Rep. Andy Ogles (R-TN) introduced a bill on Wednesday designed to keep future Democrat presidential administrations from weaponizing the Freedom of Access to Clinic Entrances (FACE) Act to target pro-lifers who pray and peacefully demonstrate outside of abortion clinics.
The bill is called the “Saving FACE Act of 2026,” and would “remove criminal penalties for obstructing access to abortion services” from the FACE Act, Breitbart News first learned. Ogles introduced the bill on the fourth anniversary of the Supreme Court’s Dobbs decision, which overturned the constitutional right to abortion invented 50 years ago under Roe v. Wade, and sent the issue back to states and their elected representatives.
In the lead-up to and after the Dobbs decision was released, the Biden administration used the FACE Act to target and even imprison dozens of pro-life activists, most of whom peacefully demonstrated and prayed in front of abortion clinics. The FACE Act is a 1994 law that “prohibits the use or threat of force and physical obstruction that injures, intimidates, or interferes with a person seeking to obtain or provide reproductive health services or to exercise the First Amendment right of religious freedom at a place of religious worship.” The act was written to equally protect abortion clinics, pro-life pregnancy resource centers, and churches; however, data indicate that 97 percent of FACE Act cases since the law’s inception have been against pro-life advocates.
“Democrats have used the FACE Act as a tool for political persecution and discrimination against countless pro-life Americans,” Ogles told Breitbart News.
“When Christians peacefully prayed in front of abortion clinics, Joe Biden’s DOJ hauled them off to jail using the FACE Act to charge them. My bill will end this. The government has no right to arrest those who disagree with the murder of children,” he continued.
Under the Trump administration, the DOJ released a “Weaponization Working Group” report confirming that the Biden administration was laser-focused on jailing pro-life activists and “largely ignored attacks on pro-life pregnancy resource centers, only charging five people for vandalism and attacks…” despite the flood of violence against churches and pregnancy centers following the Dobbs decision. The report also alleges the DOJ collaborated with abortion organizations to target pro-life activists.
“During the four years under President Biden, DOJ charged more than 45 pro-life defendants in over 20 cases with violating the FACE Act in connection with pro-life demonstrations. This was a significant increase in FACE Act prosecutions compared to prior administrations,” the report notes, adding that Biden’s DOJ targeted some Christian pro-life activists more than once.
The Biden DOJ also often paired FACE Act charges with “conspiracy against rights” charges in an attempt to bolster potential sentencing time for some activists. In several cases, the activists could have been sentenced to a maximum of 11 years behind bars for peacefully demonstrating because of the addition of the KKK-era conspiracy charge.
“I have led the effort against the FACE Act from the very start — and in 1993, I offered a key amendment against it — because it was always intended to silence and penalize peaceful pro-life activists with ruinous prosecution and civil suits,” Rep. Chris Smith (R-NJ), co-chair of the Congressional Pro-Life Caucus, told Breitbart News.
“The Biden Administration weaponized this law against non-violent pro-life protesters, while ignoring the violence suffered by pregnancy care centers and churches. The new Saving FACE Act will prevent unlawful discrimination against peaceful pro-life advocacy and protect the vital functions of pregnancy care centers and places of worship,” Smith continued.
Some Republicans have proposed doing away with the FACE Act altogether, similarly arguing that it has always been a political tool to use against pro-lifers. Rep. Chip Roy (R-TX) and Sen. Mike Lee (R-UT) repeatedly proposed such legislation, also contending that the FACE Act allows unnecessary federal intervention in cases where state and local law enforcement is often sufficient.
For now, the law remains on the books, and the Trump DOJ has used the FACE Act to charge anti-ICE protesters who stormed a Minnesota church in January.
In the first month of his second term, President Trump notably pardoned more than 20 pro-life activists who were prosecuted, and some imprisoned, by the Biden DOJ. The Trump DOJ also said it dismissed three civil lawsuits against pro-life activists and issued a directive that prosecutors may only bring abortion-related FACE Act prosecutions under extraordinary circumstances.
Katherine Hamilton is a political reporter for Breitbart News. You can follow her on X @thekat_hamilton.
