02.27.24

Hoeven Joins Bicameral Amicus Brief Supporting Pro-Life SCOTUS Case

WASHINGTON – Senator John Hoeven joined a bicameral group in filing an amicus brief with the U.S. Supreme Court (SCOTUS) in the case of Moyle v. United States and Idaho v. United States. The brief was led by Senator Jim Risch (R-Idaho) and Representative Russ Fulcher (R-Idaho) and supports the State of Idaho in defending its pro-life law, the Defense of Life Act, against wrongful reinterpretation of federal law by the Biden administration. The amicus brief was filed by an additional 24 U.S. Senators and 93 U.S. Congressmen. 

“While the Biden administration continues to go after pro-life safeguards passed by the states, we remain committed to protecting the lives of the unborn and the lives and wellbeing of mothers,” said Hoeven. “This bicameral amicus brief is about supporting the rights of states and honoring the sanctity of life.”

“Idahoans have passed a strong law to protect the lives of mothers and the unborn, yet the Biden administration is seeking every opportunity to expand abortion. This administration cherrypicked pieces of existing statute and wrongfully reinterpreted it to fit their agenda,” said Risch. “Their manipulation of federal law cannot usurp state law, and there is no federal right to an abortion. This amicus brief demonstrates how the administration’s substantial federal overreach is aimed at undermining pro-life protections not only in Idaho but around the nation.”

The amicus brief outlines several issues with the Biden administration’s case against Idaho’s bill. The brief clarifies:

  • The administration is wrongfully misinterpreting the Emergency Medical Treatment and Labor Act (EMTALA) and claiming it provides a national abortion mandate for “stabilizing” abortions;
  • EMTALA does not mention abortion in any capacity, and the statute’s purpose is to ensure any person seeking help in an emergency room receives help regardless of his or her ability to pay;
  • EMTALA protects women in active labor and their unborn child(ren); and
  • SCOTUS ruled in Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health there is no constitutional right to an abortion and it returned abortion-related decisions to the states.

In addition to Senators Risch and Hoeven, the brief was signed by Senators Mike Crapo (R-Idaho), Cindy Hyde-Smith (R-Miss.), Roger Wicker (R-Miss.), Marco Rubio (R-Fla.), John Kennedy (R-La.), Mike Braun (R-Ind.), John Thune (R-S.D.), Mike Lee (R-Utah), James Lankford (R-Okla.), Ted Budd (R-N.C.), Steve Daines (R-Mont.), Joni Ernst (R-Iowa), Cynthia Lummis (R-Wyo.), Pete Ricketts (R-Neb.), Todd Young (R-Ind.), Bill Cassidy (R-La.), Kevin Cramer (R-N.D.), Josh Hawley (R-Mo.), John Barrasso (R-Wyo.), Ted Cruz (R-Texas), Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.), Marsha Blackburn (R-Tenn.), Markwayne Mullin (R-Okla.), and John Cornyn (R-Texas).

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