Sens. Tim Kaine and Mark Warner, claimed moderates, just blocked a federal ban on the killing of born-alive abortion survivors. The legislation, introduced by Sen. Ben Sasse, was in direct response to recent remarks, a trained pediatrician, who said of a baby born alive during an attempted abortion: “if a mother is in labor, I can tell you exactly what would happen the infant would be delivered. The infant would be kept comfortable. The infant would be resuscitated if that’s what the mother and the family desired, and then a discussion would ensue between the physicians and the mother.”

         The ease and coldness of a physician, who correctly identifies the born child as an “infant” twice, suggesting state law, should allow the murder of a born-alive baby is disturbing. What is most shocking about these bills is their approval of the abortion of a fully formed baby right up until the moment of birth. Worse, in both Maryland and New York, their abortion rights extremism embraces infanticide-the killing of a born-alive baby during an abortion.

         I was shocked to hear describe partial-birth abortion, where babies are delivered feet first, then, before the head is delivered, the doctor would put a tube through the back of the baby’s neck. The baby’s brains would be sucked out, and then the child would be delivered, dead.

        That is why young man, like me, supported a ban on partial-birth abortions — to save children who had a chance to survive outside the womb from the pain of being decapitated or murdered in the womb.

          Today, most laws allow for abortion through the second trimester. After that, abortion restrictions may exist that require doctors to certify that the woman’s life is at risk. That is why the Maryland Democratic Party’s embrace of extreme late-term abortions doesn’t make any sense.

         Whether working in Africa, Asia or the Middle East, I have always taught people that human rights come with responsibilities, especially toward the weakest among us. I have directly confronted governments that use the sanction of laws to oppress and destroy the most marginalized populations among them. In countries like China and India, I have seen firsthand how abortion is used as a tool of oppression and misogyny, a procedure to control a woman — not a means of liberation for him, let alone him soon-to-be-born child.

           That’s why I am so concerned about what is happening right here at home in Silver Spring Maryland. Our elected representatives in Maryland are trying to eliminate the rights of the most defenseless among us.

            At the State of the Union address, President Trump called on Congress to prohibit such late-term abortions, saying: “To defend the dignity of every person, I am asking Congress to pass legislation that will prohibit the late-term abortion of children who can feel pain in the mother’s womb Let us work together to build a culture that cherishes innocent life. And let us reaffirm a fundamental truth: All children — born and unborn — are made in the holy image of God.” It is an eminently sensible position that I am confident the vast majority of Americans share.

           Unborn Child Protection Act, the bill passed in the House in 2017 before it was blocked in the Senate. It would have prohibited later-term abortions based on “substantial medical evidence that [a child in the womb] is capable of experiencing pain at least by 20 weeks after fertilization, if not earlier.” The legislation provides for exceptions for women who become pregnant as a result of rape or incest.

              Prohibiting late-term abortion of children who can feel pain in the mother’s womb is the compassionate position. A 20-week-old baby’s ability to process information intelligently, feel pain and breathe [if necessary] unaided are the hallmarks of life and the dignity and respect it requires from all of us.It is time to build a culture of life for all people — all ethnicities, genders, abilities, born and unborn.