Rep. Debbie Wasserman
Schultz (D-FL)
Democratic Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz (D-FL), tearing into Republican for proposing legislation that would restrict access to abortion for incest and rape victims:
"It is absolutely outrageous," Wasserman Schultz said in an exclusive interview late Monday afternoon. "I consider the proposal of this bill a violent act against women."
The broad anti-abortion measure would restrict federally-assisted abortion coverage to cases of "forcible rape," excluding in that definition instances where women are drugged and raped, where women say "no" but do not physically fight off the perpetrator, and various cases of date rape. It also excludes instances of statutory rape in which minors are impregnated by adults. The victim in all cases would be denied abortion coverage under Medicaid and forbidden from seeking health care tax benefits.
Introduced by Rep. Chris Smith (R-NJ), the bill boasts 173 mainly Republican co-sponsors and has been designated a top priority by House Speaker John Boehner (R-OH).
"It really is -- to suggest that there is some kind of rape that would be okay to force a woman to carry the resulting pregnancy to term, and abandon the principle that has been long held, an exception that has been settled for 30 years, is to me a violent act against women in and of itself," Wasserman Schultz said.
Amen. This legislation is the Rape Victims Punishment Act of 2011, plain and simple. It's utterly inhumane, and with With MoveOn.org joining Wassterman Schultz in the fight against the bill, we can stop it from ever becoming law.