The Republican Culture Rights Wars: A Race to the Right

With the Presidential nominating cycle in full swing, Republicans have been focusing on this country’s most pressing issue: limiting access to reproductive health services.

Originally, this post was going to focus on the Republican candidates' extreme views on social issues. For instance, Santorum and Romney believe in the following:

1. No gay marriage (Santorum compared homosexuality to incest and bestiality)
2. Overturning Roe v Wade (Romney was pro-choice before he changed positions)
3. No federal funding for stem cell research (Romney was in favor of it before he changed positions)
4. Support “personhood” amendment which would outlaw many forms of birth control and even many infertility treatments
5. Limit access to contraception (Romney vetoed a bill requiring rape victims receive access to contraceptives) (Santorum believes they should only be available to married couples) 
6. Defunding Planned Parenthood

Cultural extremism is not, however, limited to the candidates. The intention of this article is to shine a light on two of the most extreme pieces of legislation to come out of an American legislative body in recent years, one in Virginia and another in the Senate.

1. The Virginia House of Delegates passed a bill that requires a “transvaginal ultrasound” for any woman that seeks an abortion. This invasive bill would require insertion of an ultrasonic probe into a woman before she chooses whether to obtain an abortion. Think about that, the Virginia General Assembly would REQUIRE INSERTION OF A PROBE in to a woman before she makes a choice about her own body. Fortunately, under extreme pressure, the Governor has stated his opposition to the bill. 
2. Republican Senators are sponsoring a bill that allows ANY employer to reject coverage for ANY health service they find morally objectionable. If an employer believes a same sex couple shouldn’t get maternity leave, they could deny it on moral grounds. If an employer is a Christian Scientist and believes in the power of prayer, they could deny all healthcare coverage to any employee on those grounds. This bill would completely eviscerate our health care system and leave millions of Americans at the goodwill of their employers. If only 1% of employers took advantage of this rule, millions of Americans would have their health care imperiled.

These two bills show just how extreme the modern Republican party has become. Meanwhile, Mitt Romney and Rick Santorum have played to the worst instincts of their electorate. Rick Santorum has a legitimate claim to being an extremist. He’s been a culture warrior since he was first elected to Congress and has consistently held hard-right views. Romney, however, is newer to the ultra-conservative club. When he ran for Senate in Massachusetts, Romney claimed to be pro-choice, pro gay-rights, and even claimed in some instances that he was more liberal than Senator Kennedy. Since he has been running for office (the last six years), he has taken a hard right turn. He has tried to establish his conservative credentials on the backs of women. A recent poll showed that moderate, young women were up for grabs in this election. Romney, apparently, will cross that bridge when he comes to it. For now, he is content endorsing bills that would outlaw contraception, a woman’s right to choose, gay marriage, and just about every other social gain we have made in the past 40 years.

This post was written by a guest blogger. If you want to give blogging a try, feel free to reach out to me with an article proposal at bermanbriefings@gmail.com.