The Politics Thread

[DRW50]

Another day, another horrific and ignorant comment about rape and abortion from the people making our laws.

http://livewire.talkingpointsmemo.com/entry/texas-gop-rep-rape-exemption-for-abortion-bill?ref=fpb

The Supreme Court kicks the can on affirmative action.

http://www.politico.com/story/2013/06/supreme-court-affirmative-action-ruling-fisher-university-of-texas-93237.html?hp=t1_3

[JackPeyton]

No talk of Texas, Wendy Davis and the abortion ban?

Or DOMA/Prop 8?

Or voters rights?

[DRW50]

I talked about those in the status bar yesterday. Most people don't go to this thread anymore. I assume it's because the thread scares them off (or maybe my posts do).

Here's Chris Christie, whose consistent homophobia always seems to be overlooked when the media and some Democrats give him a big bear hug and anoint him President, again pushing anti-gay views. No comment on whether he is also upset with the court for getting rid of the VRA, a bill also passed, repeatedly, by Congress.

This is what makes me roll my eyes the most at the bigots. They are just whining up a storm over Kennedy's remarks and how mean they were (when these attacks have been made for years and years - the same attacks Kennedy is addressing), and how you should never overrule Congress, but they did not make a peep about the VRA decision.

http://www.politico.com/story/2013/06/chris-christie-doma-reaction-93483.html?hp=l10

[Juliajms]

I don't think the media is doing the best job ever of explaining the situation in Texas. I've read some articles on it and I still haven't seen the details of the bill. I've seen it said that it would shut most of the clinics in Texas (which I agree is insane), but not why that would happen. Maybe I need to dig deeper, but I wish CNN would have just spelled it out.

At this point, the only part of the bill I've seen emphasized is the ban on abortion past the 20 week point. It's hard for me to get worked up about that. I'm pro choice and an atheist, but 20 weeks seems like a long enough time to make up your mind. The cut off has to be somewhere.

The part I do get worked up about is that the same people who don't want women to have an access at abortion are against birth control or morning after pills. If I really felt strongly about trying to minimize abortion, I'd be trying to hand out morning after pills like they are candy. Why not give high school kids free confidential access to b/c and morning after?

[Ann_SS]

This NY Times article below at least has a sentence on why the bill would shut down clinics. Basically, the Texas (and Virginia the one which passed) bill requires that the clinics have the same surgical and building standards as hospitals which would be financial untenable. Also, the bill demands that doctors at abortion clinics get privileges at nearby hospitals which is unlikely to be given since the hospitals must answer to boards and the state.

As for the 20 week cut off, some women discover health problems later in their pregnancies and have to make tough medical decisions, while other women cannot get to abortion clinics early because their state only has one and they cannot scrap together the money to get there.

http://www.nytimes.com/2013/06/27/us/politics/texas-abortion-bill.html?pagewanted=all

Edited June 27, 2013 by Ann_SS

[Juliajms]

^ Thanks Anne. That at least answers the question. I'm glad Texas didn't succeed in passing this and I hope they don't the second time around either. Even though I'm not gung ho on abortion after 20 weeks (I would make an exception for medical issues) I think anyone who wants one after that, means business. If they are that determined to do it, I'm not really gung ho to stop them either. I'd say I'm pretty ambivalent. I wouldn't join a march in either direction. Once a baby is viable though, I do wish people would just have it and let the chips fall where they may.

[Ann_SS]

What if a girl is raped and cannot escape her father/stepfather until later in her pregnancy? The fact is that women are not lining up around the block to have late term abortions and minority who do are struggling with tragic reasons. The real is issue here is that the anti-choice people are using the 20 week limit as the first way to whittle away on women's reproductive rights. Adding the strict standards on the clinic and medical personnel will eliminate most abortion clinics in these states.

Stay classy, Rick Perry: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/06/27/rick-perry-wendy-davis_n_3510844.html

[marceline]

Thanks to Rick Perry, I just donated money to Wendy Davis.

[Juliajms]

I think most reasonable people generally consider rape and incest exceptions to any rule. Note I said reasonable people. This is always going to be a sticky issue because people will never agree about when life begins. But even in the case of rape and incest should it be legal to have an abortion a couple of weeks before the due date? Either way is going to be traumatic for the mother. Frankly, I'm glad I'm not on the SCOTUS, so I don't have to make these decisions.

I'm not behind closing clinics in any case. I'm all for handing out birth control, contraceptives, morning after pills and the abortion pill free of charge to anyone who is medical approved to take them. The republicans have been so infected by the religious right they refuse to see the forest for the trees. It would save a lot of pain and money to take care of unwanted pregnancy early on.

[DRW50]

There is no longer any attempt at rational debate of this issue because how can you debate with something like this?

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/06/18/michael-burgess-abortion_n_3459108.html

The dialogue has just become so unflinching and insane.

[DRW50]

More whining over being called a bigot. Using people who now say they were wrong to oppose gay marriage as an example doesn't make sense to me, but I'm not the intended audience anyway.

http://www.politico.com/blogs/politico-live/2013/06/ralph-reed-was-obama-a-bigot-months-ago-167393.html?hp=r1

Talk of how something bad will happen somewhere, someday. I guess they are taking a break from the "This will ruin your children and destroy your church!", at least on morning TV.

http://www.politico.com/blogs/politico-live/2013/06/nom-lawyer-scotus-prop-doma-decisions-were-judicial-167390.html?hp=r2_b1

[ThePrinceOfSunspear]

If she runs for Governor Im sure she'll become the next Elizabeth Warren in terms of funding and national support. She's got my support and the little money I can donate.

[Ann_SS]

Here is another NY Times article that does a better job explaining how the legislation closes clinics: http://www.nytimes.com/aponline/2013/07/03/us/ap-us-xgr-abortion-restrictions-texas.html?hp

[DRW50]

North Carolina is now pushing for the same ban, tacking it onto a bill against sharia law.

http://www.theatlanticwire.com/national/2013/07/north-carolinas-anti-sharia-bill-now-also-anti-abortion/66812/

[JaneAusten]

These bans are for one reason only. To take away women's reproductive rights and to at some point, sway more public opinion in their direction, with a hope that one of these bills will be contested and goto the Supreme Court, with the ultimate goal of reversing Roe vs. Wade.

It's all nonsense. Nate Silver had a posting on his blog yesterday showing public opinion on abortions and the majority of Americans don't support them after the first trimester except in the case of medical endangerment to the mother and of course rape and incest. But the kicker part is that only 1% of abortions that occur today happen past the first trimester. So the agenda and objectives surrounding this legislation is crystal clear to me. There is so much hypocrisy, particularly in Texas, where they are so Pro Life you have people waiting and begging to see inmates on death row executed.

I wish there was as much focus on the voting rights legislation or lack of it and what had happened in the past few weeks related to that.

Edited July 3, 2013 by JaneAusten