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South Carolina Senate Judiciary Sub-committee hearing on Senate Bill No. 111 Wednesday 4 May 2005
The following is testimony given by SCLoS State Director, Robert Hayes before the S. C. Senate Judiciary Sub-committee on (H.3213/S.111), Right to Life Act of S. C. On the Sub-committee was Senator Jim Ritchie (R-Spartanburg), Chairman; Senator Luke Rankin (R-Horry); Senator Joel Lourie (D-Richland) and Senator Gerald Mallory (D-Darlington).
During the questioning of Director Hayes, there was a little give and take between Director Hayes and Senator Lourie.
Senator Ritchie: Yes sir, from Abbeville. Again, if you will give your name and whom you represent, if anyone.
R. Hayes: I am Robert B. Hayes and I am the State Director of the South Carolina League of the South. Thank you gentlemen and I know we have very short time. As a former biology teacher, I am of the belief that life doesn't begin at conception, but that life is a continuum. Life began with creation! And the sperm and egg are both living entities with a haploid number of chromosomes and at the time they unite, a new life begins, not life, but a new life begins, a new entity with the diploid number of chromosomes. And South Carolina must protect innocent life! A society that does not protect innocent life is an immoral society in my belief. And government has, but one function and that is to protect life and property and if you do not protect life, an innocent life particularly, one of your main reasons and I think the main reason for the existence of government has creased. And so I think you should support this bill. The South Carolina League of the South is in support of this bill, we think that it needs to be passed to protect innocent life in the state of South Carolina. South Carolina is a sovereign entity! We should decide here in South Carolina how to govern ourselves. It is time for our representatives to stand up and tell the federal government, whether it's the executive, the legislative or the judiciary, when they have overstepped their bounds. We are sovereign! It is time that our representatives understood that and stood up and protected the people of South Carolina. Thank you1
Senator Ritchie: Senator from Horry.
Senator Rankin: Thank you sir. I appreciate your passion. You sound somewhat like a fellow from the “Independent Republic of Horry” (laughter), somewhat a state unto ourselves at times we wish, but unfortunately we cant get all of the things we want in Horry, because the rest of the state may not agree with us on--. Just a comment regarding our speaking up for ourselves and telling the federal government that they are wrong. You know, we pass a lot of resolutions down here either commending, or urging, or requesting certain things of Congress that typically dont get read let alone heeded. How can we enact what you would request of us if the Constitution has been interpreted in such a way that doesn't support this effort? How can we do it, if we know that the Constitution is not on our side.
R. Hayes: The Constitution is on our side, sir! It is the interpreters of the Constitution that's not on our side. I would suggest every member of the Senate to read and thoroughly study the philosophy, the political philosophy, of John C. Calhoun, the only political philosopher that the United States has ever produced. The state, the sovereign state, whether it be South Carolina, Georgia or New York, is the final arbiter of the interpretation of the Constitution, not the Supreme Court. We have been indoctrinated into belief that the Supreme Court is the final arbiter. They are not—we are! And we have simply got to stand up and demand that that be abided by.
Senator Rankin: Thank you very much.
Senator Ritchie: The Senator from Richland.
Senator Lourie: Thank you, Mr. Chairman. Mr. Hayes, is it?
R. Hayes: Yes sir.
Senator Lourie: The name of your group again?
R. Hayes: The South Carolina League of the South.
Senator Lourie: What is---what is your group basically---what is the principles or the platform of your group? What's the founding platform of the South Carolina League of the South?
R. Hayes: Sir, we believe in an antiquated concept—government at the consent of the governed. The overwhelming majority of the people in South Carolina believe that abortion is the murder of unborn babies, and yet we in South Carolina cannot stop the murder of unborn babies, because some federal judge or the judges of the Supreme Court has said that we cannot stop the murder of babies. So, we simply believe in self-government, whether it's on the abortion issue, whether it's on taxation issue, whether it's on this—that we are faced with now, with sodomite coupling, you know, they euphemistically refer to it as “gay marriage”. So that is our belief—self-government.
Senator Lourie: You believe that we are better as a state or as one of fifty states or would you believe that South Carolina would be better to be its own independent entity?
R. Hayes: Well, we are certainly—on the rules and regulations that's being dictated to us by the federal government and since the Tenth Amendment is no longer being recognised, we will be better off independent.
Senator Lourie: Independent, so as not a part of the United States? I just want to--
R. Hayes: I am answering the question you ask me. And I answer it—if the Tenth Amendment is to be recognised and the powers that were delegated to –in the Constitution to the government were abided by, we would be fine within the union of states. But when they have denied us the right to govern ourselves and have usurped powers that were not delegated them or not given to them in the Constitution, we are better off out.
