If ever there was a question about who Jeb Bush would side with when it came to contraception access vs. religious groups, he ended it Monday during his campaign announcement.
After first taking a wildly misleading swipe at Hillary Clinton, Jeb championed the cause of a Catholic charity that has blocked its female employees from receiving contraception coverage even though the Obama administration provided a work around for religious groups with moral objections to doing so. Here's Jeb:
"Secretary Clinton insists that when the progressive agenda encounters religious beliefs to the contrary those beliefs, quote, "have to be changed." That's what she said, and I guess we should at least thank her for the warning.
"The most galling example is the shabby treatment of the Little Sisters of the Poor, a Christian charity that dared to voice objections of conscience to Obamacare. The next president needs to make it clear that great charities like the Little Sisters of the Poor need no federal instruction in doing the right thing.
"It comes down to a choice between the Little Sisters and Big Brother, and I'm going with the Sisters.
This whole thing stinks. First, Jeb quoted Hillary
entirely out of context. Those four words came from a speech Clinton made about basic human rights at the sixth annual Women in the World Summit. She was making the case that women around the globe should have the right to an education, to healthcare access, and to live free from abuse and domestic violence. That's when
she said that "deep-seated cultural codes, religious beliefs, and structural biases"—that block women from these basic rights—"have to be changed."
Second, Little Sisters of the Poor, which runs nursing homes in Denver and Baltimore, has not been forced to do anything against its religious beliefs. Since the organization objects to providing female employees with basic contraceptive and reproductive coverage (mandated by the ACA), all they have to do is sign a form so the insurer can step in and provide that coverage free of charge. But the sisters argue that signing the form still violates their moral code. What they are essentially saying is, the simple act of allowing their employees to access basic reproductive care infringes on their religious beliefs even if they're not providing it.
Sorry, Jeb. In this case, it comes down to choosing between the Little Sisters who want to deprive women of basic healthcare options and the Big Brother who's trying to level the playing field by providing the same access to everyone.
And it's very, very telling that you have chosen the Little Sisters. Thanks for the warning.