NATION : Senate Sends Abortion Funding to Bush, Who Vowed to Veto It
WASHINGTON — The Senate today approved a bill permitting federally financed abortions for poor women who are victims of rape or incest, sending the measure to the White House where President Bush has promised a veto.
The measure would broaden a nearly decade-old restriction on circumstances in which Medicaid will pay for a poor woman’s abortion.
The Senate’s 67-31 vote provided final congressional passage to a conference report on a spending bill including the key provision on abortion, which the House approved in a surprise vote last week. The Senate previously had approved broadening federal funding for abortions, and today’s vote was the final step needed to send the bill to the White House.
The Senate took the vote with little debate on the abortion provisions. Sen. Brock Adams (D-Wash.) said a veto would be “unconscionable” and would “cause enormous additional suffering” for poor victims of rape or incest.
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