WASHINGTON, D.C. — Today, Democratic Whip Katherine Clark (MA-5) joined Rep. Lizzie Fletcher (TX-7), Senator Markey (MA), and House and Senate co-leads to announce the reintroduction of the Right to Contraception Act, a bill to establish the right to contraception into federal law. Below is a transcript of her remarks:
"This bill, the Right to Contraception Act, is about as clear-cut as it gets. It's about health. It's about freedom. And it's about dignity.
"It is about having autonomy over your own body and decisions, and making sure that when you are having discussions with your doctor – the government, the House GOP, Donald Trump, Elon Musk, none of them are in that room with you. This is between you and medical advice.
"What we have seen in the first few weeks of this administration – and thank you, Senator, for showing what it means – they have purged the reproductive health resources from the HHS website. And that may just sound like, ‘well, the website’s down’ – this is critical information. It is access to medical information. And it is dangerous. And it is dangerous politically, as well as for the health of patients, to have that disappear overnight.
"This administration has also ordered the FBI to stop investigating bomb threats targeting abortion clinics. He has pardoned dangerous extremists convicted of harassing pregnant women.
"The Republicans in Congress have voted to lock up doctors and, in trying to justify their actions, they have accused grieving mothers of conspiring with these doctors to kill their healthy newborns. Can you think of anything more outrageous?
"We in this country have been and should be a global beacon for freedom and dignity and access to health care. We should be a model for the world. And instead, what this bill shows – and the necessity for this bill – is that we are being taken backwards in that struggle for fundamental freedom.
"And with this bill, we're going to give our Republican colleagues another chance to decide: Will you stand with more bans and less freedom and less health care? Or will you stand on the side of the American people?"
To watch the full speech, click HERE.
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