Today, there were strong emotions on both sides of the Planned Parenthood debate.

Today, there were strong emotions on both sides of the Planned Parenthood debate.

And in deciphering the different things said on this kind of day, I try and go back to what a dear friend of mine told me a few years back: when emotion is high….discernment is low. I believe he was right. Accordingly, I think it’s important to strip fact from fiction in this debate because in too many ways things take on a sacred nature as they come to represent the symbol of something rather than what’s before us.

The legislation debated does not end abortion in America nor does it restrict a woman’s access to woman’s health and reproductive services. The debate has simply been about whether or not public money should go to a private entity, Planned Parenthood, and instead to other public entities that perform the same services. People feel strongly about this, given money is fungible within any private entity and the Hyde Amendment language is law of the land and prohibits public money going to provide for abortions. Planned Parenthood is the largest provider of abortion in America and, in this case, is the subject of legitimate scrutiny, given the released videos discussing the selling body parts when federal law prohibits the sale of human body parts for profit - even for scientific research.

It is with this in mind that I voted today on two bills that address two sides of this debate. The first bill, the Born-Alive Abortion Survivors Protection Act, passed by a vote of 248 to 177, and ultimately, I supported this bill because I believe the measure of any civilized society is, in part, based on how a society protects those who can’t protect themselves.

The second bill, the Defund Planned Parenthood Act, passed by a vote of 241 to 187. I voted for this as well. I was a cosponsor of the bill, and it withholds all federal funding to Planned Parenthood for one year while Congress investigates questions raised by the released videos.

Let me take a moment to explain.

I feel strongly that life in all its forms is a blessing, and we must do all we can to protect it. Through the births of our four boys, I have come to believe that pregnancy and childbirth also represent something very special about the will and purpose of God, as they brought me into a whole new and deeper appreciation for how sacred life is in each of its chapters. For that matter, when the Founding Fathers enshrined the guarantee of life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness, they regarded life as a core promise and one that was indeed to be protected.

Whether you are for or against abortion, when a child is born alive during an attempted abortion procedure, that baby deserves all the protection and care it would get had it been delivered regularly. That’s why I voted for H.R. 3504.

The second bill tried to address the many videos made public over the past several weeks of the practices of Planned Parenthood. The videos raise some very important questions, and I think a pause in funding is more than appropriate in light of these videos. Thomas Jefferson elaborated on this idea when he said, “the care of human life and happiness, and not their destruction, is the first and only object of good government.”

Many have said this is a futile effort because the President will veto the bills, but again one can do only what one can do. In the House, we can’t control the President or the Senate, but we can cast a vote for what we believe and for what we believe most at home believe. I think that is what I did with these votes. For those that disagree, I would simply invite you to take what I would call the “Fiorina challenge.” She said beautifully what I think most Americans feel: “Watch a fully formed fetus on the table, its heart beating, its legs kicking, while someone says we have to keep it alive to harvest its brain. This is about the character of our nation. And if we will not stand up and force President Obama to veto this bill, shame on us!”

Accordingly, if you haven’t taken a look at the videos, I would ask you to do so. I also ask that you think on the Founding Fathers promise of life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness….and how those themes apply in this vote.