Today, on the 42nd anniversary of the Supreme Court’s ruling on Roe v. Wade, let’s take a moment to pause, reflect, and thank our lucky fucking stars that we have men like Lindsey Graham in Washington to bloviate about what’s best for women’s bodies.
On Thursday, at a Family Research Council event, a few men said a bunch of stuff about a bunch of bodies that didn’t belong to them. There is work to be done, they all agreed, harumphing sternly, abortions to restrict, unconstitutional laws to pass. Rick Santorum, the most humorless man alive, spoke. Then Lindsey Graham and his struggle chin took to the podium, as Bloomberg reports:
Graham urged activists to rejoin the debate, and understand why people like him could support exceptions for rape and incest in abortion bills. “Some disagree, including the Pope,” he said. “I respect those who are intellectually consistent and honest.”
Yet the House setback had provided more evidence that anti-abortion activists couldn’t allow the debate to focus on rape. “I’m going to need your help to find a way out of this definitional problem with rape,” said Graham.
Yeah, can’t wait for these dudes to take care of that pesky definitional problem with rape.
Planned Parenthood wasn’t too keen on that characterization of the “problem” with rape. Dawn Laguens, Executive Vice President of the Planned Parenthood Action Fund, released the following scathing response:
Memo to Senator Graham and his allies: Women don’t have a definitional problem with rape — we’re really clear on what rape is. And we’re really clear that we don’t want you and your colleagues inserting politics into our personal health care decisions.
As is his custom, President Obama released a statement of his own in support of abortion rights to commemorate the Roe anniversary, the sort of statement that this female voter wishes he would have had the courage to say during his State of the Union on Tuesday. Via the White House:
Forty-two years ago today, the U.S. Supreme Court issued its ruling in Roe v. Wade, a decision that protects a woman’s freedom to make her own choices about her body and her health, and reaffirms a fundamental American value: that government should not intrude in our most private and personal family matters.
I am deeply committed to protecting this core constitutional right, and I believe that efforts like H.R. 7, the bill the House considered today, would intrude on women’s reproductive freedom and access to health care and unnecessarily restrict the private insurance choices that consumers have today. The federal government should not be injecting itself into decisions best made between women, their families, and their doctors. I am also deeply committed to continuing our work to reduce unintended pregnancies, support maternal and child health, promote adoptions, and minimize the need for abortion.
Today, as we reflect on this critical moment in our history, may we all rededicate ourselves to ensuring that our daughters have the same rights, freedoms, and opportunities as our sons.
Happy Roe Day, everybody.
Image via Getty.