Unanimous Consent Requests
Floor Speech
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Mrs. MOODY. Mr. President, I rise today to ask unanimous consent to pass my Pregnant Students' Rights Act out of the Senate, legislation that would inform young mothers in school--at university or in college--of their rights to protect the most vulnerable among us. Today, we have an opportunity to ensure that students have the information and support they need should they become pregnant.
Navigating college can be challenging for any student but especially for pregnant women. Unfortunately, they oftentimes feel pressured to end their pregnancies or risk academic failure. No woman should ever feel like she has to choose between continuing classes or continuing a pregnancy. Young women who find themselves in this situation should know exactly what resources are available to them to help them carry their pregnancies to term and what their rights are while they are in school, whether that be in modified class schedules, excused absences, or other accommodations.
This legislation would ensure that young women would know their rights and know that they will have the support they need to stay in school, to carry a child to term, and to raise a baby. Far too often, they are told the exact opposite--that if they choose to have their babies, it will be the end of their academic careers, their life ambitions, and their career goals. They are made to feel abortion may be their only option, and that is not what any of us should want. It is not true.
With this bill, we will send the message that life is precious and that we want to help you make that decision to carry a child to term, to raise that child, and to continue your education goals.
This bill requires universities to inform students of the rights and protections for pregnant students, such as those modified class schedules and excused absences. It also requires universities to advise students on how to file a complaint with the U.S. Department of Education if there is a violation.
This legislation comes at an important time. The CDC reports that almost 30 percent of all abortions in the United States are performed on women of college age, between the ages of 20 and 24. College-aged women may not be aware of their rights of accommodation. This would allow for that information to be shared, would mandate that universities do so, and would never make students believe they only have one choice.
I urge my colleagues to join in our mission, support this legislation, and protect the sanctity of life. We urgently need to protect the Pregnant Students' Rights Act today.
300, S. 3627. Further, I ask unanimous consent that the bill be considered read a third time and passed and that the motion to reconsider be considered made and laid upon the table.
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Mrs. MOODY. Mr. President, I am disappointed to hear from my colleague--the Democrat that claims the party is the party of women-- that we are not going to ask that universities educate women in college who become pregnant as to their rights and to modify class schedules or excused absences, which would allow them to continue their education and continue their pregnancy to term.
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Mrs. MOODY. The Democratic Party who, again, repeatedly asserts that they are the party of women, does not want to educate pregnant women on how to continue their education while they are pregnant. They don't want to do that.
But we are now being asked, unanimously, to fund at the tune of half a billion dollars to teach kids as young as elementary school students about sex, gender identity.
And I want to repeat the words: They did not want to agree to my bill because they didn't want it to be ideologically based, but yet they say that spending half a billion dollars to teach elementary school kids, educating young women on sex, gender identity--that that is not ideologically based?
So I just want to make sure that I am clear. I come down here to seek passage of a bill focused on educating young women, allowing them to feel empowered to continue that education. And after blocking that simple idea, I am now being asked to agree to the education of elementary school students on topics such as sexual orientation and sex.
That is the Democrat Party. This is the Republican Party. I just want to make sure America is clear. That is the difference, and I cannot believe that is what we are being asked to adopt by unanimous consent.
So for that reason, I will object, and I will lament that we find ourselves in a place where we cannot promote the education of a pregnant mother, but we are being asked to spread sex and gender ideology to our children in elementary school.
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