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SOURCE:  Office of Senator Mitch McConnell

McConnell: Pass the Pain Capable Unborn Child Protection Act

‘Look in your hearts and help us stand up for the most innocent life, help us protect the beating heart in that sonogram.’

WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell made the following remarks on the Senate floor today regarding the Pain-Capable Unborn Child Protection Act:

“Ask a family to show you the first picture of their child these days, and you’re likely to get a black-and-white image with delicate fingers and tiny toes.

“Maybe it’s their precious Christine. Maybe it’s their little guy Brett. But one thing’s for sure: that baby is their child.

“Scientific advances like the sonogram are helping pull back the curtain on the mystery of life. They’re helping foster a new spirit of compassionate protection for the most defenseless. And they’re providing new opportunities to bridge old political divides.

“We in this chamber are never going to agree completely on the abortion question. But we should at least be able to agree that if an unborn child has reached the point where he or she can feel pain, that child’s life deserves protection.

“Science is telling us that a child can reach this stage around 20 weeks — in other words, 5 months — of development.

“This is when unborn children can react, even recoil, to stimuli an adult would recognize as painful.

“This is when doctors even administer fetal anesthesia during surgery.

“And as a New England Journal of Medicine study recently demonstrated, babies delivered at this age can survive outside the womb.

“So even if we differ on the larger abortion issue, can’t we at least agree that children at this late stage of development deserve our protection?

“The American people seem to think so. Polls show that Americans — American women and American men — oppose abortions after 5 months. The fact is that we are now one of just seven nations, like North Korea and China, that allow elective abortions at such a late stage.

“Can’t we do better as a country?

“The Pain Capable Unborn Child Protection Act would allow America to finally join the ranks of most civilized nations on this issue.

“Just this past weekend in Louisville, hundreds of Kentuckians gathered to spread a message of dignity and hope.

“They marched for those who may not meet them.

“They marched for those who may not hear them.

“But I hope Americans across the country – including participants in the 37^th annual Walk for Life — will be encouraged to know that voices of humanity and respect are finally being heard again in a Senate under new leadership.

“The executive director of Kentucky Right to Life says that the issue before us is ‘critical.’

“‘We have worked tirelessly,’ she said, ‘to give these defenseless babies some protection.’

 Several states have already taken action to protect these children.

“So has the House of Representatives.

“Now, it’s up to each of us to show where we stand.

“We’re seeing how science is changing this debate.  

“So what I’m asking every colleague is this:

“Look in your hearts and help us stand up for the most innocent life, help us protect the beating heart in that sonogram.”

SOURCE:  Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell

Pass the Pain Capable Unborn Child Protection Act

SOURCE:  Office of Senator Mitch McConnell

McConnell Sponsors Bill to Help Protect Correctional Officers and Staff at Kentucky Prisons

WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell cosponsored legislation to help protect correctional officers and staff at Federal Bureau of Prison (BOP) facilities. Kentucky has five federal correctional facilities — in Manchester, Pine Knot, Ashland, Inez, and Lexington — that employ almost 2,000 Kentuckians. The legislation was introduced by Senator Pat Toomey (R-PA).

The Eric Williams Correctional Officer Protection Act, named in honor of a fallen federal correctional officer killed at the U.S. Penitentiary Canaan in Pennsylvania in 2013, is designed to allow officers who respond to emergency situations inside a federal prison to carry and use pepper spray to help reduce violent acts inside prisons. After Officer Williams’ line-of-duty death, BOP expanded an existing pepper spray pilot program started in 2012 to test the use of pepper spray at additional facilities. This bill would make the pilot project permanent for medium and high security prisons. Many state prison systems, including Kentucky’s, have long allowed correctional officers the ability to carry pepper spray for officer safety.

“This issue is critically important to the thousands of Kentuckians who work at federal prisons across the Commonwealth,” Senator McConnell said. “These federal corrections officers should have tools such as pepper spray which will allow them to protect and safely defend themselves at work, and I proudly cosponsored this bill on their behalf.”

Don Peace, President of Local 614, which represents the staff at the U.S. Penitentiary McCreary in Pine Knot, said, “Once again Senator McConnell is showing his unwavering support of Federal Law Enforcement Officers. By cosponsoring this bill it is clear Senator McConnell is very concerned with the safety of the women and men who put their lives on the line everyday keeping America safe. The passage of this bill would give these staff members the safety equipment they need to keep them safe in the very dangerous environments of America’s prisons.”

The legislation Senator McConnell supported builds on his work on behalf of Kentucky’s corrections officers. Earlier this year, Senator McConnell introduced the Federal Prisons Accountability Act, which would require that the Director of the BOP be subject to Senate advice and consent in the hopes of bringing more accountability to the BOP and more responsiveness to Congressional oversight.  Under current law, the Director of the Bureau of Prisons is not subject to Senate confirmation.

SOURCE:  Office of Senator Mitch McConnell

Vote coming to protect unborn

By Mitch McConnell

Kentucky/Cincinnati Enquirer op-ed  September 21, 2015

In my travels I often hear about the many ways that Washington fails to stand up and fight for worthy causes. Among the most notable is the fight to protect innocent life. That’s why last summer I said that a new Republican majority would prioritize legislation that aims to protect unborn children after 20 weeks in the womb, and that’s why I will be proud to vote for it this coming week.

Like many of you, I believe the lives of the unborn are precious and deserve to be treated with dignity. Despite the strong passion on both sides of the issue, it seems obvious to me that if an unborn child has

reached the point where he or she can feel pain, that child’s life deserves protection. This is something we should all be able to agree on, and the fact is, most civilized countries already do.

