Rep. Wasserman Schultz on GOP rape bill: 'I consider this bill a violent act against women'

Rep. Wasserman Schultz on GOP rape bill: ‘I consider this bill a violent act against women’

Politics • February 2011 • Views: 1,367

Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz (D-FL) on Monday tore into House Republicans for proposing legislation that would limit access to abortion coverage for some rape victims.

The Florida Democrat, a rising star in her party and vice chair of the Democratic National Committee, is a leading voice on women’s issues. And she didn’t mince her words in an interview with Raw Story, fiercely denouncing GOP colleagues over H.R. 3, the “No Taxpayer Funding for Abortion Act.”

“It is absolutely outrageous,” Wasserman Schultz said in an exclusive interview late Monday afternoon. “I consider the proposal of this bill a violent act against women.”

Tell us how you really feel Rep Schultz

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19 comments

Steve Dutch Tue, Feb 1, 2011 11:58:34am

Well, yay, let's dilute the word "violence" so it has no meaning. Just like we now let "hate speech" apply to mere criticism (Denmark will soon be a perfect utopia because it will be "hate speech" to say otherwise there), or "child abuse" applies equally to a swat on the butt and putting a kid's hand on a hot stove.

Obdicut Tue, Feb 1, 2011 12:04:08pm

re: #1 stevedutch

Why not direct some of that ire against the stupid fucking bill?

Lidane Tue, Feb 1, 2011 12:18:00pm

She's a bit harsh in her language, but I agree that with Wasserman Schultz that it's a hateful, misogynist bill that should be set on fire and never spoken of again.

moderatelyradicalliberal Tue, Feb 1, 2011 1:14:36pm

re: #3 Lidane

She's a bit harsh in her language, but I agree that with Wasserman Schultz that it's a hateful, misogynist bill that should be set on fire and never spoken of again.

WINDUPBIRD DISEASE [S.K.U.M.M.] Tue, Feb 1, 2011 1:35:49pm

re: #1 stevedutch

threadjack! fuck off

HappyWarrior Tue, Feb 1, 2011 1:42:50pm

It's hard to blame her really. I'll admit. I am not the most pro choice personally or politically person in the world but this crap bothers me a lot. I can think of nothing more stressful for a woman than having to carry her rapist's baby and the way the GOP is acting is disgraceful on this issue.

Jadespring Tue, Feb 1, 2011 2:48:01pm

re: #1 stevedutch

Yeah sorry dude. I'm assuming you're a dude here which might explain things. Any law that would lead to the continuing physical consequences that came from one of the worst forms of violence against a women is an act of violence or maybe better said 'an act that perpetuates the violence which is at the foundation of why a woman would have to deal with this in the first place." Of course the last sentence is a mouthful. Easier to just shorten it.

sizzleRI Tue, Feb 1, 2011 4:19:51pm

I am so disgusted. Not particularly with this bill, which is awful. I am disgusted with a society that has created the meme that a woman's right to refuse sexual access to her body is predicated on how physically she resists. Because if you're drunk, or too scared to fight back then you secretly wanted it. And that is the lesson we teach young men and women in our culture. and then we wonder why rape and sexual assault or so common.

moderatelyradicalliberal Tue, Feb 1, 2011 6:43:14pm

re: #6 HappyWarrior

It's hard to blame her really. I'll admit. I am not the most pro choice personally or politically person in the world but this crap bothers me a lot. I can think of nothing more stressful for a woman than having to carry her rapist's baby and the way the GOP is acting is disgraceful on this issue.

Basically, the supporters of this bill think that rapist have more of a right to chose when they will be fathers than women have to chose when they will be mothers.

Lidane Tue, Feb 1, 2011 7:57:38pm

re: #9 moderatelyradicalliberal

Basically, the supporters of this bill think that rapist have more of a right to chose when they will be fathers than women have to chose when they will be mothers.

That's true for the so-called "pro-life" movement in general. It's entirely predicated on controlling women, their bodies, and their sexuality. This bill is just another attempt to codify those beliefs into law. A

After all, if she wasn't beaten to within an inch of her life while being raped then she clearly wanted it, and should be slut-shamed into having the baby whether she likes it or not.

HappyWarrior Tue, Feb 1, 2011 7:58:56pm

re: #9 moderatelyradicalliberal

Basically, the supporters of this bill think that rapist have more of a right to chose when they will be fathers than women have to chose when they will be mothers.

And that is wrong. It's just pathetic that the GOP Congress is doing this. Shows again to me why anyone who actually thinks they're for limtied government is fooling htemselves.

Mickey_being_mickey Tue, Feb 1, 2011 8:13:41pm

re: #10 Lidane

As George Carlin once said, "They (Republicans) want live babies so they can have dead soldiers." The pro-lifers and dominionists see women as nothing but chattel in the service of god and country

sizzleRI Tue, Feb 1, 2011 8:46:41pm

re: #9 moderatelyradicalliberal

Basically, the supporters of this bill think that rapist have more of a right to chose when they will be fathers than women have to chose when they will be mothers.

That is the fucking truth.

Steve Dutch Wed, Feb 2, 2011 6:32:58am

re: #5 WindUpBird

And jadespring, etc.

Apparently bastardizing language is bad when the military euphemizes killing or corporations engage in greenwashing or the tea party escalates minor opposition with persecution, but it's okay here. What I really love is the way every comment I make even mildly critical of liberal positions gets me responses like this (jadespring not so much) that seem to think invective is a form of reasoning. I don't even support the funding cutoff; the whole issue is the ridiculous extension of "violence" to something that is not violent. If cutting off funding is "violent," how will you get people to see real violence as serious? Buy a thesaurus, or heck, find one on line. "Oppressive, reprehensible, misogynistic and insensitive" are all perfectly good words to apply to the proposed cutoff and they don't require distorting the meaning of a serious term.

dragonfire1981 Wed, Feb 2, 2011 8:12:12am

I think it's more like the supporters of the bill think God should be the one who decides who becomes a mother or a father regardless of whether or not they are a rapist or victim.

Lidane Wed, Feb 2, 2011 8:38:31am

re: #15 dragonfire1981

Uh, no. It's about controlling the lives of women. By limiting the definition of rape to "forcible" rape -- which is a useless term, BTW, since ALL rape is forced -- and only to those cases where women are beaten and bloodied, this bill ignores statutory rape, rape by drugging and/or incapacitating a woman, date rape when she's too drunk to consent, and the rape of victims with limited mental capacity, who don't understand what's happening to them.

It's a hateful, misogynist piece of shit bill that places women at the mercy of the whims of the law to decide if she was raped badly enough to have any say over what happens to her body after the fact.

Lidane Wed, Feb 2, 2011 8:46:50am

Oh, and the bill also ignores pregnancy due to sexual abuse and/or incest. 12 year old girl gets raped by daddy or a close male relative and ends up pregnant? Supporters of this bill are basically saying that she wanted it and should be forced to carry to term.

There's no way to defend this bill at all. It's vile and hateful, and should be rebuked in the strongest possible terms.

Querent Wed, Feb 2, 2011 8:34:13pm

re: #9 moderatelyradicalliberal

i regret that i have but one upding to give for that comment, etc.

Because that really, um, nails it.

Querent Wed, Feb 2, 2011 8:36:41pm

and WRT #1 i think that shipment of /sarc tags is REALLY overdue now...

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