Florida Governor Ron DeSantis says fathers hold be required to pay child support for unborn children. The Republican presidential candidate says that’s one way to help reduce abortions and help pregnant women who may have an abortion because of financial need.
During an interview with DeSantis this week, Fox News’ Kayleigh McEnany noted that pro-life Florida Sen. Marco Rubio has proposed legislation that would allow expectant mothers to receive child support payments. Rubio’s legislative proposal, the Unborn Child Support Act, states the father’s obligation to pay child support “may begin with the first month in which the child was conceived, as determined by a physician.”
The governor, who signed a heartbeat law protecting babies with beating hearts from abortions, said he would support such a measure.
“Most of these women do not want to have abortions, but they feel like they have no other options because they get no support and that’s because a lot of these men are nowhere to be found,” DeSantis said.
Men “should absolutely be providing support,” DeSantis added. “They should absolutely be held accountable.”
DeSantis also told McEnany that pro-life includes protecting babies but also helping and supporting pregnant women, and being “pro-life means for the whole kit and caboodle.”
“I think a lot of it comes down to whether women think it’s financially feasible to do that and when they don’t get support from the father, then it can be overwhelming,” DeSantis added. “So we in Florida are sympathetic to those women in that situation.”
Part of Rubio’s proposal would include a federal tax credit for unborn babies and better workplace accommodations for parents. U.S. Rep. Ashley Hinson, R-Iowa, and U.S. Sen. Marco Rubio, R-Florida, introduced the nine-part Providing For Life Act this summer to help families choose life for their unborn babies.
“By expanding the child tax credit to include the unborn and providing additional support to working families, … we can make a meaningful difference for those in need,” Hinson told Fox News.
Her pro-life legislation would allow working parents to retroactively claim their unborn babies on their taxes. The bill also expands the tax credit to $3,500 for children ages 5 and under and $4,500 for ages 6 to 17, and makes the adoption tax credit fully refundable, according to the report.
Hinson’s legislation includes other measures to ensure employers and universities provide support to parents, including more flexibility and options, and inform them of their rights.
Pro-life Republicans value “life at all stages, from defending the unborn to innovative maternal care options [and] improving child care access,” Hinson said on Twitter.
She said the Providing For Life Act will help “families to grow and thrive” by supporting pregnancy resource centers and other community programs that offer mentoring and counseling, too.
Other parts of the legislative package include creating a website, Life.gov, to help women find resources, expanding WIC eligibility for postpartum women and reforming child support to ensure fathers help pay pregnancy costs.
The package of bills follows similar efforts by pro-life states to increase support for pregnant and parenting families through Medicaid expansions, childcare and workplace accommodations, tax credits and funding for community-based pregnancy resource centers. With a new study showing two-thirds of women seeking abortions would have chosen life if they had better support, many believe these efforts, coupled with state pro-life laws, will save babies from abortion.
Contrary to abortion activists’ claims, Rubio said pro-life conservatives are working to support families in need.
“Supporting pregnant mothers and their unborn children is essential, not just because it’s the right thing to do, but because America’s continued strength depends on the next generation,” he said in a statement. “This comprehensive legislation will provide real assistance for American parents and children in need. We need policies like these to show America that conservatives are pro-life across the board.”
The legislation has the support of pro-life organizations as well. The Hon. Marilyn Musgrave, vice president of government affairs at Susan B. Anthony Pro-Life America, said helping families through the Providing for Life Act should be an effort that unites Republicans and Democrats.
“From the moment a woman learns she is pregnant, throughout her pregnancy, and after her child is born, every mother deserves the support and critical resources she needs to care for herself and her baby,” Musgrave said. “We thank Congresswoman Hinson for reintroducing this comprehensive pro-life package and we hope to see it garner bipartisan support.”
Pro-life advocates know elective abortion bans are only part of the solution to protecting unborn babies. Many women seeking abortions struggle financially and often lack relational and emotional support. That is why the pro-life movement is multifaceted, and all across the country, advocates are working to educate, support and empower families to choose life for their babies.
