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Spokane, Washington  Est. May 19, 1883

Eye On Boise

Closing debate: Winder compares abortion to U.S. war casualties

In his closing debate in favor of SB 1387, Sen. Chuck Winder, R-Boise, said, "This bill does not require a trans-vaginal exam. ... It leaves that up to the patient and the physician to make that determination." He said, "Rape and incest was used as a reason to oppose this. I would hope that when a woman goes in to a physician with a rape issue, that physician will indeed ask her about perhaps her marriage, was this pregnancy caused by normal relations in a marriage or was it truly caused by a rape. I assume that's part of the counseling that goes on."

Winder said, "I believe the state does have an interest in the life of the unborn. That's what the debate's about. Does it add cost? Yes, it does. I would just ask you to consider the pricelessness of the unborn." He noted the Senate's recent commemoration of military members killed in Iraq and Afghanistan in the past year. "Each person has a life story," Winder said. "Those were cut short. Let's not choose to cut others short."



Betsy Z. Russell
Betsy Z. Russell joined The Spokesman-Review in 1991. She currently is a reporter in the Boise Bureau covering Idaho state government and politics, and other news from Idaho's state capital.

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