JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. (AP) — Missouri’s Republican-led House on Tuesday advanced a bill that would ban almost all abortions in the state if the U.S. Supreme Court overturns Roe v. Wade.

And if the high court doesn’t switch course, the Missouri bill would ban most abortions after a fetal heartbeat can be detected. That can be as early as six weeks into a pregnancy.

“It is time to join the many states providing a commonsense but strong voice for the voiceless children that have yet to be born,” bill sponsor Republican Rep. Nick Schroer, told colleagues on the House floor. “Today, let us make known to the citizens of this great state and every state in the nation that Missouri stands for the unborn.”

House members loaded up Schroer’s bill, which originally focused only on banning most abortions after fetal heartbeats are detected, with a number of other abortion restrictions during debate on the floor Tuesday.

Lawmakers voted 110-37 to give the wide-ranging bill initial approval. It needs another House vote to move to the Senate.

The bill comes as abortion opponents across the country are hopeful the high court — with new Justices Neil Gorsuch and Brett Kavanaugh — will either reverse Roe v. Wade, or uphold specific state laws that could undermine the court’s 1973 ruling establishing a nationwide right to abortion.

Arkansas’ Republican governor last week signed into law a measure to ban abortion in that state if Roe v. Wade is overturned. Like the Missouri bill, it includes exceptions for medical emergencies but not for rape or incest.

Louisiana, Mississippi, North Dakota and South Dakota have similar “trigger” bans on the books.

Efforts to pass bills limiting abortions after a fetal heartbeat is detected are underway in states including Florida, Kentucky, Ohio, South Caroline and Tennessee.

Kansas City Democratic Rep. Judy Morgan said if the Missouri law is enacted “it will effectively ban abortion in our state.” She also cautioned colleagues about the bill’s estimated $7.7 billion price tag , which reflects the potential loss of federal Medicaid funding because the legislation does not include exceptions for rape or incest.

TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) — A Kansas House committee rejected a proposed law that sought to prevent judges from reducing sentences if they believe that victims under the age of 14 were willing participants in sex crimes.

The bill was proposed by Attorney General Derek Schmidtafter a county judge in December gave a 67-year-old man a shorter sentence than prosecutors sought for soliciting a 13-year-old girl on Facebook. Leavenworth County District Judge Michael Gibbens was publicly criticized after he said young girls were “more aggressor than a participant” during sexual encounters with the man.

After the House Corrections and Juvenile Justice Committee heard details of the case Monday, committee members said the legislation was well-intentioned but they argued judges must have discretion in sentencing for such cases. A voice vote to table the bill appeared to be unanimous.

“I don’t like calling a sex victim, be it male or female, an aggressor,” said Rep. John Wheeler, R-Garden City, but he said that is the reality in some situations.

When he introduced the bill, Schmidt said “no matter the child’s behavior, child victims are not responsible for the criminal conduct of adults who commit sex crimes against them.”

Gibbens sentenced Raymond Soden, of Leavenworth, in December to five years and 10 months in prison for soliciting sex from teens online, which is eight years less than required by Kansas sentencing guidelines.

Prosecutors had sought more than 13 years behind bars because Soden had prior convictions. Soden admitted in his plea that he knew one of the girls was 13 when he began exchanging messages with her online.

During the sentencing, Gibbens said the 13- and 14-year-old girls Soden had sex with were “more an aggressor than a participant in the criminal conduct.” He said he was already “pretty familiar” with the girls and he believed it was possible they set Soden up to be robbed.

He noted the girls went to Soden’s house voluntarily and took money in exchange for sexual favors. They also didn’t appear to testify at Soden’s sentencing, which Gibbens said made him believe they didn’t suffer the typical harm in such cases.

Schmidt’s bill would have eliminated the judge’s finding of who was the aggressor as a factor in sentencing in sex crimes when the victim is younger than 14 and the offender is an adult. It also would take away judges’ ability to find the victims were “participants” in the conduct.

Rep. John Carmichael, a Wichita Democrat, said the judge made a difficult decision in a “terrible, terrible situation.”

“I think we have to trust judges. I think we have to give them some level of discretion,” Carmichael said.

After the vote, Schmidt’s spokesman, C.J. Grover, said the “attorney general continues to believe Kansas law should not allow children to be labeled ‘aggressors’ who are responsible for the criminal conduct of adults who commit sex crimes against them.”

ST. LOUIS (AP) — The United Methodist Church, America’s second-largest Protestant denomination, faces a likely surge in defections and acts of defiance after delegates at a crucial conference Tuesday rejected a move to ease the faith’s ban on same-sex marriage and ordination of LGBT clergy.

