On paper, Pastor Scott Lively is fighting a steep upward battle for Beacon Hill. The contender for Governor of Massachusetts, running as an Independent, is a staunch opponent to the LGBTQ community with a devout religious background that he hopes will play strongly in his unlikely administration, should it come into fruition. But his first published policy position, on the polarizing issue of abortion and buffer zones no less, could have significant implications on his campaign for better or for worse.
Last week the Supreme Court of the United States entertained arguments from both sides of the abortion buffer zone issue, in which one woman is suing the Commonwealth of Massachusetts claiming that the 35-foot semicircle surrounding abortion clinics to prevent demonstrative harassment to those using the clinics is a direct violation of freedom of speech.
For his part, Lively recognized the opportunity to convey his political stance towards the buffer zone issue and abortion in general while sideswiping Democratic challenger Martha Coakley in the process – Coakley’s team is leading the defense of the case.
“I view the killing of innocent unborn babies to be the most vile and wicked act of which human beings are capable and I would prosecute abortionists for aggravated first-degree murder if it were in my power to do so,” Lively told BostInno in an email. “[Coakley] is complicit in the murders of these helpless children and unfit for public office.”
His subsequently published abortion policy very much follows suit.
“I myself would be ‘pro-choice’ if it were not for one fact,” claimed Lively in a press release. “The act of abortion kills a living human being which science proves and the Bible confirms is a separate person with his own unique DNA from the moment of conception.”
But before he opined further on the controversial issue, he noted that “In reporting on my stance I ask news organizations to include this caveat so that people know I am speaking of hypothetical future acts done with knowledge that they violate the hypothetical future law.”
The essence of said hypothetical future law would be to hold abortion violators accountable for their part in “deliberately and with premeditation” killing an unborn child.
According to Massachusetts General Law, murder committed with “deliberately premeditated malice aforethought” is considered murder in the first-degree which, if convicted, carries the weight of “imprisonment in the state prison for life.”
Of course, Lively adds that a mother who subjects her unborn fetus to abortion would undergo a series of evaluations to better comprehend her mental capacity. But if it were found out that she acted on her own free will with no signs of emotional or mental disability, she would face the applicable punishment.
“I pledge today that I would never sign any state budget that includes a single dime of abortion funding, and if any member of the state legislature were to introduce legislation to recognize the legal personhood of unborn babies I would use the full power of my office to support it,” noted Lively in closing out his release.
It is unclear at this point when the Supreme Court will levy its ruling concerning abortion buffer zone bills. Scott Lively will release a series of detailed articles, issue by issue, as they come to the forefront of the gubernatorial race. In the meantime, feel free to respectfully share your thoughts and ideas in the comments section below.
