{"id":2393358,"date":"2025-01-21T16:03:02","date_gmt":"2025-01-21T21:03:02","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/dems-hijack-doug-collins-va-hearing-to-push-abortion-agenda\/"},"modified":"2025-01-21T16:04:58","modified_gmt":"2025-01-21T21:04:58","slug":"dems-hijack-doug-collins-va-hearing-to-push-abortion-agenda","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/dems-hijack-doug-collins-va-hearing-to-push-abortion-agenda\/","title":{"rendered":"Dems Hijack Doug Collins&#8217; VA Hearing To Push Abortion Agenda"},"content":{"rendered":"<aside class=\"mashsb-container mashsb-main mashsb-stretched\"><div class=\"mashsb-box\"><div class=\"mashsb-count mash-medium\" style=\"&quot;\"><div class=\"counts mashsbcount\">20<\/div><span class=\"mashsb-sharetext\">SHARES<\/span><\/div><div class=\"mashsb-buttons\"><a class=\"mashicon-facebook mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/sharer.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.conservativenewsdaily.net%2Fbreaking-news%2Fdems-hijack-doug-collins-va-hearing-to-push-abortion-agenda%2F\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Facebook<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-twitter mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/intent\/tweet?text=&amp;url=https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/?p=2393358&amp;via=ConservNewsDly\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Twitter<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-subscribe mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"#\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Subscribe<\/span><\/a><div class=\"onoffswitch2 mash-medium mashsb-noshadow\" style=\"display:none\"><\/div><\/div>\n            <\/div>\n                <div style=\"clear:both\"><\/div><\/aside>\n            <!-- Share buttons by mashshare.net - Version: 4.0.47--><p>The Senate Veterans \u2064Affairs Committee \u2064recently\u200b held a hearing regarding Doug Collins&#8217; nomination \u200bto lead the department of Veterans Affairs (VA). During the almost three<a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/how-psychedelics-are-revolutionizing-the-way-we-treat-mental-illness\/\" title=\"How Psychedelics Are Revolutionizing The Way We Treat Mental Illness\">-hour-long session<\/a>, Republican members highlighted the VA&#8217;s shortcomings \u2062and focused on improving\u2063 veterans&#8217; \u2062well-being. \u200bHowever, Democratic senators primarily questioned Collins about the Biden management&#8217;s pro-abortion policy that allows for abortions and counseling to pregnant veterans, established in\u200c September 2022.They inquired whether Collins, if confirmed, would repeal this policy, which has faced legal challenges from \u2062Republican lawmakers. Collins emphasized his commitment to upholding existing laws, indicating he would review the\u200c policy but did not pledge outright repeal.The questioning reflected the ongoing contentious debate over abortion rights, especially following the Supreme Court&#8217;s &#8220;Dobbs&#8221; decision and subsequent legislative actions across various states.  <\/p>\n<p class=\"readmore\">\n    <button onclick=\"showReadMore()\" id=\"readmorebtn\">Read more&#8230;<\/button>\n<\/p>\n<hr id=\"line\">\n<span id=\"more\"><\/p>\n<div class=\"article-body body-md bdr-top-black pt-30\">\n<div class=\"row justify-content-center\">\n<div class=\"col-12\">\n<figure class=\"article-thumbnail mb-30 mb-sm-60\">\n<div class=\"article-thumbnail-caption d-flex align-items-center justify-content-md-end label-xs mt-15\">         <i class=\"mdi mdi-camera me-10\" aria-hidden=\"true\"><\/i>         <span class=\"visually-hidden\">Image Credit<\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=UhYhXm6J-N4\">Fox News\/YouTube<\/a>       <\/div>\n<\/figure><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<div class=\"article-share text-center article-share-simple\">\n<h5 class=\"label-sm mb-10\">Share<\/h5>\n<ul class=\"article-share-list list-unstyled m-0 p-0\">\n<li class=\"article-share-facebook m-0\">       <a href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/sharer\/sharer.php?u=https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/2025\/01\/21\/democrats-hijack-doug-collins-confirmation-hearing-to-push-extreme-abortion-agenda\/\" target=\"_blank\">         <i class=\"mdi mdi-facebook\" aria-hidden=\"true\"><\/i>         <span class=\"visually-hidden\">Share Article on Facebook<\/span>       <\/a>     <\/li>\n<li class=\"article-share-twitter m-0\">       <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/intent\/tweet?text=Democrats%20Hijack%20Doug%20Collins%E2%80%99%20Confirmation%20Hearing%20To%20Push%20Extreme%20Abortion%20Agenda&amp;url=https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/2025\/01\/21\/democrats-hijack-doug-collins-confirmation-hearing-to-push-extreme-abortion-agenda\/\" target=\"_blank\">         <i class=\"mdi mdi-twitter\" aria-hidden=\"true\"><\/i>         <span class=\"visually-hidden\">Share Article on Twitter<\/span>       <\/a>     <\/li>\n<li class=\"article-share-truth-social m-0\">       <a href=\"https:\/\/truthsocial.com\/share?title=Democrats%20Hijack%20Doug%20Collins%E2%80%99%20Confirmation%20Hearing%20To%20Push%20Extreme%20Abortion%20Agenda&amp;url=https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/2025\/01\/21\/democrats-hijack-doug-collins-confirmation-hearing-to-push-extreme-abortion-agenda\/\" target=\"_blank\">         <svg xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" fill=\"currentColor\" style=\"width:36px;height:auto;\" viewbox=\"0 0 92 93\"><path d=\"M69.444 55.716H56.772v10.37h12.672zM64.487 37.795V27.32H38.666v38.664h13.18v-28.19zM21.05 27.321h12.653v10.471H21.051z\" https:><\/path><\/svg>         <span class=\"visually-hidden\">Share Article on Truth Social<\/span>       <\/a>     <\/li>\n<li class=\"article-share-link m-0\">       <button data-clipboard-text=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/2025\/01\/21\/democrats-hijack-doug-collins-confirmation-hearing-to-push-extreme-abortion-agenda\/\" data-tooltip-content=\"Copied!\" class=\"clip tooltip\">         <i class=\"mdi mdi-link-variant\" aria-hidden=\"true\"><\/i>         <span class=\"visually-hidden\">Copy Article Link<\/span>       <\/button>     <\/li>\n<li class=\"article-share-email m-0\">       <a href=\"mailto:?subject=Democrats%20Hijack%20Doug%20Collins%E2%80%99%20Confirmation%20Hearing%20To%20Push%20Extreme%20Abortion%20Agenda&amp;body='We%20will%20be%20looking%20at%20that%20issue%20when%20I%20get%20in%20there%20to%20confirm%20that%20the%20VA%20is%20actually%20following%20the%20law.'%20https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/2025\/01\/21\/democrats-hijack-doug-collins-confirmation-hearing-to-push-extreme-abortion-agenda\/\" target=\"_blank\">         <i class=\"mdi mdi-email\" aria-hidden=\"true\"><\/i>         <span class=\"visually-hidden\">Share Article via Email<\/span>       <\/a>     <\/li>\n<li class=\"article-share-email m-0\"><span class=\"printfriendly pf-button  pf-alignleft\"><a target=\"_blank\" href=\"http:\/\/thefederalist.com\/#\" rel=\"nofollow\" onclick=\"window.print(); return false;\" title=\"Printer Friendly, PDF &amp; Email\"><span id=\"printfriendly-text2\" class=\"pf-button-text\"><i class=\"mdi mdi-printer\" aria-hidden=\"true\"><\/i><\/span><\/a><\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul><\/div>\n<p>The Senate Veterans Affairs Committee held a <a href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=UhYhXm6J-N4\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">hearing<\/a> Tuesday to consider the nomination of Doug Collins to lead the agency of the same name. While Collins and Republicans focused on the department&rsquo;s shortcomings and the well-being of America&rsquo;s veterans, it&rsquo;s clear some of the body&rsquo;s Democrat members had only one issue in mind: the ability to <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/texas-is-a-free-and-independent-state-texas-rep-introduces-bill-to-ban-abortion\/\" title=\"\u2018Texas Is A Free And Independent State\u2019: Texas Rep Introduces Bill To Ban Abortion\">kill unborn children<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>Throughout the nearly three-hour-long hearing, Collins fielded an array of hostile questions from Democrat senators about the future of a pro-abortion policy enacted by the Biden Department of Veterans Affairs (VA). Specifically, the leftist lawmakers wanted to know whether the Trump administration would repeal the rule.<\/p>\n<div class=\"fdrlst__b89e9-paragraph-2 d-flex justify-content-center\" style=\"margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center; \" id=\"fdrlst__b89e9-367165943\">\n<div id=\"div-gpt-ad-1463670073398-0\" class=\"mb-30\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/news.va.gov\/press-room\/va-will-offer-abortion-counseling-and-in-certain-cases-abortions-to-pregnant-veterans-and-va-beneficiaries\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Enacted<\/a> in September 2022, the policy in question attempted to circumvent pro-life laws passed in Republican-led states after the Supreme Court&rsquo;s <em>Dobbs<\/em> decision. The VA authorized the use of taxpayer funds to &ldquo;provide access to abortion counseling and &mdash; in certain cases &mdash; abortions to pregnant Veterans and VA beneficiaries,&rdquo; a policy <a href=\"https:\/\/ago.mo.gov\/attorney-general-bailey-files-amicus-brief-to-block-the-va-from-providing-taxpayer-funded-abortions\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">state attorneys general<\/a> and <a href=\"https:\/\/www.tuberville.senate.gov\/newsroom\/press-releases\/tuberville-holds-biden-administration-accountable-for-taxpayer-funded-abortions-facilitated-by-the-department-of-veterans-affairs\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">members<\/a> <a href=\"https:\/\/bost.house.gov\/2022\/9\/bost-slams-biden-admin-over-decision-to-offer-abortions-through-va\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">of Congress<\/a><strong> <\/strong>have argued violates federal law.