And in the War on Women's Rights...

In a continuing analysis of the omnibus spending bill previously mentioned, Shakespeare’s Sister wants to call your attention to another shocking provision that was inserted. This provision, inserted by Congressman Dave Weldon of Florida, prevents funds from going to governmental agencies that act against health care providers or insurers who refuse to provide abortions for their patients and/or customers.

The awesome House Democratic Leader Nancy Pelosi addressed Congress on Nov. 20 about this provision. Because I feel so strongly about this issue, and because I feel Ms. Pelosi’s remarks cannot be improved upon, I will post them here in their entirety:

Mr. Speaker, I rise in opposition to the Weldon amendment, an extraordinary sneak attack on women's rights and a disgraceful display of ideology over health.

This language is a radical change in policy that the House has not debated on the floor, and the Senate has never considered, debated, or voted on. Republicans simply slipped it into the appropriations bill when they thought no one was looking. It is entirely outside of the scope of this omnibus spending bill. Yet it is a part of a 'must-pass' bill at the insistence of House Republican leaders.

This language makes a mockery of Roe v. Wade. Under this provision, a woman will not know where her right to choose will be honored and where it will be denied.

This was first advertised to me as a part of the 'conscience clause,' which we all respect. As a person who served under the leadership of Mr. Obey on the Labor HHS Education Appropriations Subcommittee and with our distinguished Chairman of the Appropriations Committee, Mr. Young, I knew full well of the importance of the conscience clause to Catholic doctors, or other faith doctors, but particular mention was always made of Catholic doctors.

And it was said to me that this was merely an expansion of that from the doctors to the hospitals. But my colleagues, it's so very much more than that. We all respect the conscience clause. But this goes well beyond that.

If a hospital, health insurance company, or doctor opposes Roe v. Wade, they could simply ignore it. Ignore it. This is the law of the land. A Constitutional right could simply be ignored.

The Weldon amendment is essentially a domestic gag rule, restricting access to abortion counseling, referral, and information. Health care companies should not be able to prevent doctors from giving medically necessary information.

This language makes a mockery of existing state and local laws, including many state constitutions. Under the Weldon Amendment, any law or regulation currently on the books to protect access to reproductive health services is at risk. The term 'discrimination' in this amendment is so vague that it could be used against any federal, state, or local government effort to provide reproductive health services.

This language makes a mockery of Title X. The Title X family planning program provides much-needed reproductive health services that reach millions of low-income, uninsured individuals. And it really is sad because we all want to reduce the number of abortions in our country. That is a goal that we all share. And family planning is one way to do that. But under this amendment, clinics could participate in the Title X program without providing a full range of reproductive health services. Federal dollars should not be used to deny the federally-protected right to choose.

Roe v. Wade is the law of the land, but Republicans are gutting it step by step. The Weldon amendment will have a major and harmful impact on women's health. This sweeping new exemption from current laws and regulations should not be the law of the land, and it certainly shouldn't be a part of the omnibus appropriations bill.

The Republican assault on women's rights must be stopped.