Kansas Governor Laura Kelly, a Democrat, has vetoed a pair of bills gaining strong support from Republicans.
Governor Kelly vetoed House Bill 2313, also known as the “Born Alive Infant Protection Act,” which says medical providers at an attempted abortion need to give the infant the same level of care as other newborns would receive. Kelly says the bill is “misleading and unnecessary” because federal law already has legal protections for newborns and the medical procedure described in the bill isn’t used in Kansas.
Senate Majority Leader Ty Masterson of Andover says “opposing such basic protections” as installed in HB2313 “is not pro-choice. It’s a barbaric and extreme position and is hard to fathom.” House Majority Leader Dan Hawkins agreed, saying, “This veto gives abortionist free reign to walk away as a living, breathing baby dies.”
Also, Governor Kelly vetoed House Bill 2304, which would add firearm safety education programs — notably the Eddie Eagle program through the National Rifle Association — to schools from kindergarten to high school senior. The governor says local school boards and the State Board of Education should handle education and curriculum standards, not lawmakers.
Both Masterson and Hawkins strongly disagreed with Kelly’s veto, saying the governor is more interested in talking about gun safety rather than taking action to protect schoolchildren.
