Washington – The House passed legislation Thursday that would protect access to birth control, the latest move in a broader effort by Democrats to enshrine in federal law rights they fear could be threatened by the Supreme Court after of his decision to eliminate the constitutional right. to an abortion
The vote was 228 to 195, with eight Republicans joining all Democrats in voting in favor. All 195 “no” votes came from Republicans.
The Republican members who voted for it were Reps. Liz Cheney of Wyoming, John Katko of New York, Adam Kinzinger of Illinois, Nancy Mace of South Carolina, Fred Upton of Michigan, Brian Fitzpatrick of Pennsylvania, Maria Salazar of Florida and Anthony Gonzalez of Ohio.
The bill, called the Contraception Rights Act, now moves to the Senate, where it is unlikely to attract the support of 10 Republicans needed to pass it. The measure would create a legal right for people to access birth control and protect a range of contraceptive methods, as well as ensure that health care providers have the right to provide contraceptive services to patients.
“We are not prepared to defend this very important issue,” Rep. Kathy Manning, D-North Carolina who sponsored the measure, said Wednesday during a press conference to promote the bill. “We’re playing offense.”
House Speaker Nancy Pelosi accused Republicans of trying to turn back the clock on American women by restricting access to birth control, but declared that “we’re not going back.”
House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., meets with reporters ahead of a planned vote in the House to enshrine the right to use contraceptives into law, a response to the conservative Supreme Court, at the Capitol in Washington , Thursday. July 21, 2022. J. Scott Applewhite / AP
“This is their time. Clarence Thomas has made it clear, down to the very foundations of privacy they want to erase,” Pelosi said of Republicans. “With this passage, Democrats will make it clear that we will never give up the fight against the right’s outrageous assault on freedom.”
The White House supported passage of the plan to protect the right to contraception, saying in a statement that access to birth control is “essential to ensuring that all people have control over personal decisions about their own health, lives and families.”
Along with a pair of bills aimed at guaranteeing access to abortion that passed the House last week and a measure protecting same-sex and interracial marriages, the contraceptive access proposal is the Democrats’ response to last month’s Supreme Court decision. to overturn Roe v. Wade, which legalized abortion nationwide.
Five conservative justices, including three appointed by former President Donald Trump, voted to overturn nearly 50 years of precedent, raising fears that other rights recognized by the court, including same-sex marriage and contraception , could face a similar fate.
While Justice Samuel Alito wrote for the majority that “nothing in this opinion should be understood to call into question precedents not dealing with abortion,” Justice Clarence Thomas wrote an opinion concurring separately urging his colleagues to reconsider important decisions that recognized rights in the matter of contraception and relationships between people of the same sex.
No other justices joined Thomas, but his opinion, along with decisions this term by the court’s conservative majority on the environment, religion, guns and abortion, has prompted Democrats to push back legislatively
“This call by Justice Thomas and the actions of extremist Republican lawmakers are about one thing: control,” said Manning, D-North Carolina. “These extremists are working to take away women’s rights, to take away our right to decide when to have children, to take away our right to control our own lives and our own bodies, and we will not let that happen.” .
The House overwhelmingly approved a bill called the Respect for Marriage Act on Tuesday that would protect marriage equality by repealing the Defense of Marriage Act and providing federal protections for same-sex and interracial couples. Although the Supreme Court struck down sections of the Clinton-era law in a pair of decisions related to same-sex marriage, it has remained on the books.
The marriage equality legislation passed with the support of all House Democrats and 47 Republicans, including Rep. Elise Stefanik of New York, the No. 3 House Republican, and Tom Emmer of Minnesota, chairman of the National Committee Congressional Republican.
Like the measure protecting access to contraceptive services, it’s unclear whether the marriage equality bill can win the Republican support needed to overcome a filibuster in the Senate. Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell declined to say Tuesday whether he plans to support the Respect for Marriage Act, but a growing number of Republicans have indicated plans to vote for it. Sen. Rob Portman of Ohio is co-sponsoring the Senate version of the measure, his office said, and Sen. Thom Tillis of North Carolina said he “will probably vote” to enshrine same-sex marriage rights to federal law. Republican Sens. Susan Collins of Maine and Lisa Murkowski of Alaska have also said they support protecting marriage equality.
Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer said Wednesday he wants to introduce the bill and has spoken with Sen. Tammy Baldwin, D-Wisconsin, to gauge Republican support.