Child Custody Protection Act not in the bag

From the National Right to Life Committee:

Despite a 65-34 vote in the U.S. Senate [yesterday] to pass a bill to prohibit transporting minors across state lines for abortions in violation of parents' rights, the Senate Democratic leadership immediately erected a procedural roadblock in an attempt to kill the bill.

The Senate turned aside all weakening amendments to the Child Custody Protection Act (S. 403).... Immediately following today's vote to pass the bill, Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist (R-Tn.) made a routine move to allow appointment of a conference committee to work out differences with a bill already passed by the House that contains different but related provisions. This routine move was objected to, on behalf of Senate Democrats, by the assistant Democratic leader, Sen. Dick Durbin (Il.).

"Fourteen Democratic senators voted to pass the bill, but only minutes later the Democratic caucus collectively moved to kill the bill by objecting to the routine, necessary step of sending the bill to a conference committee," said NRLC Legislative Director Douglas Johnson. "The Senate Democratic leadership is now obstructing legislation supported by 80 percent of the public, doing the bidding of the abortion lobby...."

The House of Representatives has passed such legislation four times since 1998. Each time it has been killed by actions of the Senate Democratic caucus....

Under S. 403, it would be a federal offense to transport a minor across state lines for an abortion without fulfilling the requirements of a parental notification or consent law in effect in the home state.

Parental notification and parental consent laws are supported by overwhelming majorities of the public -- exceeding 80% in some polls. For a sampling of public opinion polls on this issue, please click here.

Senator Frist's office will hold a press conference later today to pressure the Democrats. Calls will help.