Washington --  Today U.S. Congressman Kevin Brady (R-Texas) voted with the majority of the House of Representatives to ban abortions based solely on whether the baby in the womb is a boy or a girl. The bill – which failed to get the super majority needed to pass - would make it a federal crime to carry out an abortion based on the gender of the child. President Obama opposes the measure.  

“Can you think of a more abhorrent reason to kill an innocent baby than because it doesn’t fit your preference for a boy or a girl?” asked Brady, a pro-life lawmaker who was an early sponsor of the Susan B. Anthony and Frederick Douglass Prenatal Nondiscrimination Act (H.R. 3541). "I am terribly disappointed that President Obama – who says he opposes gender discrimination in all forms – and Democrats in the House would oppose this bill given that, in countries like China that allow this practice, many of the gender-aborted babies are little girls.”

H.R. 354 imposes criminal penalties on doctors who knowingly provide sex-selective abortions, and on those who coerce women to seek such abortions. It also bars federal funding from any organization which does not comply with the law and requires healthcare providers to report any suspected rule violation. No penalties are imposed upon a woman seeking an abortion.