The 10 Most Absurd Things Texas Republicans Said About Abortion This Year

[TeeBubbaDee]

Taken from an article in Mother Jones:

On Monday, the Texas legislature reconvened for a special session for the purposes of passing a strict anti-abortion law that would shut all but five clinics in the state and ban abortions after 20 weeks. Democrats successfully ran out the clock on the legislation in late June, an effort that was capped by state Sen. Wendy Davis' 11-hour filibuster, but this time around the bill will almost certainly pass. (Move to Texas!) Debate on the bill begins Tuesday, and it's likely to feature no shortage of overheated statements about Davis, her supporters, and abortion rights. If the last two months of rhetoric from GOP lawmakers and activists is any indication, we just have one bit of advice: Don't make "Holocaust" your drinking word. Here's just a small sampling of some of the eyebrow-raising remarks thrown around during the last round of legislative debate:

State Sen. Dan Patrick (R): Defending his party's chaotic effort to force through a vote as the session was ending, the founder of the state's tea party caucus told former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee on his radio show that lawmakers had an obligation to ignore proper Senate rules and procedure if it meant saving fetuses: "I spoke to my colleagues and said, when Jesus criticized the Pharisees, he criticized them because their laws and their rules were more important than actually taking care of people. And in my view, stopping a debate to save thousands of lives, well, saving the thousands of lives is more important than our tradition of, well, you should never stop someone."

State Rep. Bill Zedler (R): On Twitter, referring to reproductive rights activists: "We had terrorists in the Texas State Senate opposing SB 5."

Gov. Rick Perry: Speaking to a national right-to-life conference on Friday, Perry lamented that Davis, who was raised by a single mother and had her first child at 19, hadn't drawn the proper lessons from her own life: "It is just unfortunate that she hasn't learned from her own example that every life must be given a chance to realize its full potential and that every life matters."

Lt. Gov. David Dewhurst: After initially telling reporters the bill had passed, Dewhurst later offered up an excuse for why it had failed: "An unruly mob, using Occupy Wall Street tactics, disrupted the Senate from protecting unborn babies." Following that, he threatened to arrest reporters for interfering with the Democratic process: "If I find, as I've been told, examples of the media waving and trying to inflame the crowd, incite them in the direction of a riot, I'm going to take action against them. We have reports that members of the media on the floor, on the floor of the Senate, were looking up at the people in the gallery, waving their hands, trying to motivate them to yell more. If I find examples of that, proof certain on our video. I'm going to address this firmly."

State Rep. Jodie Laubenberg (R): Laubenberg, the bill's sponsor, suggested during the floor debate that there was no need to include an exception for victims of rape, because rape kits are themselves a form of abortion: "In the emergency room they have what's called rape kits, where a woman can get cleaned out. The woman had five months to make that decision, at this point we are looking at a baby that is very far along in its development."

State Rep. Jonathan Strickland (R): On June 23, as reproductive rights activists were protesting in the capitol, he tweeted:

State Rep. Wayne Christian (R): Stating the obvious in an interview with the Texas Tribunethis spring: "Of course it's a war on birth control, abortion, everything—that's what family planning is supposed to be about." 

State Rep. Debbie Riddle (R): Posted, and then deleted, this Facebook note: "This is a tough fight—the Gallery is full of orange shirts—very few blue—orange are the ones I call Pro-death. I am Pro-life—so they must be Pro-death. A human is a human prior to birth just as it is human after it is born. We have killed 50 million babies after Roe v Wade. Hitler killed 6 million people." So at least she's not a Holocaust denier.

Cathie Adams, Texas Eagle forum president: Continuing with the Hitler theme, Adams took to Twitter to vent about "feminazis" and "stinky stalking feminists" swarming the capitol.

Donny Ferguson, aide to US Rep. Steve Stockman (R-Texas): "Wendy Davis's pink shoes offer good protection from biohazards and contaminated sharps found in the unregulated abortion shops she defends."

And here's one bonus from the last time Texas lawmakers took on abortion access, chronicledby Texas Monthly's Mimi Swartz:

State Rep. Sid Miller (R): Responding to a question from a female lawmaker as to what his 2011 sonogram bill would actually entail: "Actually, I have never had a sonogram done on me, so I'm not familiar with the exact procedure—on the medical procedure, how that proceeds." Details!

[Merry]

This is such a complicated issue. I was in a position where an abortion would have saved me a lot of grief. The tubes they are tied mon frère. I can see both sides. I can't tell another person to go through what I went through so I still think it should be legal even though I look at my kids and damn it wasn't easy. Love them all very much. Heard some alarming stats on rape in the US. I think that should be the priority.

[Merry]

Yeah, Republican Rhetoric leaves a lot to be desired. Which is a shame because there's a more non judgemental  discussion that needs to happen for the women and men who went through with an abortion and experienced the post partum blues.  I know that I'm not supposed to talk about that without whipping out a bible and talking about my imaginary friend God and all. While cleaning a pistol and avoiding taxes. I just know more than five people off the top of my head who could not deal with MY CHOICE. Because they chose something different. Which I thought rude of them purporting to be Pro choice and all. When they said pro choice, I naively thought that meant that I had a choice and I exercised it. 

[Merry]

Exactly, very true, to judge anyone in a situation like that is wrong. I'm really stubborn and tough and picked a hard road. But I'm smart enough to know that it isn't for everyone.

[TeeBubbaDee]

I appreciate your thoughts. You have both stated what I feel in my heart over this issue. Especially liked your 1 through 7 answers Perri!! I have had experience with both sides of this issue, and believe that it is the woman''s choice, hopefully with input from the father. But I feel the woman should ultimately be able to make her own choice, no matter what that choice may be. 

