RUSSELL: The Truth About Prop 1

By Andrew Russell

Everyone I know who supports Prop 1 in Idaho is doing so for one of the following reasons:

They don’t understand what’s ACTUALLY in Prop 1 (most common).
They don’t understand what’s ACTUALLY in current Idaho law.
They support elective abortion (least common).

I write this to address each of these reasons. My goals are to:

Help clear the air of misunderstanding.
Motivate those who might otherwise stay home to show up and vote “NO” on Nov. 3rd.
Change some minds and flip those leaning toward voting “yes” to confidently vote “NO!” instead.

Addressing Reason #1: What is ACTUALLY in Prop 1?

Prop 1 does not read as a normal legal statute, but as an abortion “bill of rights”, including every person’s “right” to elective abortion for ANY reason.
Prop 1 does not use age-specific language at all. It only uses the word “person” instead of “adult”, “minor”, or any other age-specific term. This stealthily guarantees people of any age, including minors, the legal “right” to receive abortions, contraceptives, and any other “reproductive healthcare” for any reason without parental knowledge or consent (I’m willing to bet child sex traffickers LOVE this). In fact, Prop 1 states that “Every person has the right to reproductive freedom and privacy”, which would actually prohibit parents and guardians from knowing anything about their child’s “reproductive healthcare”.

The word FAMILY spelled out in the repeated phrase 'Prop 1 Removes Parental Consent'

Prop 1 includes this extremely dangerous supremacy clause introducing the rest of the law: “Notwithstanding any other provision of law to the contrary:”. This means that Prop 1 overrules and supersedes literally every other law relating to abortion, contraception, reproductive healthcare, or reproductive freedom and privacy. Further, Prop 1 includes language granting it open-ended power and control over all other Idaho Law. It states: “The provisions of this act are to be liberally construed in favor of reproductive freedom and privacy and are intended to control over any other section of Idaho Code…” (Using AI-assisted search of Idaho’s and all other states’ laws, I couldn’t find any instances where any other law had such powerful language granting it such liberal command and control over other laws.) This means Prop 1 would completely nullify existing Idaho laws like these:
- Parental knowledge and consent for medical procedures and treatments, like abortion, contraceptives, and reproductive care. (Idaho Code § 18-609A, 32-1015)
- Notification of law enforcement of cases of rape and incest (Idaho Code § 18-622(2)(b))
- Ultrasound and fetal heartbeat offer requirements (Idaho Code § 18-609)
- Only physicians can perform abortions (Idaho Code § 18-608A)
- Abortion-trafficking prohibition with intent to conceal it from parents/guardians (Idaho Code § 18-623)
- Requirements that certain procedures like abortion be performed by physicians and occur in hospitals or other properly equipped settings. (Idaho Code § 18-608)
- No taxpayer money can be used for abortions (Idaho Code § 18-8705); (Prop 1 specifies that it does not obligate the state to pay for any reproductive healthcare, but it does not prohibit the state from paying for it either.)
- Statistical reporting and record-keeping requirements tied to abortions (provisions in Chapter 6, Title 18)

Proponents of Prop 1 constantly say that existing Idaho laws already guarantee parental consent. That’s true. But they don’t tell you about this supremacy clause, which would entirely obliterate parental rights to knowledge and consent.

A broken heart formed from the repeated phrase 'Prop 1 moves the goalposts on viability'

Prop 1 moves the goal posts on “fetal viability” to the detriment of the baby. Prop 1 states: “‘Fetal viability’ means the point in a pregnancy when… the fetus has a significant likelihood of sustained survival outside of the uterus WITHOUT extraordinary medical measures.” (All-caps added). What is an “extraordinary medical measure”? A feeding tube, respiratory support like CPAP & oxygen, incubation/temperature regulation, IV fluids/medications, almost anything available in a NICU, and other proven & effective medical measures that regularly and reliably help premature and full-term babies survive and thrive.
- This also means that cases like babies with bowel obstructions, heart conditions, etc., that can be treated after birth and allow the afflicted babies to live long, normal, and productive lives, are instead instantly qualified for elective abortion under this new, broad definition of “viability”. I have an aunt who has lived a long, happy life after a life-saving procedure at her birth. Prop 1 would qualify someone like her to instead be electively aborted.
Prop 1 uses the dangerous, open-ended legal phrase “including but not limited to…” 5 TIMES throughout the proposition. Ask any lawyer how dangerous this phrase can be—imagine signing a housing lease or employment contract that gives your landlord/employer powers “including but not limited to…”
Prop 1 often uses the term “health care provider” instead of “physician” surrounding abortion procedures, and it very loosely defines that a health care provider is “a licensed person or an entity that provides health care or medical treatment.” The only time “physician” is used in connection with “abortion” in Prop 1 is in determining fetal viability and determining cases of medical emergency, not actually performing or overseeing abortion procedures.
This one is a doozy—read it all the way through. Prop 1 states: “Any person or entity may advise, assist, facilitate, inform, refer, or otherwise aid another person exercising the right to reproductive freedom and privacy, and the state shall not burden, interfere with, discriminate against, deprive, or prohibit such acts, directly or indirectly, in any manner…”
- This means that your 14-year-old daughter could tell a teacher at school that she is pregnant, and the teacher can advise her to get an abortion, offer to pay for the procedure, drive her to the procedure, and bring her back to school, and never tell you anything about it. All completely legal. And there’s not a single thing you can legally do about it, because Prop 1 guarantees that “Notwithstanding any other provision of law to the contrary: Every person has the right to reproductive freedom and privacy… including but not limited to the right to make decisions about: Abortion;”

Addressing Reason #2: What is ACTUALLY in/not in current Idaho law?

