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Floor Speech

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Mrs. HYDE-SMITH. Mr. President, this week has given the pro-life movement quite a bit to celebrate. On Tuesday, we marked the third anniversary of the landmark decision in Dobbs v. Jackson. And today the U.S. Supreme Court delivered another life-affirming victory in the Medina v. Planned Parenthood case out of South Carolina, holding that States can defund the abortion industry by ensuring that abortion providers are excluded from the States' Medicaid Program.

This commonsense decision from the Supreme Court reinforces the important work that pro-life lawmakers are doing at the State and Federal level to keep tax dollars out of the abortion business. We can rest easy knowing that pro-life States across America are fiercely protecting the lives of innocent, preborn children.

But a child's right to exist should not depend on geography, and that is why my fellow pro-life colleagues join me on the Senate floor today to commemorate this time when the responsibility of protecting human life has been returned to the people and their elected leaders at both the State and Federal level.

Three years ago, the Supreme Court held that:

The Constitution does not confer a right to abortion; Roe and Casey are overruled; and the authority to regulate abortion is returned to the people and their elected representatives.

I am especially proud that my home State of Mississippi was at the center of this historic decision. The Dobbs landmark decision and all those involved in making it happen are very close to my heart, including my friends Representative Becky Currie of Brookhaven, MS, who authored the bill, and Attorney General Lynn Fitch, who represented our State so well in the Supreme Court. The High Court gave us exactly what we asked for.

Two hundred twenty-seven of my pro-life colleagues in Congress joined me on the brief we filed in Dobbs asserting that ``it is long overdue for this Court to return lawmaking to legislatures . . . we respectfully urge the Court to affirm the constitutional authority of the federal and state governments to safeguard the lives and health of their citizens, born and not yet born.''

While the pro-life movement has long sought to change hearts and minds through decades of court battles, today we can make a real difference to ensure our laws reflect the values we hold dear. A handful of examples of these legislative efforts include supporting pregnancy resource centers, protecting abortion survivors, and ensuring U.S. tax dollars are not funneled into the abortion industry.

While the pro-life community has held an outstretched hand to expecting parents who may be facing tough and scary hurdles--a primary one being the financial cost of birth--my colleagues and I are committed to supporting these families.

To that end, the Supporting Healthy Moms and Babies Act is meant to ease the out-of-pocket costs paid by parents to have a child. If we can relieve the financial stresses associated with pregnancy and childbirth, I hope expecting mothers and fathers will feel empowered to embrace the beautiful gift of parenthood.

As a proud Christian, mother, and committed member of the pro-life movement, I will continuously fight to uphold and defend the dignity of every life at every stage.

Dobbs lifted the gate for us to move forward, and there is still much important work to be done.

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