<\/p>\n<p>The policy was introduced as an interim rule and was later <a href=\"https:\/\/archive.md\/vwNxw\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">finalized<\/a> in March 2024. It was one of <a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/2024\/03\/21\/house-republicans-press-va-over-shocking-ivf-policy-funding-motherless-kids\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">several<\/a> <a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/2023\/09\/21\/biden-va-instructs-providers-to-promote-abortion-avoid-saying-mother-and-baby-in-leaked-video\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">anti-life<\/a> actions the agency undertook during Joe Biden&rsquo;s presidency. <\/p>\n<p>In his opening statement, Sen. Richard Blumenthal, D-Conn. &mdash; who is known for previously <a href=\"https:\/\/www.foxnews.com\/politics\/blumenthal-apologizes-for-inaccurate-claims-about-vietnam-service\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">lying<\/a> about his military service &mdash; said he expects the Trump administration &ldquo;to consider the existing rule legally binding unless it is replaced or struck down.&rdquo; The Connecticut Democrat subsequently engaged in fearmongering to defend the policy <a href=\"https:\/\/archive.md\/UgX6b\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">used by<\/a> the VA to permit the murder of 88 unborn babies during the first year of its enactment.<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;I believe that rolling back this policy would unnecessarily risk the lives and health of pregnant veterans in states with abortion bans and care restrictions in the post-<em>Dobbs<\/em> era,&rdquo; Blumenthal said.<\/p>\n<p>Sen. Patty Murray, D-Wash., similarly used her speaking time to promote the use of taxpayer money to <a href=\"https:\/\/amzn.to\/3YuVZYV\">subsidize killing unborn children<\/a>. The leftist senator posed a foreboding hypothetical to Collins, asking him if he believes &ldquo;a [female] veteran who lives in Texas who has been raped and becomes pregnant should be able to get abortion care at her local VA [clinic].&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p>While noting the sensitivity of the issue, Collins said that the &ldquo;law from 1992 says the VA does not do abortions,&rdquo; and confirmed that the Trump administration will be examining the legality of the Biden administration&rsquo;s September 2022 rule. <\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;We will be looking at that issue when I get in there to confirm that the VA is actually following the law,&rdquo; Collins said. <\/p>\n<p>That answer seemingly didn&rsquo;t satisfy extreme leftist Sen. Mazie Hirono, D-Hawaii, who effectively repeated Murray&rsquo;s question and asked whether the Trump administration will repeal the prior administration&rsquo;s abortion rule. Collins reaffirmed his intent to examine the policy upon confirmation and said, &ldquo;My &hellip; position is based in the law, and I will follow the law in this regard.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p><strong>[READ:[READ:<a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/2024\/03\/05\/va-axes-secret-plan-to-hide-iconic-v-j-day-photo-over-lack-of-inclusivity\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">VA Axes Secret Plan To Hide Iconic V-J Day Photo Over Lack Of &lsquo;Inclusivity&rsquo;<\/a>]<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>Advancing Democrats&rsquo; radical abortion agenda is hardly the only left-wing priority shepherded by the VA under the Biden administration. <\/p>\n<p>The agency was engulfed in <a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/2024\/02\/21\/congress-is-too-busy-bankrolling-ukraine-to-stop-the-va-from-processing-illegals-health-care-costs\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">controversy<\/a> last year after it was revealed the department was processing health care claims for illegal aliens. Collins pledged during Tuesday&rsquo;s hearing to investigate the matter upon taking office, saying, &ldquo;I do not believe any money that&rsquo;s taken outside the mission of the VA to help the veteran is a worthy cause of the money that has been appropriated for the veteran, and we will not be doing that.