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Risch proposes bill to block US foreign aid from funding abortions

EXCLUSIVE: Senate Foreign Relations Committee Chairman Jim Risch and Republican senators on Thursday are expected to roll out a measure that would prohibit the use of U.S. foreign aid funds for abortions, Fox News Digital has learned.

The bill, titled “the American Values Act,” would permanently enact and expand existing prohibitions on the use of U.S. foreign assistance to pay for the performance or promotion of abortion services overseas.

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The bill would restrict the use of foreign assistance funds to perform abortions, promote or lobby for or against abortions and forced sterilization.

The bill would also ensure U.S. foreign aid funds cannot be used for biomedical research relating to abortions.

Chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee Sen. Jim Risch (R-ID) and Republican senators are expected to roll out a measure that would prohibit the use of U.S. foreign aid funds for abortions. (Al Drago-Pool/Getty Images)

The bill also would permanently restrict funds to organizations that support or participate in the management of a program of “coercive abortion or involuntary sterilization.”

It would also permanently enact restrictions on the use of funds made available to the Peace Corps to pay for abortions.

“American foreign aid should always be used in a way that is in line with American values — and that means that no foreign assistance funds should ever be used to perform or promote abortion services,” Risch told Fox News Digital. “I’m proud to introduce the American Values Act with my colleagues to hold our government accountable to this standard and protect the sanctity of life across the globe.”

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The legislation is co-sponsored by Republican Sens. Roger Marshall of Kansas, Rand Paul of Kentucky, Rick Scott of Florida, Markwayne Mullin of Oklahoma, Marsha Blackburn of Tennessee, Steve Daines of Montana, Tim Sheehy of Montana, Bill Hagerty of Tennessee and Pete Ricketts of Nebraska.

The introduction of the bill comes after President Donald Trump issued an order to freeze funding flowing from federal agencies that would go towards “woke” initiatives and the “weaponization of government” to improve government efficiency.

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The White House, in rolling out the order, said that the Department of Government Efficiency, which aims to eliminate government spending and waste, identified $37 million that was about to go to the World Health Organization, along with $50 million to “fund condoms in Gaza.”

“That is a preposterous waste of money,” White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said.

Brooke Singman is a political correspondent and reporter for Fox News Digital, Fox News Channel and FOX Business.

January 30, 2025
HHS to review current practices to ensure fed dollars not paying for abortions

Dr. Dorothy Fink, acting secretary of the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), announced that the agency would begin reevaluating its current practices to ensure they are not utilizing federal dollars to promote non-medically necessary abortions.

HHS’s Office of Civil Rights has been tasked with investigating whether the agency’s programs, regulations and guidance are following federal guidelines under the Hyde Amendment, according to a Monday announcement from Fink. The review, Fink noted, will be conducted via guidance issued by the Office of Management and Budget.

“The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, through the Office for Civil Rights, is tasked with enforcement of many of our nation’s laws that protect the fundamental and unalienable rights of conscience and religious exercise,” Fink said in the announcement. “It shall be a priority of the Department to strengthen enforcement of these laws.”

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Pro-life activists try to block the sign of a pro-choice demonstrator during the March for Life on Jan. 19, 2018, in Washington, D.C. (Alex Wong/Getty Images)

The announcement from Fink is in line with President Donald Trump’s Jan. 24 executive order calling on all executive agencies to enforce laws under the Hyde Amendment, which prevents the use of federal funds for non-medically necessary, elective abortions. Trump’s Jan. 24 executive order also rescinded two executive orders implemented by President Joe Biden that sought to loosen restrictions on abortion in the wake of the Supreme Court’s decision to strike down Roe v. Wade.

“Congress has enacted the Hyde Amendment and a series of additional laws to protect taxpayers from being forced to pay for abortion,” stated a “fact sheet” published Saturday by the White House. “Contrary to this longstanding commonsense policy, the previous administration embedded federal funding of elective abortion in a wide variety of government programs.”

