Democrat Ben Nelson Sponsoring Stupak Amdt to Cut Abortion Funds in Senate Bill

Sen. Ben Nelson, a pro-life Democrat from Nebraska, confirmed today that he is working on an amendment to the Senate version of the government-run health care bill that would remove abortion funding from it. He said the amendment would be similar to language adopted in the House.

During the House debate on the health care bill, lawmakers adopted, on a strongly bipartisan vote, the Stupak amendment.

That amendment removed the abortion funding found in the government-run public option and the affordability credits -- both of which are contained in the bill Senate leader Harry Reid proposed.

Nelson said today he plans to offer an amendment that is virtually identical to the Stupak amendment in the House, saying the only difference is in what is changed in the differently-worded bills but adding that the thrust is the same.

"I'm working on an abortion amendment," Nelson told reporters, according to Politico. "It's as identical to Stupak as it can be."

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