A South Carolina Senator Reply to Riepe’s Critique of Abortion Laws in the Early Stages of Fetal Anomalies
In Nebraska and South Carolina, abortion prohibitions failed to pass in their legislatures in part because of heated debates among Republicans.
As the last vote was cast in Nebraska, where abortions are currently banned after 20 weeks of pregnancy, opponents of the bill waved signs and shouted “Whose house?”. Our house!”
“The only thing that we can do when you all, you men in the chamber, metaphorically keep slapping women by raising abortion again and again and again, is for us to slap you back with our words,” she said.
In North Dakota, Gov. Doug Burgum signed a ban Monday that has narrow exceptions: Abortion is legal in pregnancies caused by rape or incest, but only in the first six weeks of pregnancy. Abortion is allowed later in pregnancy only in specific medical emergencies.
Riepe introduced a measure Thursday that would have extended the proposed ban to 12 weeks and add to the bill’s list of exceptions any fetal anomalies deemed incompatible with life.
Riepe warned his conservative colleagues they should watch out for signs that abortion will make women vote against them in elections.
Independent South Carolina Sen. Mia McLeod criticized leaders who prioritized the near-total ban over efforts to make South Carolina the 49th state in the country with a law allowing harsher punishments for violent hate crimes.
It is unfortunate that women have to reveal intimate experiences to men in order to engage them, said the former abortion debater.
“Just as rape is about power and control, so is this total ban,” he said. “Those who continue to push legislation like this are raping us again with their indifference, violating us again with their righteous indignation, taunting us again with their insatiable need to play God while they continue to pass laws that are ungodly.”
Abortion laws, each and every one of them, have been about control. It’s always about control. The men have control in the Senate. We do not want your protection. We do not need it. There is not a single thing I can do when women such as me are insulted except make sure that you get an earful.
Senn talked to NPR about her views on reproductive rights and the future of the GOP’s position on the issue.
What I’ve Learned about the Freedom Caucus and the Baby Killer. I haven’t learned since I was born, but I’m sure I’ll know when I get there
It is very oppressive. I don’t like any bills that, to me, are radical. And whether that’s from the left or the right. And I do just so much wish that politics would move more toward the middle. The divisive issues need to be on a ballot. And the men in our legislature, they’re just not going to let that happen. And our legislature is overwhelmingly male.
This is the best moderate place that I know to be, with exceptions, because I have come down and now am in first trimester. But these people, especially over in the House of Representatives, they’ve got a caucus over there called the Freedom Caucus. They are just hell-bent that it is going to be zero abortion or nothing, they say that they’re not going to go within six weeks, not going to go 12 weeks, it’s going to be zero or nothing.
They’re stuck with a law that’s up to 22 weeks. And then they turn around and call me a baby killer. I got a postcard that said that I had killed thousands of babies this year.