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Fox News Poll on SCOTUS overturning Roe v. Wade. (Fox News)

Notably, Fink’s announcement about the agency-wide review came amid an external communications freeze implemented by the Trump administration. While essential agency functions have been permitted to continue under the freeze, these functions are not supposed to be promoted until it is over, according to a memo reportedly sent to officials at the National Institutes of Health (NIH) from NIH acting Director Matthew Memoli.

Fox News Digital reached out to Fink and HHS to inquire about why this announcement about reevaluating its practices to ensure they align with the Hyde Amendment was permitted amid the communications freeze, but did not hear back in time for publication.

In addition to announcing HHS’ plans to reevaluate programs under the Hyde Amendment, Fink’s announcement also praised the Trump administration’s decision to immediately rejoin the international Geneva Consensus Declaration on Promoting Women’s Health and Strengthening the Family.

Pro-life activists demonstrate protests in front of the Supreme Court building in Washington, D.C., on Dec. 1, 2021. (Reuters/Jonathan Ernst)

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According to a memo from the State Department, the declaration seeks to “secure meaningful health and development gains for women,” “protect life at all stages,” “defend the family as the fundamental unit of society,” and “work together across the United Nations system to realize these values.” Fink said in her Monday announcement that HHS’s Office of Global Affairs intends to support the U.S.’ efforts as part of this coalition.

January 28, 2025
Ogles and other Republicans push federal ban on chemical abortions

Rep. Andy Ogles, R-Tenn., and more than a dozen other House Republicans are pushing a proposal to ban the provision of chemical abortion drugs.

The congressman reintroduced the proposal that he previously put forward in 2023, according to a press release, which provides a link to the text of the 2023 version.

“Notwithstanding any other provision of law, whoever prescribes, dispenses, distributes, or sells, any drug, medication, or chemical for the purpose of procuring or performing an abortion on any woman, shall be imprisoned for not more than 25 years, fined under this title, or both,” the text reads.

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Rep. Andy Ogles at event about The Ending Chemical Abortion Act in Capitol Hill of Washington D.C., on Sept. 28, 2023 (Celal Gunes/Anadolu Agency via Getty Images)

The ban would not apply to the provision “of any contraceptive agent administered before conception or before pregnancy can be confirmed through conventional testing,” or to “treatment of a miscarriage,” or to situations “where a woman suffers from a physical disorder, physical injury, or physical illness, including a life-endangering physical condition caused by or arising from the pregnancy itself, that would, as certified by a physician, place the woman in danger of death.”

The proposal also stipulates that a woman who receives a chemical abortion may not be prosecuted criminally.

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“Chemical abortions not only end a human life but pose a serious risk to the lives of the mothers,” Ogles noted, according to both the 2023 and 2025 press releases about the proposal.

“I’m taking a stand against the irresponsibility of the Democrats and working to protect women and girls across America. I’m taking a stand for life because, born or unborn, every single person is uniquely and wonderfully made. It’s not merely a political issue; it’s a moral duty to uphold the sanctity of life. I am committed to safeguarding the innocent and voiceless in our society,” he noted.

Cosponsors include Republican Reps. Mary Miller of Illinois, Trent Kelly of Mississippi, Mike Bost of Illinois, Ben Cline of Virginia, Josh Brecheen of Oklahoma, Rick Allen of Georgia, Randy Weber of Texas, Dan Crenshaw of Texas, Elijah Crane of Arizona, Mark Green of Tennessee, Andrew Clyde of Georgia, Andy Biggs of Arizona, Doug LaMalfa of California, Paul Gosar of Arizona, Barry Moore of Alabama, Lauren Boebert of Colorado, Glenn Grothman of Wisconsin, and Mike Ezell of Mississippi.

