Roundup: Vitter "Abortion is Not a Women's Issue"

Roundup: Vitter “Abortion is Not a Women’s Issue”

Jul 9, 2010, 10:05am

Robin Marty

The Senator from Louisiana makes it clear why anti-choice legislators have no issue with taking away women's rights.

Nevada Senate candidate can say some really stupid things. But she’s not the only politician to put her foot in her mouth. Sen. David Vitter (R-LA) is giving her a run for her money by saying that his aide, who has recently made headlines for being charged with domestic violence, wasn’t in charge of “women’s issues.”

Just handling abortion.

Talking Points Memo reports:

It’s all starting to make sense. In continuing to deny that he assigned his former aide, Brent Furer to be his point man on women’s issues after Furer was charged with domestic violence, Sen. David Vitter (R-LA) now says it’s all a big misunderstanding. Furer’s job, it turns out, had nothing to do with women at all.

If, like Vitter, you don’t count abortion as a woman’s issue, that is.

After his uncomfortable candidate filing event yesterday in Baton Rouge, Vitter faced the press again — this time in Alexandria, where reporters again asked him why Furer’s portfolio included women’s issues. According to Vitter, “he handled issues including abortion issues, including several other issues, but not women’s affairs.”

As Salon points out, it all makes perfect sense when you remember that conservatives believe that abortion isn’t about the woman who is pregnant, but about that potential life inside of her.

Oh, I get it. Perhaps the anti-choice candidate, who has a 100 percent rating from the National Right to Life Committee, doesn’t see abortion as a “women’s issue” so much as a “pre-born fetuses’ issue” or some other such nonsense. That doesn’t explain why Furer was publicly listed the way he was, or why he was charged with working with anti-domestic violence organizations. Regardless, it is plenty revealing, and utterly fitting, that Vitter not only doesn’t see abortion as being particularly relevant to women, but that he saw fit to assign that particular political territory to a man who pled guilty to violently assaulting his girlfriend.

I suppose it’s not very shocking when you think about it. After all, mostly male legislators have spent huge amounts of time even just this last session in deciding how to restrict women’s access to abortion, especially in Louisiana. Why would it ever be considered a woman’s issue when so many men are making the final decision?

Video of the exchange follows:

Mini Roundup: As if teen mothers didn’t already have enough to worry about, it looks like they are much more susceptible to birthing premature infants, according to recent studies.

July 8, 2010

La. Gov. Jindal Signs Several Antiabortion Bills – Medical News Today

Poll: Pro-Abortion Barbara Boxer Has Narrow Lead Over Pro-Life Carly Fiorina – LifeNews.com

More Senators Oppose Pro-Abortion Supreme Court Nominee Elena Kaga – LifeNews.com

Sharron Angle’s Advice For Rape Victims Considering Abortion: Turn Lemons Into … – Huffington Post

Sharron Angle: Turn Rape Into Rape-ade – Firedoglake

ACLU Claims Catholic Hospitals Refusing Life-Saving Abortions for Women – LifeNews.com

Michigan Pro-Abortion Groups Back Virg Bernero, Pro-Life Group Supports Cox – LifeNews.com

Good health care includes abortion – Isthmus

Vitter: Furer Handled Abortion, Just Not ‘Women’s Affairs’ (VIDEO) – TPMDC

Angle on abortion, incest, lemons, and lemonade – msnbc.com

David Vitter: Abortion isn’t a “women’s issue” – Salon