U.S. Senator Cindy Hyde-Smith (R-Miss.), chair of the Senate Pro-Life Caucus, is among 27 pro-life Senators who have signed a congressional amicus brief to the U.S. Supreme Court supporting the state of Louisiana in its lawsuit seeking to reinstate the in-person dispensing requirement for the chemical abortion drug, mifepristone.
The amicus brief, which was filed Thursday, asks the Supreme Court to allow a Fifth Circuit decision to stand while the Louisiana lawsuit to nullify the Biden-era mifepristone Risk Evaluation and Mitigation Strategy (REMS) continues to be litigated.
“Our fight to reinstate safety requirements for chemical abortion drugs continues as strong as ever because we believe the federal government is responsible for acknowledging the very real risks posed by these life-ending abortion drugs. We hope the Supreme Court will act to begin restoring the safeguards so carelessly suspended by the previous administration,” said Hyde-Smith, who authored the SAVE Moms and Babies Act to restore abortion drug safety protocols.
On May 8, the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals ruled that the Biden administration’s 2023 REMS, which removed the in-person dispensing requirement, was unlawful. It placed an immediate stay on the 2023 REMS as the litigation continued, effectively restoring the in-person dispensing requirement.
The congressional amicus brief in support of Louisiana’s opposition to the pro-abortion parties’ application to stay the Fifth Circuit’s order makes two primary arguments:
- The Biden FDA’s 2023 Mifepristone REMS Is Contrary to Law Because It Fails to Meet the Statutory Requirement to Demonstrate Safety, and the Fifth Circuit’s Ruling is Justified
- The Biden FDA’s 2023 Mifepristone REMS Violates Federal Law.
U.S. Senator Bill Cassidy, M.D. (R-La.) and U.S. Representative Chris Smith (R-N.J.) led the brief, which was also signed by Senate Majority Leader John Thune (R-S.D.) and House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.).
Other Senate signees included U.S. Senators Jim Banks (R-Ind.), Marsha Blackburn (R-Tenn.), Katie Britt (R-Ala.), Ted Budd (R-N.C.), John Cornyn (R-Texas), Tom Cotton (R-Ark.), Kevin Cramer (R-N.D.), Mike Crapo (R-Idaho), Ted Cruz (R-Texas), Steve Daines (R-Mont.), Deb Fischer (R-Neb.), Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.), Josh Hawley (R-Mo.), John Hoeven (R-N.D.), James Lankford (R-Okla.), Roger Marshall, M.D. (R-Kan.), Jerry Moran (R-Kan.), Rand Paul, M.D. (R-Ky.), Pete Ricketts (R-Neb.), James Risch (R-Idaho), Rick Scott (R-Fla.), Tim Sheehy (R-Mont.), Tommy Tuberville (R-Ala.), and Todd Young (R-Ind.).
It was also signed by 78 members of the House of Representatives, including U.S. Representative Michael Guest (R-Miss.).
In March, Hyde-Smith joined an investigation into chemical abortion drug manufacturer compliance with Food and Drug Administration (FDA)-mandated safeguards associated with marketing their drugs. This effort includes seeking information from chemical abortion drug manufacturers regarding online prescriber compliance with even the minimal risk evaluation standards that remain on chemical abortion drugs like Mifepristone.
Where are the Iowans? In the Senate if Grassley and Ernst can’t get on board with the likes of Cornyn, Graham, and the whole rather diverse bunch (other than being pro-life) then pro-lifers ought to be more than perplexed. There are NO Iowans from the House listed in the linked to amicus either. What the heck. Does the august group of legal scholars have some demurral keeping them from signing? Were they not asked or was it not circulated to them(I doubt it). Are they signatories to their own or another amicus? The pro-life Republican Party of Iowa needs to know.