[darroll]

This is a woman’s issue.
I don’t know why republicans even comment on it. The majority (MEN) think that they should have an abortion anytime they want one. Most of the doped up men in this country don’t even know what an abortion is.
The only thing left to say is we missed the boat by allowing dumb asses to be born in this country.
Hunting?
What is wrong with putting food on your table to last thru the winter. Liberals get their food from the government. (free)

[Shadowman]

On the forced ultrasound bills, the FBI and Justice Dept legal definition of rape would mean implementation of this law is a crime one would think: “The penetration, no matter how slight, of the vagina or anus with any body part or object, or oral penetration by a sex organ of another person, without the consent of the victim.”  http://www.fbi.gov/news/pressrel/press-releases/attorney-general-er...

Interesting how the conservatives claim they do not want big government involved in personal decisions and claim to be against government mandates in healthcare.

[darroll]

It looks to me that the government should stay out of reproductive issues. Doctors know how to treat rape victims.
The government tells the doctors who should be born.
Note: Conservatives are not going to be elected on these ideals.
Look at what is being born. They keep babies born to RH negative couples all the time.
God how awful…………………………. Two headed babies.
This is sic…….
What are the liberals turning this country into?
No wonder Zombies are popular.

[TeeBubbaDee]

A partial page taken from Wikipedia concerning RH D Hemolic Disease:

When the condition is caused by the Rh D antigen-antibody incompatibility, it is called Rh D Hemolytic disease of the newborn (often called Rhesus disease or Rh disease for brevity). Here, sensitization to Rh D antigens (usually by feto-maternal transfusion during pregnancy) may lead to the production of maternal IgG anti-D antibodies which can pass through the placenta. This is of particular importance to D negative females at or below childbearing age, because any subsequent pregnancy may be affected by the Rhesus D hemolytic disease of the newborn if the baby is D positive. The vast majority of Rh disease is preventable in modern antenatal care by injections of IgG anti-D antibodies (Rho(D) Immune Globulin). The incidence of Rhesus disease is mathematically related to the frequency of D negative individuals in a population, so Rhesus disease is rare in old-stock populations of Africa and the eastern half of Asia, and the Indigenous peoples of Oceania and the Americas, but more common in other genetic groups, most especially Western Europeans, but also other West Eurasians, and to a lesser degree, native Siberians, as well as those of mixed-race with a significant or dominant descent from those (e.g. the vast majority of Latin Americans and Central Asians).

• Symptoms and signs in the fetus:
  • Enlarged liver, spleen, or heart and fluid buildup in the fetus' abdomen seen via ultrasound.

• Symptoms and signs in the newborn:
  • Anemia that creates the newborn's pallor (pale appearance).
  • Jaundice or yellow discoloration of the newborn's skin, sclera or mucous membrane. This may be evident right after birth or after 24–48 hours after birth. This is caused by bilirubin (one of the end products of red blood cell destruction).
  • Enlargement of the newborn's liver and spleen.
  • The newborn may have severe edema of the entire body.
  • Dyspnea or difficulty breathing.

Please note the word "PREVENTABLE" in the forth sentence:

The vast majority of Rh disease is preventable in modern antenatal care by injections of IgG anti-D antibodies (Rho(D) Immune Globulin).

Also please note: Under symptoms and signs in the newborn, there is no mention of two headed babies.

For further reading, here is the link to the entire Wikipedia page:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rh_blood_group_system

[Merry]

Trying to avoid getting on the top ten absurd list but I'll go out on a limb here and say that I'm glad I had choices as a young woman when I became pregnant. And I'm glad I was able to get my tubes tied. That took a lot of drama out of my life.

 

Perri , I stray from the liberal agenda when it comes to hunting because, it's smart food as far as not leaving as great a carbon footprint as farmed sources of meat products. Quite frankly it doesn't get anymore free range than that. It's a D.I.Y. source of food. One of the absurd things a lovely friend of mine said once on fb about hunting that is absurd and cute all rolled into one was "Can't you get to a grocery store?" The old joke ::::::::Where no animals were harmed? I used to go to the shi shi , pc mini co-op grocery store in Burlington and couldn't help but make the observation that the same folks trying to make sure all their food was pc would go home and have a nice puff of weed that was imported from Mexico. Flaunting their fair trade / feel good coffee and chocolate while supporting some of the most violent animals on the planet.Some of the most atrocious bs I ever saw. Harrumph.

 

When it comes to a political denomination, I'm everybody's redheaded stepchild.

[darroll]

I didn't say liberals cause birth defects.

They make the laws and allow abortions (which I do not object to because it is none of my business).

The doctors are afraid to end a pregnancy because of the frivolous law suits and allow any problem child to be born.

 

[Shadowman]

Actually it is the Republicans making all the laws that ban medically accurate sex education and restrict access to contraception and thus increase the pool of unintended pregnancies which in turn drives up the abortion rate. Abortions come about from unintended/unwanted pregnancies. Doctors are restricted from terminating pregnancies because of restrictive anti-abortion laws passed again by Republicans.

And sadly reflective of the Dark Ages, many religious hospitals refuse to do tubal ligations (tubectomy) or even vasectomies which are much more simple and less expensive.

[darroll]

The republicans are against late term abortions.
They are against them all but this is all they have been able to do anything about.
Some of the people that need an abortion like a drug addict or Looney bin force the system to go ahead and let them have their baby. (welfare).
Most of the young people that have abortions are able to have a “normal’ baby. And another liberal law here will not let the state tie their tubes. (screwballs)
The Catholic Church is against abortions and sex of any kind before marriage and they are the voting core of the republican party. The GOP has no power anymore. I was just concerned about our gene pool in this country.