Some supporters of greater LGBT inclusion were in tears, while others vented their anger after delegates, on a 449-374 vote, defeated a proposal that would have let regional and local church bodies decide for themselves on gay-friendly policies.

“Devastation,” was how former Methodist pastor Rebecca Wilson of Detroit described her feelings. “As someone who left because I’m gay, I’m waiting for the church I love to stop bringing more hate.”

Delegates then took up a competing measure, known as the Traditional Plan, that would tighten enforcement of the LGBT bans and encourage Methodists who oppose those policies to leave the church. It won majority support in a preliminary vote on Monday.

The Traditional Plan’s success was due to an alliance of conservatives from the U.S. and overseas. About 43 percent of the delegates are from abroad, mostly from Africa, and overwhelmingly support the LGBT bans.

If the bans were eased, “the church in Africa would cease to exist,” said the Rev. Jerry Kulah of Liberia. “We can’t do anything but to support the Traditional Plan — it is the biblical plan.”

The deep split within the church was evident in several fiery speeches opposing the Traditional Plan.

“If we bring this virus into our church, it will bring illness to us all,” said the Rev. Thomas Berlin of Herndon, Virginia. He predicted many Methodist churchgoers and some regional bodies would leave the church, while others would “stay and fight,” performing same-sex weddings even if it meant punishment.

Many supporters of the more liberal plan stood in support as Berlin spoke. Some wore rainbow-motif garments or sat behind rainbow banners.

The Rev. Allen Ewing-Merrill, a pastor from Portland, Maine, pledged defiance of the Traditional Plan, tweeting: “I will not participate in your bigotry, sin & violence.”

An association of Methodist theological schools warned that if the Traditional Plan passes, the church “will lose an entire generation of leaders in America.”

Formed in a merger in 1968, the United Methodist Church claims about 12.6 million members worldwide, including nearly 7 million in the United States.

While other mainline Protestant denominations, such as the Episcopal and Presbyterian (U.S.A.) churches, have embraced gay-friendly practices, the Methodist church still bans them, though acts of defiance by pro-LGBT clergy have multiplied.

___

JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. (AP) — Missouri Sen. Josh Hawley on Tuesday doubled down on his apprehension about voting for President Donald Trump’s nominee to a high-profile appeals court, despite pushback from conservative groups.

Hawley listed his concerns in a letter to Neomi Rao, who Trump nominated to replace Brett Kavanaugh after he was appointed to the U.S. Supreme Court.

Hawley has said he’s unsure about Rao’s position on abortion, which Hawley opposes. In the letter, he included questions about her views on judicial activism and her past writings on individual choice.

Even after her nomination hearing earlier this month and a private meeting with her, “I continue to have questions about your judicial philosophy and approach to constitutional law,” Hawley wrote.

Hawley is scheduled to meet with Rao again Wednesday before he and other Senate Judiciary Committee members vote on her nomination.

Conservatives groups are pushing Hawley to support her.

The Judicial Crisis Network, a conservative advocacy group that backed Kavanaugh’s nomination, on Monday announced plans to spend $500,000 on television, radio and digital ads in Missouri to sway Hawley to back Rao. Americans for Prosperity also is launching digital ads urging support for her.

“A full review of Neomi Rao’s record will show a nominee who is fair, impartial, and will uphold the Constitution and not legislate from the bench,” Americans for Prosperity Missouri State Director Jeremy Cady said in a Monday statement.

Rao is administrator of the White House Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs, and she has never tried a case in state or federal court.

Hawley and others are relying on her past legal writings to glean insight about how she might rule as a judge.

Hawley cited an article by Rao in which she writes that Casey v. Planned Parenthood of Southeast Pennsylvania’s ruling against abortion restrictions “linked reproductive choices with the essential nature of the individual and emphasized the importance of the freedom to make such choices without compulsion from the state.”

Hawley said he has questions about her analysis of that case.

In his letter to Rao, Hawley also criticized the legal principle of substantive due process as being used by Supreme Court justices to “strike down, among other things, state laws limiting abortion, and to justify judicial activism.”

“Understanding that lower court judges are bound by precedent, I will not vote to confirm nominees whom I believe will expand substantive due process precedents like Roe v. Wade and Casey v. Planned Parenthood of Southeast Pennsylvania,” Hawley wrote to Rao.

Rao’s past writings have also been used by liberal activists and Democrats as fodder to oppose her. A review by NARAL Pro-Choice America cited the same articles written by Rao that Hawley did, but the abortion-rights group described Rao as one of “Trump’s anti-choice judicial nominees.”

