I'm sorry, I wholeheartedly agree that Obama is the baddest ass I've ever seen... BUT... can we get one at least one rec diary on the stunning and disgusting new front on the War on Women™ launched by the Anti-Woman Party today?
Here's my attempt at offering one up.
In case you're wondering about this disgusting and despicable development you didn't hear about from the MSM today, I'm of course talking about the Criminalizing Abortion Through the Tax Code Act. HR 3.
No. I'm not going to fall for using the misleading title for this legislation that the Republicans came up with , which a previous DKos diary did.
I hope no other Democrats do either.
I don't make this distinction of language to criticize the previous diarist, but as a plea to my fellow Democrats to not let the GOP misleadingly frame what is going on here. I would ask all DKos diarists to henceforth call HR 3 by exactly what it intends --- The Criminalizing Abortion Through the Tax Code Act.
You see this bill goes WAYYYYY beyond just codifying the Hyde Amendment into federal law to limit federal funding for abortion.
A description from the LA Times reveals the GOP's intentions here:
Under the measure, businesses that offer health insurance policies covering abortion could not recoup tax credits under the new healthcare law. In addition, individuals could not deduct the cost of an abortion when itemizing health expenses on their taxes, nor could they use tax-exempt savings account to pay for an abortion.
So to make this crystal clear since I know when I talk about taxes, my eyes want to glass over...
1. An employer who provides private health insurance that covers Viagra under HR3? They get a tax credit for providing that health insurance. And an individual man who wants to pay for Viagra with tax-free income through his health savings account? He gets a tax credit for buying Viagra.
2. An employer who provides health insurance that covers the legal medical procedure of abortion? That employer loses the right to deduct the cost of providing health insurance to its employees. And an individual woman who wants to pay for the legal medical procedure of abortion with tax-free income through her health savings account? That individual woman is a tax cheat.
Unable to muster their wildly unpopular ultimate goal of a Constitutional Amendment to ban abortion, the GOP is incrementally waging a vast anti-woman conspiracy, in this case relying on cash-strapped employers reliant on tax credits, the insurance companies and individual IRS agents to stand between working women and their legal right to medical care.
Now Republicans claim that this bill isn't really that outrageous because it includes an exception to allow the termination of pregnancies stemming from incest or rape (but not statutory rape), or which involve a life-threatening risk to the mother (but not if it's a non-fatal health risk to the mother).
This is BULL.
"We should not use the tax code to force women to relive their ordeal to a IRS agent," said Rep. Jackie Speier.
Well said, Rep. Speier.
And just because it can't be heard enough, I give you Jackie's remarks from the most recent front in the War on Women™ from the Planned Parenthood defunding debate.
Also, just for the heck of it, and just because it is Rep. Speier's birthday this month (May 14) here's a LINK to her ActBlue fundraising page.
Thank you to all Democrats standing up for women's rights.
UPDATE:
And a special thank you to LaFeminista who published an HR3 diary touching on another aspect of this awful bill --- the way it attempts to redefine rape.
UPDATE II:
It occurs to me that unfortunately we don't just have to thank Democrats here. Unfortunately we also may have to mete out some punishment to Democrats who voted against their districts on this bill.
Sixteen Democrats voted for this monstrosity, including a member of the Congressional Progressive Caucus (SERIOUSLY!).
Here's the COOK Partisan Voting Index breakdown of these votes:
Arkansas:
Mike Ross R+7
Illinois:
Dan Lipinski D+11
Jerry Costello D+3
Indiana:
Joe Donnelly R+2
Michigan:
Dale Kildee D+11
Minnesota:
Collin Peterson R+7
North Carolina:
Mike McIntyre R+5
Heath Shuler R+6
Ohio:
Marcy Kaptur D+10 (CPC member)
Oklahoma:
Dan Boren R+14
Pennsylvania:
Jason Altmire R+6
Mark Critz R+1
Tim Holden R+6
Texas:
Henry Cuellar EVEN
Utah:
Jim Matheson R+15
West Virginia
Nick Rahall R+6