By Steve Haner
There is no way House Republican spokesman Garren Shipley used the term “pregnant person” in discussing the ongoing campaign debate over the abortion issue with a Washington Post reporter. The reporter or an editor intentionally broke up his quote to insert the now politically correct term in a recent story.
Here is the paragraph, with a highlight to show the direct and indirect portions of the quote:
“Voters have a very distinct choice,” said Garren Shipley, spokesman for the House Republican Caucus, which paid for what he called a “six-figure” ad campaign. “Republicans have been absolutely clear from the get-go” that they favor a 15-week limit with exceptions for rape, incest or the life of the pregnant person, he said. “But Democrats can’t give you a straight answer about what they want to do.”
Shipley would have referred to the life of the mother or the life of the woman. But, no, The Washington Post could not even use those terms in a direct quote in today’s environment. In woke Post land, people who are not women, who are not born with wombs, can carry unborn children.
The story focused on a new GOP-sponsored 30-second broadcast ad also tied to a website, and having the Post cover the development at all was a boost to Shipley’s team. The story concedes Democrats are less clear about their intentions. That one issue is already dominating the airwaves, with both sides accusing the other of blatantly lying about their plans if given control of the legislature.
The truth is there are some Republicans who want a total ban, but nowhere near enough to pass that, or even a six-week bill. Even a 15- or 20-week bill might not pass with GOP control. There are some Democrats who favor reducing or ending the requirements that are now imposed on late-term abortions, and they put in a 2019 bill and have proposed constitutional amendments that quite clearly did exactly that. But again, there may not be enough Democrats in favor of killing late-term unborn babies to pass such a bill, as the short patron list from 2019 demonstrates.
Of course, the 2024 Assembly will have many new faces on both sides. Voters who care about this are right to press the candidates for positions or to press incumbents about their past votes.
Brace yourselves for an October of conflict and confusion on this issue. But shame on The Washington Post for once again putting ideological posturing ahead of basic biology. Remember that the next time some Democrat lectures you about following the science. Why do women put up with this insult that denies them their superpower?
