Trump Supreme Court pick Brett Kavanaugh reminded the country just how extremist his views on reproductive rights are during the third day of his Senate confirmation hearing on Capitol Hill.
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When answering a question from Texas Sen. Ted Cruz about whether employers should provide their employees with insurance coverage for contraceptives, Kavanaugh made the eye-popping admission that he thinks birth control induces abortion.
“In that case, they said filling out the form would make them complicit in the provision of the abortion-inducing drugs that they were, as a religious matter, objected to,” Kavanaugh said.
Video:
Kavanaugh seems to refer to birth control as “abortion-inducing drugs” pic.twitter.com/JILxzYiN6b
— Aaron Rupar (@atrupar) September 6, 2018
Democratic lawmakers and women’s rights groups were quick to pounce on Kavanaugh’s comments, with Sen. Jeff Merkley calling it a “red-alarm moment” and Sen. Dianne Feinstein pointing to his remarks as “further proof of Kavanaugh’s hostility toward women’s reproductive freedom. ”
This is a red-alarm moment. In his confirmation hearings, #Kavanaugh just called birth control “abortion-inducing drugs.†If you didn’t believe it before, believe it now – a woman’s constitutional right to abortion AND birth control are both 100% at stake. https://t.co/heXqS2mz83
— Senator Jeff Merkley (@SenJeffMerkley) September 6, 2018
Judge Kavanaugh just said Burwell v. Hobby Lobby was about “abortion-inducing drugs.” That’s a GROSS misunderstanding of the case, which was about insurance coverage for contraceptives. It’s further proof of Kavanaugh’s hostility toward women’s reproductive freedom. #WhatsAtStake
— Sen Dianne Feinstein (@SenFeinstein) September 6, 2018
Kavanaugh just referred to birth control as “abortion-inducing drugs,” which is not only an anti-science lie, it’s an anti-choice extremist phrase that shows that our right to access both abortion and contraception would be in SERIOUS danger if he is confirmed. #StopKavanaugh pic.twitter.com/TWqaU0YjmH
— NARAL (@NARAL) September 6, 2018
Brett Kavanaugh is a dangerous extremist
Republicans and anti-abortion activists have been trying to rush Kavanaugh through the confirmation process, painting him as a harmless family man with impeccable credentials. But his frightening record and today’s comments serve as a stunning reminder about who he is and what kind of Supreme Court justice he would be.
A man who spews debunked right-wing lies about contraceptive care most certainly can’t be trusted to uphold the settled law established in Roe v. Wade.
From reproductive rights to presidential powers to environmental protections and much more, Brett Kavanaugh is a dangerous extremist who has no business serving the rest of his life as Donald Trump’s puppet on the Supreme Court.
His confirmation process should be immediately halted until voters – and Robert Mueller – have a chance to weigh in.
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Sean Colarossi currently resides in Cleveland, Ohio. He earned his Bachelor of Arts degree in Journalism from the University of Massachusetts Amherst and was an organizing fellow for both of President Obama’s presidential campaigns. He also worked with Planned Parenthood as an Affordable Care Act Outreach Organizer in 2014, helping northeast Ohio residents obtain health insurance coverage.
