New Hampshire Governor Kelly Ayotte, reportedly a member of the Republican Party, vetoed several measures this week which some are calling “pro-family” bills — including one that would have required public school students in health class to view an ultrasound or video detailing human prenatal development.
Key Takeaways:
- New Hampshire Governor Kelly Ayotte vetoed a bill that would have taught prenatal development education in schools, utilizing either a computer-generated animation (similar to “Baby Olivia” and others) or an ultrasound video.
- Ayotte also vetoed other pro-family bills, including one that would have kept obscene and pornographic materials out of schools.
- Though she once fought for pro-life values, Ayotte now says she will veto any pro-life legislation that comes across her desk.
The Details:
House Bill 667 would have mandated school health curriculum to include “a high quality computer generated animation or ultrasound video that shows the development of the heart, brain, and other vital organs in early fetal development.”
Had Ayotte signed the bill, it could have resulted in Live Action’s “Baby Olivia” video — or any other high quality animation or ultrasound — being used to educate students. Baby Olivia uses realistic, digital animation to depict medically-accurate information about the preborn child’s life in the womb, capturing significant growth and development milestones from the moment of fertilization through birth.
In defending her veto, Ayotte claimed the state shouldn’t dictate requirements to local school districts. However, it appears that the New Hampshire State Board of Education is the entity responsible for setting “academic standards for all grades of the public schools” in the state.
“I do not believe the state should dictate to local school districts that they must show a high-quality computer generation or ultrasound video that shows the gestational development of a fetus in health classes. That is not an appropriate role for the State to be mandating such requirements,” she said in a vague statement.
Ayotte’s veto was just one of several bills she shot down on Tuesday. Other legislation she vetoed included:
- a bill permitting separation of bathrooms and locker rooms by biological sex
- a bill prohibiting the distribution of obscene literature and materials in schools
- a bill allowing religious exemptions for mandatory immunizations
- a bill requiring school boards to alert parents of non-academic surveys given to children in classrooms, allowing parents to opt-in to these surveys rather than opt-out
What We’re Hearing:
Catholic Action League of Massachusetts Executive Director C.J. Doyle blasted Ayotte’s vetoes, noting that the prenatal development education bill had nothing to do with abortion, though it is routinely opposed by abortion advocates.
“The modest, proposed ultrasound requirement for health curricula would not have impaired anyone’s legal right to an abortion. Ayotte’s veto of this benign measure should remind us that America’s abortion regime is not about choice, but about child killing,” Doyle said.
New Hampshire Right to Life also said it was “deeply saddened” by Ayotte’s veto of the prenatal development education bill.
Noah Brandt, Vice President of Communications and Government Affairs for Live Action, responded to Ayotte’s veto:
This veto is a disgrace. I commend Representative John Sellers and the legislators who passed this bill for standing up for truth and science. Governor Ayotte turned her back on New Hampshire families and students by rejecting basic education about human development in the womb.
Every student in our nation deserves to learn this information.
The Bottom Line:
Though she once fought for pro-life measures, Ayotte has changed her tune. During her inaugural address in January, she promised to veto any pro-life legislation that made its way to her desk.
According to the New Hampshire Bulletin, Ayotte’s vetoes are likely to stick; a two-thirds majority in both the House and Senate is necessary to overturn her decision, and Republicans do not hold that majority in the House.
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