Rao later walked back language she used as a college student in writing about sexual assault, race and equal rights for women that was condemned by both Democrats and Republicans.
—————

JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. (AP) — Republican Missouri Sen. Josh Hawley’s Monday comment that President Donald Trump’s nominee to a high-profile appeals court doesn’t have a clear anti-abortion record is meeting swift pushback from conservatives.

Hawley on Monday told KFTK 97.1 FM Newstalk’s Marc Cox that he hasn’t yet made up his mind about D.C.-area U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals nominee Neomi Rao. He said he wants to make sure she’s anti-abortion, and “it’s as simple as that.”

Trump named Rao to replace Brett Kavanaugh after he left the influential appeals court to join the U.S. Supreme Court.

Rao, who currently serves as administrator of the White House Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs, worked in the George W. Bush White House but has never tried a case in state or federal court. Without a court record to review, Hawley and other members of the Senate Judiciary Committee are instead relying on her past writings.

In one law article cited by NARAL Pro-Choice America, which lists Rao as one of “Trump’s anti-choice judicial nominees,” Rao wrote against the citation of Greek philosophers in the U.S. Supreme Court’s Roe v. Wade abortion ruling.

“By contrast, there were many persuasive legal arguments against recognizing a constitutional right to abortion,” Rao wrote. “For instance, substantive due process arguably has no textual support in the Fourteenth Amendment Due Process Clause.”

Ed Whalen, president of the Judeo-Christian group Ethics and Public Policy Center, wrote in an opinion piece for the National Review online that he’s not clear on Rao’s past or current positions on abortion. But he said she has “outstanding qualifications” and questioned Hawley’s standards.

“How many of the thirty federal courts of appeals judges that President Trump appointed over the past two years had an actual ‘strong record on life,’ as Hawley defines the concept?” Whalen wrote. “It seems to me far from clear that Chief Justice Roberts (for whom Hawley clerked) had such a record when he was appointed to the Court. Ditto for Justice Thomas, Justice Alito (some pro-lifers expressed concerns about his record), and Justice Gorsuch and Justice Kavanaugh (both of whose nominations Hawley strongly supported).”

By Paige Henderson
KU Statehouse Wire Service

TOPEKA — The House Committee on Education recently discussed a bill that aims to prevent and prohibit bullying in schools through policies and procedures in accordance with state law.

House Bill No. 2330 would create three new sections of law and amend the current bullying statute in place. The amendment redefines bullying, harassment and cyberbullying and includes the requirement of the adoption of a policy to prohibit these forms of bullying. It contains detailed provisions for how investigations of reports are to be handled and lists appropriate responses to bullying behavior. The bill also requires any student or staff member who witnesses or has reliable information regarding bullying, harassment or cyberbullying to make an initial report within 24 hours.

W. Thomas Gilman, a lawyer from Wichita, gave a testimony about his friend’s daughter who committed suicide after being continuously bullied and the lack of action from her school. From spitting on her to putting gum on her hair, Gilman described the substantial impact it had on the family, as well as the missed opportunities the school could have taken to prevent it all.

“I’m here after promising her parents that I will not give up,” Gilman said last Wednesday. “Please do not let this continue. This is a time to say ‘alright, let’s have our students protected.’”

Opposition to the bill was argued through the ambiguous definition of bullying and that it is a people problem, not a policy problem.

“We’re not going to solve all of the problems in the world, but this policy is a step forward,” Rep. Adam Thomas (R-Olathe), the sponsor of the bill, said in response.

Mark Dessetti, a lobbyist for the Kansas National Education Association, suggested legislature create a task force to take on the bullying epidemic, similar to the Alzheimer’s and dyslexia task force. Rep. Brenda Dietrich supported the suggestion as well.

“You’re not destined to succeed the way you want unless the whole community is involved,” Dessetti said.

Chairman Steve Huebert delayed any decisions, proposing to adjust the bill in future legislature meetings as well as consider forming a task force.

“I don’t want this to be just a conversation. Let’s get something done for our kids,” said Rep. Mark Samsel (R-Wellsville).

Paige Henderson is a University of Kansas senior from Lenexa majoring in journalism.

WASHINGTON (AP) — Senate Democrats on Monday blocked a Republican bill that would have threatened prison for doctors who don’t try saving the life of infants born alive during abortions. The measure seemed doomed from the start but offered the GOP a chance to appeal to conservative voters.

The vote was the latest instance in which Republicans have tried to go on offense on the issue and put Democratic abortion-rights lawmakers in an uncomfortable position. Supporters said the measure presented lawmakers with a simple, moral choice.