The law in question is Idaho’s Defense of Life Act (Idaho Code § 18-622). This is the law that was passed by the Idaho legislature in 2020 and went into effect shortly after the US Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade in June of 2022. Notice, it’s not the “Defense of the Unborn Act”—that’s because the law intentionally focuses on defending the lives of both mother AND child.
It is most important to debunk a HUGE LIE that Idaho law criminalizes doctors who are just trying to save lives. THIS IS COMPLETELY FALSE.
- Since Idaho’s Defense of Life Act took effect on August 25, 2022, about two months after Roe v. Wade was overturned, there have been precisely ZERO criminal prosecutions, charges, or professional discipline actions against Idaho doctors under that law (source: Idaho Physicians Open Letter). In fact, when the Defense of Life Act has been challenged in the courts, those lawsuits proved this very fact and ended up helping to uphold the law (source: Idaho Capital Sun).
The Defense of Life Act specifically provides exceptions for the following cases:
- Cases of medical conditions threatening the life of the mother or the life of the baby:
  - “The physician determined, in his good faith medical judgment and based on the facts known to the physician at the time, that the abortion was necessary to prevent the death of the pregnant woman.” (Idaho Code § 18-622(2)(a)(i))
  - “The physician performed or attempted to perform the abortion in the manner that, in his good faith medical judgment and based on the facts known to the physician at the time, provided the best opportunity for the unborn child to survive, unless, in his good faith medical judgment, termination of the pregnancy in that manner would have posed a greater risk of the death of the pregnant woman.” (Idaho Code § 18-622(2)(a)(ii))
- Cases of rape or incest:
  - “(i) If the woman is not a minor or subject to a guardianship, then, prior to the performance of the abortion, the woman has reported to a law enforcement agency that she is the victim of an act of rape or incest and provided a copy of such report to the physician who is to perform the abortion. The copy of the report shall remain a confidential part of the woman’s medical record subject to applicable privacy laws; or
    (ii) If the woman is a minor or subject to a guardianship, then, prior to the performance of the abortion, the woman or her parent or guardian has reported to a law enforcement agency or child protective services that she is the victim of an act of rape or incest and a copy of such report has been provided to the physician who is to perform the abortion. The copy of the report shall remain a confidential part of the woman’s medical record subject to applicable privacy laws.” (Idaho Code § 18-622(2)(b)(i, ii))
The Defense of Life Act also affords doctors and mothers specific legal protections:
- “Medical treatment provided to a pregnant woman by a health care professional as defined in this chapter that results in the accidental death of, or unintentional injury to, the unborn child shall not be a violation of this section.” (Idaho Code § 18-622(4))
  This completely protects the mother in cases where she needs some kind of life-saving medical treatment that could potentially harm the unborn baby, e.g. the mother has cancer, and chemotherapy must be used to save her life.
- “Nothing in this section shall be construed to subject a pregnant woman on whom any abortion is performed or attempted to any criminal conviction and penalty.” (Idaho Code § 18-622(5))

Addressing Reason #3: Elective Abortion is murder and should be banned.

Whenever I encounter someone in favor of elective abortion (meaning abortion in any case that does not threaten the life of the mother or where the pregnancy is the result of rape or incest), I have one simple question for them: at what point in time in a pregnancy should abortion be allowed? Without fail, the answer to that question is different every single time. Some say 22 weeks. Some say 20 weeks. Some say the first trimester. Some say through the second trimester. Some even say (and yes, they are out there) up to the moment of birth. Everyone has different ideas of when life begins, when an unborn life becomes “viable”, and what justifies ending that life. Even scientific evidence supporting when each of these happens is constantly changing—a pregnancy that was not considered viable at all 30 years ago is now completely viable because of advances in medicine and technology.

When even a single innocent life may be at stake, we cannot and indeed should not legislate based on these kinds of varied, changing opinions. If we err at all, we must always err on the side of protecting the lives of the innocent.

A broken heart formed from the repeated phrase 'Every abortion ends an innocent life'

Abortion ends an innocent life every single time. Therefore, it is a tragedy every single time. Even in cases threatening the life of the mother, and in cases of pregnancy resulting from rape and incest, abortion is still a tragedy every single time. It always brings heartache, pain, and trauma to those involved.

