Democrat's will restore and strengthen women's rights that Republicans have taken away!
Author: Sandra Holden Montag
On Feb. 16, the Alabama Supreme Court decided that cells produced as a result of invitro fertilization (IVF) are children. According to their ruling, any destruction of these cells is illegal and murder.
We got to this point because the Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade and abortion rights. The Alabama Supreme Court cited Dobbs (the ruling overturning Roe v. Wade) 15 times in their decision declaring the unborn as “living persons with rights and interests.”
Since each state now has the ability to take away a women’s right to make her own health care decisions, several have done so. In Alabama, not only does a pregnant woman not have any choices concerning her health and wellbeing, she no longer can seek IVF to expand or start her family. As a consequence, several IVF clinics in Alabama have stopped offering these services.
Let’s be clear, contraception is next. The Republican Party is determined to enact these laws nationwide. Your vote matters.
Choose the candidates who will protect women’s rights
Published: Goldendale Sentinel, May 29, 2024
Washingtonian women may feel secure that our State will protect their reproductive freedoms. However, the Comstock Act of 1873 is still on the books and prohibits sending through the mail “every article, instrument, substance, drug, medicine or thing” that could be used in performing an abortion. In other words, on direction by a President Trump in 2025, the Department of Justice could decide that it is illegal to mail mifepristone, a Food and Drug Administration-approved drug that is safe and effective, to medical providers and pharmacies. Surgical instruments used in abortions could also be impacted. Abortions across the country and in Washington State would effectively be impossible to access.
The Comstock Act could also limit the availability of certain contraceptives.
On the radar of the Supreme Court, the Comstock Act was mentioned three times during oral arguments in a case dealing with access to mifepristone. If an anti-reproductive choice President decided to direct the Justice Department to enforce the Comstock Act, at least two Supreme Court justices would welcome this challenge.
The Comstock Act can be repealed by Congress, and it’s vital to elect pro-choice legislators who will vote for this repeal. Election of Harris-Walz will also assure that this Act will not be enacted during the next four years. Meanwhile, a Democratic president and legislature can codify abortion rights in law. Your vote matters.
Sources: www.nytimes.com/2024/04/02/opinion/comstock-act-abortion-repeal.html, www.nytimes.com/2024/04/08/opinion/trump-abortion-states.html.
Project 2025 curtails or eliminates reproductive rights
Published: Goldendale Sentinel, August 7, 2024
Project 2025, an initiative by the conservative Heritage Foundation in collaboration with key advisors to former President Trump, outlines a plan to significantly curtail reproductive rights across the United States.
The proposal suggests drastic policy changes aimed at nearly eliminating abortions, including recommending that the FDA remove abortion medications, such as Mifepristone, from the market. It also proposes limiting the use of Mifepristone to seven weeks, often before a woman is aware of her pregnancy, and enforcing the Comstock Act to prohibit the mailing of these drugs and certain contraceptives, potentially criminalizing such actions (Project 2025, Justice Department Chapter, p. 562; Department of Health & Human Services, pp. 450, 458-459). Under these proposals, women experiencing medical emergencies could be denied access to these lifesaving medications, with no exceptions for cases of rape or incest.
The project advocates for the protection of life from conception, proposing a national ban on in vitro fertilization (IVF) and several forms of effective contraception (Project 2025, pp. 450, 458-459).
Voters should be aware that a future administration led by President Trump and Vice President Vance would likely implement the policies detailed in Project 2025. Your vote matters.
It’s not a partisan choice. Stop Trump and Project 2025: Vote for Harris/Walz for President/Vice-President; vote for Democrats up and down the ballot.