LA should prohibit preying on pregnant girls

If Louisiana wants to boost parental rights, protect some lives, and make Democrat California Gov. Gavin Newsom waste some of his money, it should join other states in making criminal activity that attempts to spirit unemancipated minor girls out of state to receive abortions.

This week, Newsom announced that he would dip into his own leftover campaign funds – perhaps a bit prematurely, as he collected these dollars in defense against a recall petition he successfully beat back, but another appears on the way – banked by an affiliated organization to fund media buys in several states that have, in the case of Idaho since last year, or are considering laws these laws. He already ran some in Tennessee and says he’ll spend millions.

Recognize this, of course, as a last-minute ploy to sell himself as a replacement for Democrat Pres. Joe Biden, whose low polling numbers and consistent running behind and significantly Republican former Pres. Donald Trump in the polls have increased the chances that party powerbrokers will try to stage an intervention to get him to desist in attempted reelection. An ad or two appearing in conservative states isn’t going to make any difference in whether laws of this nature pass or fail, but it does raise his profile.

Still, Louisiana should strive to make his list and tempt him to pump a few bucks into the coffers of state media. The Idaho law makes it illegal to either obtain abortion pills for minors or to help them leave the state for an abortion without their parents’ knowledge and consent, by which the enablers could face criminal and civil penalties.

The law doesn’t prohibit minors to cross state lines to kill their unborn child, nor to order abortion-inducing drugs and have these delivered, only that if they are aided by people other than their parents in these tasks that they receive the parents’ permission. Rightfully, parents have a vested interest in protecting their children from making mistakes, as their generally brains aren’t fully developed to ensure judging wisely in these matters, or potentially to resist the blandishment of ideologues who assign themselves the mission of maximizing abortion for political or other reasons and prey on vulnerable girls to satisfy that compulsion.

As well, parents should have the right to speak for their unborn grandchild when others, including an immature daughter, disregard that obligation. For the difficult cases of rape by father and/or incest, either parent still should have to give permission for out-of-state abortion-procurement by others, but also one or both should be prosecutable under the law regardless.

Hopefully, such a bill will pop up and be passed by the Legislature during the regular session. Then we’ll see just how far Newsom’s dollars stretch.