We cannot isolate the issue of abortion, either. Pregnancy is not spontaneous—it is always a possible result of normal sexual intercourse, regardless of any attempts to minimize the chances of it. In almost all cases, it stems from the choice to have sexual intercourse. Less than 1% of women who receive abortions indicate that they are victims of rape, and less than 0.5% say they became pregnant because of incest (source: Guttmacher Institute). The moral issue of abortion simply cannot be disconnected from the moral issue of casual intimacy.

Whenever and wherever abortion is legalized, support networks for mothers, families, and young children crumble, especially state-sponsored or state-supported ones. Why? Because, on paper, it seems cheaper and simpler to abort an unborn baby than to try and help the mother and the baby.

During Roe v. Wade’s legal reign (1973-2022), an estimated 60-64 million babies were aborted in the United States alone (source: Guttmacher Institute, NRLC), an average of 1.3 million each year. That is as many as Hitler’s Nazi holocaust (~6 million; 1941-1945), the Cambodian genocide (Up to ~3 million; 1975-1979), Stalin’s genocide (approx. ~9 million; 1920-1953), and Mao Zedong’s man-made famine (up to ~45 million; 1959-1961) combined.

A map of the United States formed from the repeated phrase '60 Million+ Babies Aborted During Roe v. Wade'

The fact is that abortion is the genocide of my generation. For the millennial generation (1981-1996), 24.5 million babies were aborted and 62 million babies were born (source: Guttmacher Institute & InfoPlease, via Live Action). That means that 28.3%, nearly 1/3 of my generation had their chance at life robbed from them through abortion.

Donut charts of lives lost to abortion by generation: Generation X 24.9% (8.7 million), Millennials 28.3% (24.5 million), Generation Z 28.8% (16.3 million), Generation Alpha 20.0% (14.4 million), Generation Beta 22.0% (1 million so far). Source: Guttmacher Institute and InfoPlease, via Live Action

Now, whenever people talk in public about abortion, it seems that both sides try to make their arguments without bringing God or religion into it. 82% of Idahoans believe in God, and 62% of Idahoans are Christian (source: Pew Research), myself included. Considering this, a solely secular approach seems baseless and fruitless. I won’t go too deep into this since many of our beliefs following our belief in God may branch off from one another, but I will offer 3 simple religious perspectives against abortion and in defense of life:

“Clearly God’s greatest concerns regarding mortality are how one gets into this world and how one gets out of it. These two most important issues in our very personal and carefully supervised progress are the two issues that He as our Creator and Father and Guide wishes most to reserve to Himself. These are the two matters that He has repeatedly told us He wants us never to take illegally, illicitly, unfaithfully, without sanction.” ~ President Jeffrey R. Holland, “Of Souls, Symbols, and Sacraments”, 12 Jan 1988, BYU
“Satan would kill God if he could, but he can’t. So, he kills babies because he knows it wounds the heart of The Father and causes chaos on the earth. You see, abortion is actually the sacrament of Satan, because abortion says, ‘you must die so I can live.’ But Christ says, ‘No, I must die so you can live,’ and chooses to enter human history in a uterus, of all locations, to redeem mankind from their sins… Abortion is the demonic parody of the eucharist (sacrament); that’s why it uses the same holy words: ‘This is my body,’ but with the opposite, blasphemous meaning. Do you think it’s a coincidence that the entire central phrase of the entire abortion industrial complex and the culture of death today are the same words of our Savior at the first communion? ‘This is my body.’” ~ Seth Gruber, Calvary Chapel Chino Hills, Jan. 2024

A cross formed from the repeated phrase 'This is my body'

“Another contention raised is that a woman is free to choose what she does with her own body. To a certain extent this is true for all of us. We are free to think. We are free to plan. And then we are free to do. But once an action has been taken, we are never free from its consequences. Those considering abortion have already exercised certain choices… Life comes from life. It is a gift from our Heavenly Father. It is eternal, as He is eternal. Innocent life is not sent by Him to be destroyed! This doctrine is not of me, but is that of the living God and of his divine Son, which I testify in the name of Jesus Christ, amen.” ~ Elder Russell M. Nelson, “Reverence for Life”, April 1985 General Conference address

God told Jeremiah, “Before I formed thee in the belly I knew thee; and before thou camest forth out of the womb I sanctified thee…” (Jeremiah 1:5). Abortion is murder because every abortion ends an innocent human life He created.

Speaking to Cain, the first murderer in human history, God said, “What hast thou done? The voice of thy brother’s blood crieth unto me from the ground. And now thou art cursed…” (Genesis 4:10-11).

The outline of Idaho formed from the repeated phrase 'Prop 1 Would Legalize Genocide'

Simply put, Prop 1 would legalize murder and genocide in Idaho. If God is real, and I know that He is, how will He judge us if we put such an abomination into law by popular vote?

Let us all, each and every one of us, do whatever it takes to get to the polls on November 3rd and VOTE NO on Prop 1.