On Tuesday morning, Kansas First District congressman Roger Marshall spoke at the Born Alive Act press conference and is critical of the outcome of the vote by those in the U.S. Senate.

.@RogerMarshallMD speaks at the #BornAliveAct press conference. pic.twitter.com/i2t8dzoKmo

— Heritage Action (@Heritage_Action) February 26, 2019

 

“I want to ask each and every one of my colleagues whether or not we’re OK with infanticide,” said the measure’s chief sponsor, Sen. Ben Sasse, R-Neb.

Opponents, noting the rarity of such births and citing laws already making it a crime to kill newborn babies, said the bill was unnecessary. They said it is part of a push by abortion opponents to curb access to the procedure and intimidate doctors who perform it, and said late-term abortions generally occur when the infant is considered incapable of surviving after birth.

Sen. Patty Murray, D-Wash., a leading Democrat on health issues, said the measure would force women to accept “care that may directly conflict with your wishes at a deeply personal, often incredibly painful moment in your life — because politicians in Washington decided their beliefs mattered more than yours.”

Senators voted 53-44 for Sasse’s bill — seven votes short of the 60 needed to end Democratic delaying tactics aimed at derailing the measure.

Democratic Sens. Bob Casey of Pennsylvania, Doug Jones of Alabama and Joe Manchin from West Virginia were the only lawmakers to cross party lines as Democrats demonstrated anew that even in the minority, they can derail abortion-related bills.

Several dozen House Republicans, led by Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy, R-Calif., stood on the Senate floor during the vote, just as a contingent of House Democrats did last month during a crucial vote on ending the government shutdown. Republicans control the Senate by 53-47.

President Donald Trump reacted to the vote while en route to his summit in Vietnam with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un, tweeting: “This will be remembered as one of the most shocking votes in the history of Congress. If there is one thing we should all agree on, it’s protecting the lives of innocent babies.”

Only 1 percent of all abortions occur after 21 weeks of pregnancy, according to the Guttmacher Institute, which supports abortion rights. Abortions during the final weeks are rarer still.

Doctors’ and abortion-rights groups say it is extremely unusual for live infants to be born during attempted late-term abortions, which they say usually occur when the baby is extremely deformed or deemed unable to survive after birth. In such cases, families sometimes decide they want to induce labor so they can spend time with the infant before it dies.

“It only happens in instances in which we know that the baby will not ultimately survive, and a choice has been pre-made to provide just comfort care” to the baby so the parents can be with it, said Dr. Colleen McNicholas, a fellow with the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists.

If an infant is born alive during an abortion, Sasse’s bill would require doctors to render “the same degree” of care used for any birth. The baby would have to be immediately sent to a hospital.

Doctors who violate those requirements and other medical staffers who don’t report violations could face fines and up to five years in prison. Doctors who intentionally kill a child born alive after an abortion would face prosecution under federal murder statutes — potentially a death penalty or life in prison.

Republicans in the Democratic-run House plan to try forcing a vote on a similar measure this spring. They will employ a seldom-used tactic, a petition requiring signatures from most House members to succeed. The GOP is expected to fall well short of the 20 Democratic supporters they’d need.

Republicans, eager to put congressional Democrats from swing states in an uneasy political spot, have been pouncing on the issue since it arose earlier this year in Virginia and New York.

Democratic Virginia Gov. Ralph Northam, a pediatric neurologist, spoke favorably in January about state legislation to ease restrictions on late-term abortions. He said “a discussion would ensue” between doctors and the family over what to do if an infant is born who is badly deformed or incapable of living. Northam has since faced pressure to resign over a racist photo that appeared in his 1984 medical school yearbook.

Trump has criticized a new abortion law in New York that permits abortions of a viable fetus after 24 weeks of pregnancy if the mother’s life is in danger — codifying conditions specified by U.S. Supreme Court rulings.

KANSAS CITY, KAN. – A Kansas man was sentenced Monday to 80 months in federal prison for acting as a courier to deliver more than three pounds of methamphetamine, according to U.S. Attorney Stephen McAllister.

Demetrius Summerson, 28, Kansas City, Kan., pleaded guilty to one count of distributing methamphetamine. In his plea, he admitted that FBI agents had him under surveillance when he delivered more than 3.6 pounds of methamphetamine to a buyer in Lenexa, Kan. The buyer paid Summerson $10,000.

Summerson was working as a distributor for a drug trafficking organization operating in Johnson and Wyandotte counties that was obtaining methamphetamine from a provider in Michoacan, Mexico.