Senator Lourie: So we would be better to secede from the union.
R. Hayes: Sir, we have already seceded, we just need to get rid of the occupying forces.
Senator Lourie: Than you, Mr. Hayes.
TO ENACT THE "RIGHT TO LIFE ACT OF SOUTH CAROLINA" WHICH ESTABLISHES THAT THE RIGHT TO DUE PROCESS AND THE RIGHT TO EQUAL PROTECTION VEST AT FERTILIZATION.
H 3213 H 3213
VERSIONS OF
THIS BILL
A BILL TO AMEND TITLE 1, CHAPTER 1, CODE OF LAWS OF SOUTH CAROLINA, 1976, RELATING TO THE ADMINISTRATION OF GOVERNMENT, BY ADDING ARTICLE 5, SO AS TO ENACT THE "RIGHT TO LIFE ACT OF SOUTH CAROLINA" WHICH ESTABLISHES THAT THE RIGHT TO DUE PROCESS AND THE RIGHT TO EQUAL PROTECTION VEST AT FERTILIZATION. Whereas, the General Assembly, under Article III, Section 1A of the Constitution of the State of South Carolina, 1895, is empowered to assemble to make new laws, as the common good may require; and Whereas, Article I, Section 3 of the Constitution of the State of South Carolina, 1895, guarantees that no person may be deprived of life, liberty, or property without due process of law or denied the equal protection of the laws; and Whereas, the General Assembly in the exercise of its constitutional powers and in carrying out its duties and responsibilities under the law finds it necessary and proper to ensure that the rights of its citizens extend to each newly born and preborn human person. Now, therefore, Be it enacted by the General Assembly of the State of South Carolina: SECTION 1. Title 1, Chapter 1 of the 1976 Code is amended by adding:
"Article 5
Right to Life Section 1-1-310. This article may be cited as the 'Right to Life Act of South Carolina'. Section 1-1-320. The right to due process, whereby no person may be deprived of life, liberty, or property without due process of law, and the right to equal protection of the laws, both of which rights are guaranteed by Article I, Section 3 of the Constitution of this State, vest at fertilization." SECTION 2. This act takes effect upon approval by the Governor.
----XX----
S 111
S 0111 General Bill, By Fair, Bryant, Grooms, Thomas and VerdinSimilar(H 3213) A BILL TO AMEND TITLE 1, CHAPTER 1, CODE OF LAWS OF SOUTH CAROLINA, 1976, RELATING TO THE ADMINISTRATION OF GOVERNMENT, BY ADDING ARTICLE 5, SO AS TO ENACT THE "RIGHT TO LIFE ACT OF SOUTH CAROLINA" WHICH ESTABLISHES THAT THE RIGHT TO DUE PROCESS AND THE RIGHT TO EQUAL PROTECTION VEST AT FERTILIZATION. 12/15/04 Senate Prefiled 12/15/04 Senate Referred to Committee on Judiciary 01/11/05 Senate Introduced and read first time SJ-138 01/11/05 Senate Referred to Committee on Judiciary SJ-138
VERSIONS OF THIS BILL
S. 111 A BILL TO AMEND TITLE 1, CHAPTER 1, CODE OF LAWS OF SOUTH CAROLINA, 1976, RELATING TO THE ADMINISTRATION OF GOVERNMENT, BY ADDING ARTICLE 5, SO AS TO ENACT THE "RIGHT TO LIFE ACT OF SOUTH CAROLINA" WHICH ESTABLISHES THAT THE RIGHT TO DUE PROCESS AND THE RIGHT TO EQUAL PROTECTION VEST AT FERTILIZATION. Whereas, the General Assembly, under Article III, Section 1A of the Constitution of the State of South Carolina, 1895, is empowered to assemble to make new laws, as the common good may require; and Whereas, Article I, Section 3 of
the Constitution of the State of South Carolina, 1895,
guarantees that no
person Whereas, the General Assembly in
the exercise of its constitutional powers and in carrying
out its duties and responsibilities under the law finds it
necessary and proper to ensure that the rights of its
citizens extend to each newly born and preborn human
Be it enacted by the General Assembly of the State of South Carolina: SECTION 1. Title 1, Chapter 1 of the 1976 Code is amended by adding: "Article 5 Right to Life Section 1-1-310. This article may be cited as the 'Right to Life Act of South Carolina'. Section 1-1-320. The right
to due process, whereby no
SECTION 2. This act takes effect upon approval by the Governor. ----XX---- |
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