According to one study, America is one of only seven countries to allow elective abortion past 20 weeks. It’s worth noting that one of those countries is North Korea.

The Pain-Capable Unborn Child Protection Act would allow America to join the ranks of most other civilized nations in the world by protecting unborn children after 20 weeks in the womb. The House has already passed this sensible legislation.

This legislation has been proposed in the U.S. Senate before, but it was never brought up for consideration when Senate Democrats were in the majority. Fortunately, due to the voice of the American people last November, the Senate is under new management.

A new Republican Senate has already brought some much-needed change to Washington, and we will continue to do so by working to pass this bill this week. Senators in both parties will finally get a chance to say where they stand on defending an unborn baby from harm.

This is a debate worth having in the Senate, and it’s one that pro-life advocates in Kentucky and across the nation have been trying to have for the last six years, only to be shut out by a Democratic Senate that refused to stand up for the rights of the unborn.

Luckily, that hasn’t deterred those who defend innocent life in all its stages from pushing for this very important bill. That’s why I admire and celebrate groups like Kentucky Right to Life that continue to be instrumental in the pro-life movement by speaking up for the unborn.

Thanks to something as simple as a sonogram, more and more Americans are recognizing that babies in the womb are babies, with hands and feet, fingers and toes, and they ought to be protected. These sonogram images are often the first glimpse that expecting parents-to-be see of their baby boy or girl.

I’ve heard from people who say that these images are what convinced them that an unborn child needs protection, and as the father of three daughters myself, I completely agree with them.

This is just one of the reasons that recent videos depicting the repugnant practices of Planned Parenthood employees have captured the attention of so many Americans in recent months, including me.

As the Senate majority leader, I will continue to fight for innocent life, and under my leadership the Senate will finally take an important step toward that end by voting this week on the Pain-Capable Unborn Child Protection Act. These precious lives of unborn babies deserve our strongest efforts to protect them. That’s the goal of this bill, and I’ll be proud to vote for it.

Republican Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell is the senior senator from Kentucky.

SOURCE:  PBS NewsHour

In a turbulent year for race relations, has anything changed?

SOURCE:  METRO LOUISVILLE

SOURCE:  TRISTATE

SOURCE:  METRO LOUISVILLE

SOURCE:  BLACKNEWS.COM

BROWN/BYRD FOUNDATION ANNUAL REMINDER — SEPTEMBER IS NATIONAL PROSTATE CANCER AWARENESS MONTH

New York, NY — When Kevin Byrd and Blossom Brown were asked about the ultimate goal for the BrownByrd Foundation, their immediate response was clear, crisp and to the point: To raise awareness and funds to end prostate cancer. Kevin and Blossom have been longtime advocates and an active voice for the millions of men affected by prostate cancer. In recognition of National Prostate Cancer Awareness Month, they encourage all men over 40 to examine their family medical history and get checked for prostate cancer.

The BrownByrd Foundation, established in 2008, is a Christian organization and is a registered 501 (c) (3) nonprofit. It was founded by Kevin Byrd and Blossom Brown to increase awareness and prevention of prostate cancer through early detection and screening. Mr. Byrd and Mrs. Brown had a heightened awareness of prostate cancer at the age of 24 when both of their grandfathers lost their battle to prostate cancer. They were motivated by the desire to keep their grandfathers legacy alive and at the same time save lives through advocacy by providing an even stronger voice for prostate cancer awareness. Kevin Byrd and Blossom Brown collectively produced and wrote a short film titled The Last Dayz which illustrates the life of a young man who is diagnosed with prostate cancer, and who learns how to cope with the realization of having this insidious disease. The film The Last Dayz is stilled being used as a tool to bring awareness to men about the importance of being tested for prostate cancer regularly, and even for women to urge the men that they love to be tested.

The BrownByrd Foundation has received many accolades for their fight against prostate cancer has led to the lighting of Niagara Falls and a featured segment on Fios1 Heroes on our Island. In 2013, they received the Long Island, Health Care Heroes Award. In February 2012, their work was honored and entered into the Congressional Record Library of Congress by House of Representative Congresswoman Yvette D. Clarke. The foundation has also received numerous proclamations from world leaders, U.S. Presidents and the Common Council of Utica, NY recognized their commitment to prostate cancer by honoring the foundation with a street named Brown Byrd Lane.

The founders of the BrownByrd Foundation are not content to rest on their laurels for they understands and know that much work needs to be done to find a cure and end prostate cancer. Early detection is key to receiving appropriate treatment, therefore, all men over the age of 40 are asked to take action by scheduling an appointment to get tested today! For free prostate cancer screening in your state, click here.

What You Should Know About Prostate Cancer:

* More than 220,000 men will be told they have prostate cancer this year. It is the second most common cancer in men in the United States.

* Aside from age, risk factors for prostate cancer include family history and race.

+ One in seven men will develop prostate cancer.
+ One in five African-American men will develop prostate cancer.
+ One in three men with a family history will develop prostate cancer.

* Talk to your doctor about prostate cancer screening if you are 40 to 54 years old and:

+ are African-American
+ have a father, brother or son who has had prostate cancer
+ Prostate cancer, if caught early, has over a 90 percent survival rate.
+ Early detection can save your life!

To support and/or make a donation to the BrownByrd Foundation, please contact the following: Brown Byrd Foundation, 30 Wall Street 8th Floor, New York, New York 10005. Contact Number: (212) 709-8335. You can also check out the Brown/Byrd online store .