&rdquo; <\/p>\n<\/p>\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator\">\n<div class=\"article-author-description fst-italic\">      Shawn Fleetwood is a staff writer for The Federalist and a graduate of the University of Mary Washington. He previously served as a state content writer for Convention of States Action and his work has been featured in numerous outlets, including RealClearPolitics, RealClearHealth, and Conservative Review. Follow him on Twitter @ShawnFleetwood<\/div>\n<div class=\"article-author mt-30 mt-sm-60 pt-30 bdr-top-bold-black\">\n<div class=\"row g-0 align-items-center\">\n<div class=\"col-12 col-md-6\">\n<div class=\"article-author-profile d-flex align-items-center justify-content-center justify-content-md-start\">\n<div class=\"article-author-details\">\n<div class=\"label-md\">Shawn Fleetwood<\/div>\n<div class=\"article-author-twitter label-sm d-flex align-items-center mt-10\">             <i class=\"mdi mdi-twitter me-5\" aria-hidden=\"true\"><\/i>             <span class=\"visually-hidden\">Visit on Twitter<\/span>            <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/ShawnFleetwood\" target=\"_blank\" class=\"text-decoration-none\">@ShawnFleetwood<\/a>           <\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<div class=\"col-12 col-md-6 d-flex justify-content-center justify-content-md-end mt-15 mt-md-0\">        <a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/author\/shawnfleetwood\/\" class=\"btn btn-black btn-small\">More Articles<\/a>     <\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<div class=\"article-tags bdr-top-black mt-30 mt-sm-60 pt-15 pt-md-45\">\n<ul class=\"list-unstyled d-flex flex-wrap align-items-center mb-0 mx-n10 p-0\">\n<li class=\"mt-10 mx-10\"><a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/tag\/abortion\/\" class=\"btn btn-black btn-small\">Abortion<\/a><\/li>\n<li class=\"mt-10 mx-10\"><a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/tag\/baby-killing\/\" class=\"btn btn-black btn-small\">baby killing<\/a><\/li>\n<li class=\"mt-10 mx-10\"><a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/tag\/biden-administration\/\" class=\"btn btn-black btn-small\">Biden administration<\/a><\/li>\n<li class=\"mt-10 mx-10\"><a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/tag\/department-of-veteran-affairs\/\" class=\"btn btn-black btn-small\">Department of Veteran Affairs<\/a><\/li>\n<li class=\"mt-10 mx-10\"><a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/tag\/donald-trump\/\" class=\"btn btn-black btn-small\">Donald Trump<\/a><\/li>\n<li class=\"mt-10 mx-10\"><a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/tag\/doug-collins\/\" class=\"btn btn-black btn-small\">Doug Collins<\/a><\/li>\n<li class=\"mt-10 mx-10\"><a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/tag\/senate-democrats\/\" class=\"btn btn-black btn-small\">Senate Democrats<\/a><\/li>\n<li class=\"mt-10 mx-10\"><a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/tag\/taxpayer-money\/\" class=\"btn btn-black btn-small\">taxpayer money<\/a><\/li>\n<li class=\"mt-10 mx-10\"><a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/tag\/trump-administration\/\" class=\"btn btn-black btn-small\">Trump Administration<\/a><\/li>\n<li class=\"mt-10 mx-10\"><a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/tag\/veterans-affairs\/\" class=\"btn btn-black btn-small\">Veterans Affairs<\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<p><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>The Senate Veterans Affairs Committee held a hearing Tuesday for Doug Collins&#8217; nomination to lead the agency<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":539,"featured_media":2393359,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_mo_disable_npp":"","fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/01\/Doug-Collins.png","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[546],"tags":[3933,48956,48957],"class_list":["post-2393358","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-the-federalist","tag-dems","tag-doug-collins","tag-va-hearing"],"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/01\/Doug-Collins.png","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2393358","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/539"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2393358"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2393358\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2393363,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2393358\/revisions\/2393363"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2393359"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2393358"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2393358"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2393358"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}