pray, because God is in control and laughs at the plans of man," Davis said.