One Vote Away From Life and Death
This week, one vote made the difference between life and death. Here’s what happened.
HB 140 passed the Delaware House by just one vote. Despite bipartisan opposition—every Republican and five Democrats voting against it—the bill advanced. But this narrow passage tells us something: the battle is close, and your voice makes a difference.
During the debate, Rep. Morrison brought in an expert witness who tried to minimize Rep. Dukes’ legitimate concerns. Rep. Dukes pressed on a critical issue: What happens to the lethal medication if it’s not used? Where does it go? How is it disposed of? The response was, frankly, disingenuous.
The expert dismissed the question, claiming that “most people requesting assisted suicide are days from death.” But that’s simply not true. According to Oregon’s latest official report on assisted suicide, 25% of those prescribed these lethal medications have an unknown ingestion status. Let that sink in. We have no idea what happened to those pills.
Did the patient take them early? Throw them away? Are they sitting in a medicine cabinet? Did they end up in someone else’s hands? We don’t know. That’s not just a loophole—it’s a dangerous gap in oversight. And yet, those advocating for HB 140 want to pretend that risk doesn’t exist.
Redefining Words, Redefining Reality
But the effort to reshape the narrative didn’t stop there. Rep. Morrison took offense at the term “suicide”, saying he didn’t think it was appropriate to describe HB 140 that way.
That’s when Rep. Jones Giltner stepped in and did something powerful. She opened a actually read the definition of suicide:
- “The act or instance of ending one’s own life voluntarily and intentionally.”
Then she compared that to the wording of HB 140 itself:
- “The decision to self-administer medication to end life must be made voluntarily.”
It’s the same thing. This is suicide. Period.
Why does this matter? Because the culture war we’re fighting isn’t just about policies. It’s about language. It’s about who gets to define reality.
Proverbs 18:21 reminds us: “Death and life are in the power of the tongue.”
And the book of James tells us how powerful our words are. When we redefine words, we redefine reality. We speak death into places where there was once life. We normalize things that should make us pause, that should make us mourn. HB 140 is assisted suicide. No matter how they try to dress it up, no matter how they twist the language, that is the truth.
An Unnatural Celebration
After the vote, I was approached by someone from the public. She asked if I had supported HB 140, assuming I’d be celebrating its passage with her. When I explained I was in opposition, she paused and then said something chilling:
“Well, at least your family members will be taken care of now that the bill has passed.”
She quickly realized how awkward—and honestly how insensitive—that was. But why? Because deep down, we all know: there’s nothing natural about celebrating the purposeful taking of life!
Her well-intentioned comment exposed the ugly reality behind this legislation. What’s being marketed as compassion and dignity is really a reveling in premature death. And the more we normalize this through legislation and language, the more we erode our shared understanding of what it means to be human, of what it means to protect life.
What’s Next for HB 140
Now that HB 140 has passed the House, it heads to the Senate. But it’s not law yet. There will be another committee hearing, which is where public comment is allowed.
This is your opportunity. Show up. Speak up. Stand up. Make your voice heard.
We know this fight is close. One vote close! Your presence could be the difference.
SB 55 and the Fight for Our Children
While we’re on the topic of redefining truth, SB 55 went before the Senate committee this week. It’s a bill addressing the transitioning of children, and there was some powerful testimony.
➡️ Jamie Reed, a whistleblower from a gender clinic.
➡️ Camille Kiefel, a detransitioner with DeTransHelp.
➡️ Dr. Chris Casscells, from the Caesar Rodney Institute.
Each of them demolished the idea that children benefit from medical gender transitions. And yet, Sen. Pinkney claimed to have spoken with Delaware doctors who say this isn’t happening here. But if that’s true, what about Trinity Neal, whose transition process was documented by National Geographic and paid for by Delaware Medicaid?
You can’t say it isn’t happening when we’ve got receipts!
Then there’s Sen. Townsend, who argued that the Legislature shouldn’t interfere between doctors and patients. But in 2017, he co-sponsored SB 65, which banned so-called conversion therapy—making it illegal for doctors to help kids affirm their biological sex. If Townsend really trusted doctors, that bill wouldn’t exist. It’s hypocrisy. They’re okay with banning counseling, the least intrusive option, but not with banning irreversible hormonal or surgical interventions.
SB 55 may have been dead on arrival, but the conversation isn’t. We have to keep speaking out. Children are being harmed. And they need us to stand for truth, even when the legislation stalls.
Abortion Bills—HB 14 and HB 46
Lastly, let’s talk about two bills on abortion.
➡️ HB 46—a positive bill requiring parental consent for minors under 16 to have an abortion—was deferred this week. Not because of lack of support, but because the sponsor couldn’t leave another controversial hearing happening at the same time. We’ll keep an eye on it and let you know when it’s rescheduled.
➡️ HB 14, however, was heard. This bill creates a right to privacy in the Delaware Constitution, and in doing so, would enshrine abortion as a fundamental right.
If you oppose SB 5, you should oppose HB 14—it’s the same dangerous policy, just dressed up in different words.
And again, it comes back to language. They call it “privacy.” They call it “freedom.” But what they mean is abortion. What they mean is death.
The Power of Words and the Call to Action
The battle over language is everything in today’s culture war.
- If we lose the meaning of words, we lose the foundation of truth.
- If we lose the foundation of truth, we lose justice and life itself.
But we’re not powerless. As believers, we are called to stand for truth. To speak life. Proverbs 18:21 says: “Death and life are in the power of the tongue.”
We choose life. We choose truth. We choose to speak boldly, lovingly, and clearly—even when culture wants to muddy the waters.
What You Can Do
Here’s how you can respond:
- Go to delawarefamilies.org/activecampaigns to find a list of all of the active alerts mentioned today along with any others. There, you’ll be able to get more information and talking points on the bill as well as send a message to the legislators directly. Delawarefamilies.org/updates is also where both the rest of these weekly updates are housed along with the bill tracker to give you summaries of all the important legislation we’re following.
- Share this update with a friend. Let’s keep speaking truth, standing for life, and making sure our words give glory to the Author of Life.