LAWMAKER UNVEILS CONSTITUTIONAL AMENDMENT TO GIVE TRUMP THIRD TERM

Left: Rep.-elect Dan Crenshaw, R-Texas, is seen after the freshman class photo on the East Front of the Capitol on Nov. 14, 2018; Center: Rep. Andy Ogles, R-Tenn., is seen outside the U.S. Capitol during House votes on Friday, April 12, 2022; Right: Rep. Lauren Boebert, R-Colo., arrives to a Republican caucus meeting at the U.S. Capitol Building on Sept. 13, 2023 in Washington, D.C. (Left: Tom Williams/CQ Roll Call; Center: Tom Williams/CQ-Roll Call, Inc via Getty Images; Right: Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images)

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Ogles recently proposed a Constitutional amendment that would alter presidential term limits in a manner that would allow President Donald Trump to seek a third term in office.

The proposal reads, “No person shall be elected to the office of the President more than three times, nor be elected to any additional term after being elected to two consecutive terms, and no person who has held the office of President, or acted as President, for more than two years of a term to which some other person was elected President shall be elected to the office of the President more than twice.”

Alex Nitzberg is a writer for Fox News Digital.

January 28, 2025
President Trump reinstates Mexico City Policy, separates taxpayer dollars and abortions

An executive order President Donald Trump signed Friday will overturn two Biden memorandums and reinstate the Mexico City Policy, which forbids using taxpayer dollars to fund nongovernmental organizations that perform or promote coercive abortion or involuntary sterilization.

The Mexico City Policy, initiated by the Reagan administration, has been rescinded by every Democratic president and reinstated by every Republican president since its creation.

During the Biden administration, the Pentagon paid for service members to travel over state lines for abortions, and Veterans Affairs medical centers were allowed to offer abortion counseling and abortion procedures for service members and their beneficiaries, Fox News Digital previously reported.

President Donald Trump signs executive orders in the Oval Office of the White House in Washington, D.C., Jan. 20. (Jim Watson/Pool/AFP via Getty Images)

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The administration also provided abortion access to migrants detained at the border, offering transport of unaccompanied pregnant children to states without abortion restrictions.

The White House said that, for nearly five decades, Congress annually enacted the Hyde Amendment and similar laws that prevent federal funding of elective abortion, “reflecting a longstanding consensus that American taxpayers should not be forced to pay for that practice.”

Nuns arrive to participate in the annual March for Life Friday in Washington, D.C. (AP Photo/Ben Curtis)

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“However, the previous administration disregarded this established, commonsense policy by embedding forced taxpayer funding of elective abortions in a wide variety of Federal programs,” the White House wrote in a statement. “It is the policy of the United States, consistent with the Hyde Amendment, to end the forced use of Federal taxpayer dollars to fund or promote elective abortion.”

Biden’s Presidential Memorandum, Protecting Women’s Health at Home and Abroad, was signed Jan. 28, 2021, and alleged the policy’s restrictions negatively affected women’s reproductive health and undermined U.S. partnerships in global health efforts.

Pro-choice supporters hold signs during a rally. (AP Photo/Jose Luis Magana)

Trump’s order rescinds two Biden executive actions that promoted access to abortions and included abortion in the definition of “reproductive healthcare.”

The language in the new order clarified the memorandum is “not intended to, and does not, create any right or benefit, substantive or procedural, enforceable at law or in equity by any party against the United States, its departments, agencies, or entities, its officers, employees, or agents, or any other person.”

The Center for Reproductive Rights (CRR) told Fox News Digital the policy “will decrease abortion access in countries around the world.”

“This far-reaching policy defunds health organizations in other countries that provide abortion services or information, even for victims of sexual assault,” CRR said in a statement provided to Fox News Digital. “Many of these critical organizations will likely shutter as a result or be forced to stop providing or even talking about abortion services.”

Secretary of State Marco Rubio speaks after being sworn in by Vice President JD Vance in the Vice Presidential Ceremonial Office in the Eisenhower Executive Office Building on the White House campus Tuesday in Washington, D.C. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci)

CRR representatives also referenced the administration’s Geneva Consensus Declaration Friday night, which is a joint initiative to “secure meaningful health and development gains for women; to protect life at all stages; to defend the family as the fundamental unit of society; and to work together across the UN system to realize these values,” according to a statement from Secretary of State Marco Rubio.

