A group of House Republicans on Monday introduced a bill that would ban medication abortion nationwide and impose a prison sentence of up to 25 years on anyone who dispenses the drugs, which are used in the majority of abortions across the country.
“I’m taking a stand against the irresponsibility of the Democrats and working to protect women and girls across America,” Republican Rep. Andy Ogles of Tennessee, the lead sponsor of the bill, wrote in a news release. “I’m taking a stand for life because, born or unborn, every single person is uniquely and wonderfully made. It’s not merely a political issue; it’s a moral duty to uphold the sanctity of life. I am committed to safeguarding the innocent and voiceless in our society.”
Ogles introduced the bill along with 18 other House Republicans, including Mary Miller of Illinois, who infamously declared that Adolf Hitler “was right on one thing”; Andrew Clyde of Georgia, who is against abortion but loves AR-15 rifles that are used to blow children to bits in school shootings; and Lauren Boebert of Colorado, who believes teenagers should be paid below minimum wage.
Republicans are targeting medication abortion even though 72% of Americans support it, according to a March 2024 Axios/Ipsos poll. Civiqs’ tracking poll also finds that 60% of Americans believe abortion should be legal in all or most cases.
Ogles’ proposed nationwide abortion-pill ban is a reversal of a position he took in 2022, when the Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade to allow states to ban abortion at any stage of pregnancy.
At the time, Ogles said he believed abortion is a state issue and that he wouldn’t vote for a federal ban.
From a 2022 interview:
On the topic of abortion, Ogles’ opponent, former state senator Heidi Campbell, has said if elected, Ogles would pass a national abortion ban. Ogles said that is not true.
“I’m not going to address ridiculous claims by my opponent, but what I will say is what the Supreme Court got right is they referred that issue back to the states,” he said.
So much for that promise.
President Donald Trump has made similar promises.
“My view is now that we have abortion where everybody wanted it from a legal standpoint,” Trump said in a lie-filled video address during the 2024 campaign. “The states will determine by vote or legislation or perhaps both, and whatever they decide must be the law of the land—in this case, the law of the state.”
However, we shouldn’t take Trump’s word on anything.
Since he was sworn in roughly a week ago, Trump has pardoned unrepentant anti-abortion activists who illegally blocked access to a health care facility that provided abortions. One of his pardons was for an activist who violently assaulted a facility employee.
He also instructed the Department of Justice to stop enforcing the law that makes it illegal to intentionally injure, intimidate, or interfere with someone “obtaining or providing reproductive health services” or to damage a facility “because such facility provides reproductive health.” And he reinstated the global gag rule, which blocks U.S. aid to foreign organizations that perform or discuss abortion care.
Trump has broken other promises, too.
He’s been hiring people connected with the right-wing Project 2025, and implementing Project 2025 policies—despite ridiculously claiming during the campaign that he had nothing to do with Project 2025. Project 2025 calls for banning medication abortion.
During the campaign, Vice President JD Vance said Americans don’t trust Republicans on the issue of abortion.
“My party, we’ve got to do so much better of a job at earning the American’s people trust back on this issue, where they frankly just don’t trust us,” Vance said during the vice presidential debate.
Can’t imagine why!
Republished with permission from Daily Kos.
