Voting

You care about reproductive freedom.

Paul Ryan voted for the Sanctity of Life Act.¹ Aside from freeing states to outlaw abortion, it would have potentially allowed a woman who was raped and sought an abortion in another state to be sued by the rapist to keep her from obtaining an abortion.

You read that right, the rapist could potentially have sued his victim.² No one likes abortion. It’s a terrible thing for any woman to experience, and a painful decision to face. Even if you consider yourself pro-life, I’d like to point out that the Republican Party Platform opposes abortion in ALL cases, without any exceptions for rape, incest or life of the mother.

What if you found yourself with an ectopic pregnancy? Allowing a pregnancy to continue in a fallopian tube is a death sentence. Would you not have an abortion to save your own life? Maybe, maybe not. What if it’s your daughter? Would you want her to be forced to sacrifice her own life, or become a criminal if she wants to live, seeking out whatever dangerous, illegal methods of abortion she can find?

This is a decision that needs to be between a woman and her doctor, not in the hands of politicians. The Sanctity of Life Act illustrates how far Republicans have strayed from sanity on this issue. Their views on rape are truly outrageous. Please see the Rape Advisory Chart to the right, courtesy of AlterNet.org.³

Below is a brief clip (4:20) from the Melissa Harris-Perry show, which aired Saturday, October 27, 2012. She has our eternal gratitude for clearly stating the fundamental problem with extreme Republican positions on women's reproductive choice.