Thomas Hansen is running for Congress in Iowa’s First Congressional District.
When do you believe life begins: At the heart beat.
Describe your position on the abortion issue: My position comes from me being an EMT. I was trained as an EMT that life ends when the heart ceases to beat. It doesn’t matter what condition the body is in, it doesn’t matter what environment the body is in. The opposite of death is life, and we should consider life when the heart begins to beat, no matter what. When your heart starts to beat, you’re considered alive.
Why are you pro-life: Philosophically, just from a Christian standpoint and from a morality standpoint.
What protections should be given to defend an unborn baby’s constitutional rights: Well, once the heart starts to beat, it is considered a person. It should have the same constitutional rights as any other person.
How have you lived out and expressed your pro-life position in the past: I’ve had the same position on life for most of my life. I became an EMT, oh, 20-25 years ago. I’ve always been pro-life my entire life. I’ve never believed in abortion. I’ve always thought adoption is a much better option. That’d be the way I’ve supported it and I’ve lived it out.
Should the courts have the final say on abortion: Oh, I believe that the abortion issue belongs in the states. I don’t think there’s anything in the Constitution that supports the Supreme Court having say-so on it. I think it should be left up to the individual states.
Do you support any exceptions that allow for abortions: Yep. Rape, incest, life of the mother.
Anything else: The only other thing I would say is that I hold the position that life begins when the heart starts to beat. I would never outright ban abortions because I think, as I’m a conservative with very Libertarian leanings, I believe in the liberty of the people and protecting life once it is started. Up to that point, I think it’s up to the choice of the individual person. If we completely ban abortions, I always go back to completely banning abortions and the story of my grandmother, who held the hand of her 15-year old best friend while she died on the table in the back room of a bar because she got an illegal abortion because she was too afraid to tell her dad about it. I always remember that story from my grandmother. That’s why I would never ban completely abortions. I think that does more harm than good, just like when we tried to ban the use of alcohol — it sends it under ground and makes it dangerous. I think we should do everything we can to encourage people to not have abortions. I don’t like it being used as birth control, but completely banning it, I think that would do more harm than good. I think it’s a matter of educating people, getting them the help they need if they are pregnant and helping to prevent unwanted pregnancies from happening in the first place.
