Right there with them
A federal appeals court ruled Tuesday that Texas did not act unconstitutionally when it moved to expel Planned Parenthood from a health and contraceptive care program for low-income women.
The ruling overturned a preliminary injunction, issued in April by U.S. District Judge Lee Yeakel of Austin, that banned Texas from enforcing rules designed to exclude Planned Parenthood from the Women’s Health Program. Yeakel found that the regulations violated the organization’s rights of free speech and association.
The 5th Circuit Court of Appeals, however, sided with Texas late Tuesday — ruling that the state had the authority to prohibit Women’s Health Program money from going to health care providers that promote abortion or affiliate with organizations that perform or promote abortions.
Officials said Texas will act promptly to drop Planned Parenthood from the program.
“We appreciate the court’s ruling and will move to enforce state law banning abortion providers and affiliates from the Women’s Health Program as quickly as possible,” said Stephanie Goodman with the state Health and Human Services Commission.
Here’s a copy of the ruling, via TM Daily Post and The Trib. First there was injunction, then the injunction was stayed, then the stay was lifted, and now it’s back. The Fifth Circuit has been quite hostile to women’s health advocates this year.
But this isn’t about women’s health, is it? I mean, the state of Texas pinky-swears that it will have a super-duper Planned Parenthood-free replacement for the Women’s Health Program up and running any day now, assuming there are any clinics left to handle it. Rick Perry and Greg Abbott say this is about abortion, so let’s take their word for it. What do Rick Perry and Greg Abbott and all the rest of them think about abortion?
Mere hours after U.S. Rep. Todd Akin, R-Mo., and an ardent opponent of abortion in almost all cases, made comments on Sunday suggesting that women’s bodies would naturally reject pregnancy in cases of “legitimate rape,” Mitt Romney and Paul Ryan released a statement distancing themselves from him. They said their administration “would not oppose abortion in instances of rape.”
Elected officials from Texas widely condemned Akin’s comments: U.S. Sen. John Cornyn released a statement that seemed to suggest Akin should drop his Senate bid; Gov. Rick Perry’s office called Akin’s words “off-base, insensitive and a distraction from the important issue of protecting life.” Akin, for his part, quickly backtracked, saying he “misspoke” in his “off-the-cuff remarks,” and adding that he understands “that rape can result in pregnancy.”
Yet Akin’s broader opposition to abortion in cases of rape is shared by many top Texas leaders. Perry, Attorney General Greg Abbott, Lt. Gov. David Dewhurst and GOP Senate hopeful Ted Cruz only support abortion when the mother’s life is in jeopardy. The position isn’t uncommon among Republicans; CNN reported on Monday night that a rape exemption is likely not part of the GOP abortion platform set to be adopted at next week’s Republican Convention in Tampa.
Perry’s stance is a relatively new one for him; he revised his position to oppose abortion in cases of rape and incest late last year on the presidential campaign trail, saying the issue had troubled him for a long time.
The difference between Todd Akin and other such troglodytes and the likes of Perry, Dewhurst, and other “pro-life heroes” is simply this: Akin et al are too insulated from reality to believe that rape of any kind can and does lead to pregnancy, and thus he is free to oppose a rape and incest exception for abortion since it won’t make any practical difference as far as he’s concerned. Perry, Dewhurst, Abbott, Cornyn, Ted Cruz, and all of the other tut-tutters who are shocked, shocked that Todd Akin would say such an impolitic thing, oppose rape and incest exceptions because they are perfectly happy to force the victims of rape and incest to carry their assailants’ pregnancies to term. They’re too slick to say it out loud, of course, but give them an opening and you can be sure they’ll take it. Paul Ryan agrees with Todd Akin. The GOP platform agrees with Todd Akin. What kind of Supreme Court justices – and Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals justices, for that matter – do you think Mitt Romney and Paul Ryan would appoint? If you want more like this, vote for them and find out.
Anyway. For now, Planned Parenthood remains in the WHP, at least until the state figures out what it’s going to do with it. Given how little they care about women’s health, that could still take awhile. A statement from Rep. Carol Alvarado is here, a statement from Melaney Linton, the CEO of Planned Parenthood Gulf Coast, is here, and a statement from Ann Johnson is beneath the fold.
Ann Johnson, candidate for State Representative in House District 134, issued the following statement today in response to the ruling by the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals that Texas can cut off funding for Planned Parenthood clinics:
“Yesterday’s federal appeals court ruling that allows the State of Texas to eliminate funding for cancer screenings, birth control and well-women exams for more than 130,000 Texas women highlights the dire need for new leadership in Austin.
“Texas can do better than Rick Perry and Sarah Davis’ War on Women’s Health. We need an independent voice in Austin fighting for Texas families, fighting for women and fighting to protect and expand jobs at our Medical Center.
“Sarah Davis’ and Rick Perry’s partisan War on Planned Parenthood has already cost Texas $35 million in federal health care funds. But they are not done yet.
“Now Davis and Perry are calling on Texas to reject $76 billion in additional Medicaid funds. That money comes from our taxes. A large portion would go to our Medical Center, create jobs, and help Texas families get the care they need.
“It could even mean lower taxes for Harris County homeowners, who pay a half billion dollars in property taxes every year to the Hospital District to treat uninsured patients.
“Yet Rick Perry and Sarah Davis want to send our fair share of federal funds to New Jersey or California.
“I’m in this race because I know Texas can do better. I am asking all Texans to join me.”
Pingback: Back to the House – Off the Kuff
Pingback: Eye on Williamson » HB 2, omnibus abortion bill, passes House