The CRR called the declaration “an anti-reproductive rights and anti-LGBTQ political statement” that “intentionally misrepresents itself as an official international agreement, and attempts to undermine the broad legal basis for reproductive rights as human rights.”

“The reinstatement of President Trump’s Global Gag Rule (GGR) and rejoining of the Geneva Consensus are direct assaults on the health and human rights of millions of people around the world,” said Rachana Desai Martin, CRR chief government and external relations officer.

Sen. Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., speaks during a news conference in front of the U.S. Capitol May 21, 2024, in Washington, D.C. (Alex Wong/Getty Images)

“We saw the devastating impact of the GGR during the last Trump administration when contraception and vital reproductive services were cut off,” Martin added. “There was a spike in pregnancy-related deaths, reproductive coercion and gender inequality worldwide. Many clinics and health programs shuttered, leaving vulnerable populations with nowhere to get birth control, pregnancy care and other vital health services.”

Live Action, a global human rights movement dedicated to ending abortion, posted on X after the order was signed.

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“The Mexico City policy which ensures American tax dollars do not fund killing children internationally through abortion has been reinstated by President Trump!” the post said.

Fox News Digital requested comment from Planned Parenthood and Physicians for Reproductive Health but did not immediately receive a response.

Alexandra Koch is a breaking news writer for Fox News Digital. Prior to joining Fox News, Alexandra covered breaking news, crime, religion, and the military in the southeast.

January 25, 2025
204 House Dems vote against bill to give lifesaving treatment to infants who survive abortions

The House of Representatives has passed a bill that would penalize doctors who do not provide life-saving care to infants born alive after an abortion attempt.

All but one Democrat voted against the bill, which passed 217 to 204, with all Republicans in favor. One Democrat, Rep. Vicente Gonzalez, D-Texas, voted “present.”

The bill directs health care practitioners to operate with the “same degree of professional skill, care, and diligence” for a baby born with a heartbeat after an abortion as during a normal birth. Doctors who run afoul of the rule would be fined or given up to five years behind bars.

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All House Democratic leaders voted against the bill (Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images)

House GOP leaders lauded the bill, with Majority Whip Tom Emmer, R-Minn., telling Fox News Digital, “Requiring medical care for babies born alive after a failed abortion isn’t controversial, it’s common sense.”

“The fact that Democrats would rather support infanticide than vote in favor of this bill shows how extreme and out-of-touch their party has become,” Emmer said.

Democrats have argued that the bill is redundant, given existing laws against infanticide and murder, and could imperil the lives of women seeking late-term abortions due to medical emergencies while unfairly penalizing doctors.

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House Majority Whip Tom Emmer criticized all Democrats who voted against the bill. (Stephen Maturen/Getty Images)

“No one goes through pregnancy and all that comes with it…and then after eight or nine months of that is like ‘nah, I don’t want to do this,’” Rep. Sara Jacobs, D-Calif., said during debate on the bill, adding that late-term operations made up about 1% of abortions. “It is because of a serious fetal abnormality or the health of the mother.”

She said the bill was “not based on science or reality.”

Several Democrats who spoke out against the bill themselves went through emergency abortion procedures with a nonviable pregnancy.

Among them was Rep. Teresa Leger Fernandez, D-N.M., who said the bill would allow women to “die on the operating table because doctors are scared of going to jail.”

Rep. Sara Jacobs was among the Democrats who spoke out in favor of the bill. (Getty Images)

Republicans, meanwhile, argued the bill would stop babies from being “left to die in a closet, alone and discarded like medical waste,” as Rep. Michelle Fischbach, R-Minn., said during debate.

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“These precious babies, fellow Americans, deserve protection because they are alive,” said Rep. Chip Roy, R-Texas.

The vote comes after Democrats tanked the bill in the Senate earlier this week. The legislation failed to pass a procedural hurdle that needed 60 votes to allow for debate on its final passage.

Elizabeth Elkind is a politics reporter for Fox News Digital leading coverage of the House of Representatives. Previous digital bylines seen at Daily Mail and CBS News.

Follow on Twitter at @liz_elkind and send tips to [email protected]

January 23, 2025