Blackmun bust bill riles abortion foes

Posted at 2:02 PM on January 24, 2013 by Tim Pugmire (3 Comments)
Filed under: MN Legislature

Legislation introduced today in the Minnesota Senate would authorize a bust of former U.S. Supreme Court Justice Harry Blackmun for display inside the State Capitol.

The bill would appropriate a yet-to-be determined amount of money for the Minnesota Historical Society to commission a bust, and install it alongside an existing bust of former U.S. Supreme Court Chief Justice Warren Burger. Blackmun and Burger were both natives of St. Paul.

Sen. Scott Dibble, DFL-Minneapolis, said his bill would pay proper tribute to a major historic figure.

"The fact that his bust is missing from the Capitol is noticeable," Dibble said. "He should be honored just like we honor a number of other major figures from Minnesota, who've made such major contributions to our nation's life."

But the statewide anti-abortion group Minnesotan Citizens Concerned for Life (MCCL) quickly condemned the proposal, because of Blackmun's prominent role in the 1973 Roe v. Wade decision. In a news release, MCCL Executive Director Scott Fischbach urged lawmakers to reject the bill.

"Placing a statue of the individual who wrote the U.S. Supreme Court decision that legalized the killing of more than half a million unborn children in Minnesota is extremist and divisive," Fischbach wrote. "The newly elected leadership in the Legislature has stated that they want to focus on jobs and education for the people of our state - not placing statues of extremists that divide Minnesotans in Capitol alcoves."

A similar effort to honor Blackmun in 2000 was controversial, and ultimately unsuccessful.

Comments (3)

If we are projected to have a budget shortfall, WHY in the blue blazes are there bills in the works to SPEND MORE MONEY on non-essential things?????

The State Legislature, as well as the National Legislature, need to be working on REDUCING spending, NOT spending more on frivolous things!!!!

We DO NOT have a problem with the revenue coming in, but we DO have a problem with OVER spending year after year after year!!!

Posted by pcsrocky | January 25, 2013 1:50 PM

Just curious, pcsrocky, where do you stand on a woman's right to choose?

Posted by carry_on | January 27, 2013 9:07 AM

Wow! What a bunch of nutters. And here I thought people in Minnesota were supposed to be calm and reasonable.

Posted by Theophrastus Bombastus von Hoenhenheim den Sidste | April 19, 2013 11:31 PM

Services

• Hourly Newscast
• HD Radio
• iPhone App / Mobile
• E-mail newsletters
• RSS feeds
• Podcasts
• Submit your photos
• Videos
• Weather
• Most e-mailed stories