Nash Keen’s life proves the unborn deserve the law’s protection



Nash Keen holds the Guinness World Record for the most premature infant to survive outside the womb. Born at just 21 weeks’ gestation, Nash’s story forces us to grapple with an unsettling reality: In 29 states and Washington, D.C., the law would have permitted his abortion for at least another week.

At 21 weeks, abortionists commonly use dilation and extraction. Many call it a dismemberment abortion, and the term fits. The procedure requires pulling the child apart.

We’ve made real progress since the Dobbs decision. Thirteen states, including my home state of West Virginia, protect life from the moment of conception.

A Sopher clamp — a metal tool with sharp, serrated jaws — grasps a limb, the torso, or the head. The abortionist twists and tears the body piece by piece. The child has a beating heart and can feel pain. Arms and legs are ripped from the torso. The spine snaps. The skull is crushed so it can pass through the cervix. Blood and tissue are suctioned out. Then the abortionist reassembles the remains on a tray to confirm nothing is left behind.

This barbarity happens tens of thousands of times each year in the United States.

Consider the contrast. At 21 weeks, doctors and nurses fought to keep Nash alive. At the same stage of development, in other hospitals and clinics across the country, medical professionals ended the lives of other babies.

What separates those children? No coherent answer exists because no meaningful difference exists. Every child — born and unborn — bears God-given dignity and deserves the protection of our laws.

This year, Nash will turn 2. His survival, as rare as it is, reveals why so many Americans fight for life — and why we will win.

I plan to do everything I can to protect the most vulnerable among us. That’s why I’m proud to co-sponsor the Life at Conception Act, which aligns federal policy with scientific reality: Life begins at conception, and the law should protect it.

Policymakers must also do more to support mothers and fathers raising children. If we aim — as we should — to end abortion, our laws must protect the unborn and make it easier to raise a family in America.

RELATED: New York caves on forcing nuns and churches to fund abortion after knockout SCOTUS ruling

Photo by JOSEPH PREZIOSO/AFP via Getty Images

That’s why I have introduced legislation to give low-income families more flexibility to choose the child-care option that fits their situation.

I have also introduced legislation to eliminate marriage penalties that discourage single parents from marrying.

And I have also introduced a bill to close a loophole so women who choose not to return to work after giving birth cannot be forced to reimburse an employer for health insurance premiums from the year they delivered.

Similarly I support legislation that would hold fathers accountable for pregnancy costs as part of child support. I supported expanding the Child Tax Credit in the One Big Beautiful Bill Act, and I advocate extending the credit to cover the months of pregnancy.

We’ve made real progress since the Dobbs decision. Thirteen states, including my home state of West Virginia, protect life from the moment of conception. In Congress, the One Big Beautiful Bill Act finally defunds big-abortion providers.

The fight has only begun. As long as I’m in public service, I will work to protect every life from the moment of conception — and to ensure federal policy puts the American family first.

Baby delivered at 21 weeks and 1 day breaks record for most premature infant to survive



A baby boy who was born in the state of Alabama at a gestational age of only 21 weeks and 1 day has earned the Guinness World Records title for being the most premature baby to survive.

Curtis Zy-Keith Means was born on July 5, weighing in at less than a single pound, according to Guinness.

Sadly, Curtis's twin sister C'Asya, who was also born at just 21 weeks and 1 day, did not survive, but died a day later.

While the journey was long, after 275 days, Curtis was finally able to go home with his mother Michelle Butler, who also has several older children.

She said that getting to bring her baby home and surprise her other kids was an experience she will remember forever.

"Being able to finally take Curtis home and surprise my older children with their younger brother is a moment I will always remember," Butler said, according to the University of Alabama at Birmingham. "It was a difficult journey, but I am grateful for the UAB team and their constant support. They took the time to educate me and made sure I knew what was happening every step of the way. They truly cared about my son and me."

Curtis just barely edged out the previous record holder, according to Guinness.

"Amazingly, Curtis was delivered exactly one month after the previous record holder, Richard Hutchinson from Wisconsin, who was born at a gestational age of 21 weeks 2 days, or 131 days premature on 5 June 2020," Guinness said.

Most Premature Baby - Guinness World Records www.youtube.com

Amazing and Inspiring: World’s Most Premature Baby Celebrated First Birthday
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Amazing and Inspiring: World’s Most Premature Baby Celebrated First Birthday

Mitch McConnell warns against 'premature American exit' from Afghanistan amid reports of Trump troop drawdown



Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) warned Monday against rushing to pull more U.S. servicemembers from Afghanistan and other countries in the Middle East, saying that a "premature American exit" would harm U.S. allies and help its enemies.

His comments come as several outlets reported that President Donald Trump is planning a significant troop drawdown before Inauguration Day.

What are the details?

Politico reported that according to an unnamed defense official, "The White House has told the Pentagon to begin planning to bring the troop levels in Afghanistan and Iraq down to 2,500 each by Jan. 15, just days before President Donald Trump leaves office."

The outlet further noted:

The military is in the midst of drawing down from roughly 8,600 to 4,500 troops in Afghanistan under the terms of a peace agreement with the Taliban announced in February. The new order would roughly halve the number of American troops in the country again, to 2,500 ahead of the full withdrawal planned by May 2021 in exchange for a set of guarantees from the Taliban.

News of the purportedly pending drawdown was first reported by CNN, and came just days after Trump fired Department of Defense Secretary Mark Esper.

Speaking from the Senate floor on Monday, McConnell did not directly criticize the president. Rather, he said that in Congress, "a small minority in both parties seem to think it is in America's power to unilaterally remove conflicts by simply walking away from them."

The majority leader went on to praise the Trump administration for making "tremendous headway in creating the conditions that will secure the enduring defeat of the terrorists," but argued that there is still work to be done before the U.S. withdraws its troops too aggressively.

"The consequences of a premature American exit would likely be even worse than President Obama's withdrawal from Iraq back in 2011," McConnell said, according to The Hill. "It would be reminiscent of the humiliating American departure from Saigon in 1975. We'd be abandoning our partners in Afghanistan."

He added, "A disorganized retreat would jeopardize the track record of major success this administration has worked to compile."

Premature Afghanistan Exit Would Jeopardize Trump Administration's Record of Success www.youtube.com

Anything else?

Not everyone agreed with McConnell's remarks.

Sean Davis, co-founder of The Federalist, tweeted in reaction to the majority leader's comments, "We've been in Afghanistan for 20 year[s]. Withdrawal is long overdue, not 'quick.' It's a myth that there's no bipartisan consensus in Washington. Both parties have spent decades trying to push two things down America's throat: open borders, and forever war."

We've been in Afghanistan for 20 year. Withdrawal is long overdue, not "quick."It's a myth that there's no bipart… https://t.co/DdK2eiGrGo
— Sean Davis (@Sean Davis)1605561110.0