Abortion Rights Sebelius
The pro-choice groups are understandably up in arms over HHS Secretary Kathleen Sebelius’ decision to overrule the FDA and prohibit the “morning after pill” from being available over the counter to minors. By now, they have issued their press releases condemning the action and personally castigating President Obama. Some groups, like Physicians for Reproductive Choice and Health have been particularly aggressive, which is part of their relatively new effort to convince others that they are now a leading advocacy organization (i.e., “please send us money because we’re really fighting for you”). But I digress.
The day after the decision the President – the pro-choice president – said that he agreed with Sebelius, expressing concern that a young girl might not use the medication properly. Suddenly, he was the Father in Chief, clearly thinking about thirteen year old daughter, Malia.
Morning After Pill?
I am going to assume that Obama knew what Sibelius wanted to do. I mean, c’mon folks, do you really think that she would make that kind of decision without discussing it with the President? So, if you accept the assumption that they discussed it before hand, the question then becomes was Obama’s decision to support Sibelius based on science or politics?
Actually, that question is too simple. It suggests that the President or any other politician only examines an issue from one perspective. But the President (and some of those other politicians) is actually a smart guy and he can analyze an issue from several perspectives. Heck, he does it all the time.
Abortion Rights
From the substantive point of view, he is a father first. He’s got two young daughters who may soon be having sexual thoughts. And Obama clearly had to be thinking about the possibility (although highly unlikely) of his daughters going down the drugstore one day to get a box of these pills. Then, he must have envisioned them in a state of panic taking the wrong dosage or not being physically capable of taking the drug. He must have projected his fatherly perspective to the thousands and thousands of other fathers (and mothers) who might ultimately be in the same situation.
Then there was the political side of the issue. It’s no secret that it will be a tough re-election and he has to woo a number of interest groups, including the Catholics and independents. The problem is that many, if not most, Catholics believe these pills cause an abortion. Now, if they really thought it through, versus simply taking marching orders from a virgin Pope, they would realize that the pills actually prevent an abortion on a developing fetus. But that’s another story. Meanwhile, Obama must have dreamt about the commercials from Newt or Mitt painting him as promoting promiscuity among little teenage girls (cue the dark foreboding music).
Continuing his political analysis, there is his relationship with the pro-choice groups, which has been somewhat strained because of the health care “surrender” and a few other issues. He certainly knew that he would piss them off if he supported the Secretary’s decision, but he is also smart enough to know that the pro-choice groups have no place to go. Let’s face it, they cannot support someone who wants to reverse Roe v. Wade, so pro-choicers would have to at least vote for him. The calculated risk he took was whether or not he would make them less enthusiastic about his campaign? Would they withhold money from him, not work on the campaign, not run independent commercials like they did in 2008? He probably concluded what I would have concluded: that when they hear the Republican nominee talking about banning abortion and the polls are a dead heat, they’ll forget this little tussle and will jump on the bandwagon.
His position on this controversial issue is risky and it’s hard to say whether substance or politics ruled the day. But we need Obama to be re-elected so, as much as I hate to say it, I think he made the right decision.
Ugh.
Related articles
- Nancy Keenan: Mitt Romney’s $10,000 Question on Choice (huffingtonpost.com)
- “10 For Tebow” Pledges A Pro-Choice Donation For Every Tim Tebow Touchdown (thefrisky.com)
- Herman Steps in It (abortion.ws)
- Santorum Slams Administration For ‘Considering’ Expanding Access To Morning After Pill (thinkprogress.org)
- “In the church of Kathleen Sebelius,…” (insightscoop.typepad.com)
- An Early Holiday Hangover – New York Times (nytimes.com)
- ’10 for Tebow’ Encourages Donating to Pro-Choice Causes Every Time Tim Tebow Scores a Touchdown [Roe V World] (jezebel.com)
- Obama backs Sebelius stance on morning-after pill (mercurynews.com)
Abortion - Abortion Clinics, Abortion Pill, Abortion Information 
December 12, 2011 at 5:51 am
Yeah, he’s definitely going to run a winning campaign with the worst of slogans: “Consider the alternative to me.” With the billions that corporations will be pouring into his House, Senate and White House opponents, his second term isn’t going to be any better than his first. I can’t imagine what else he has left to surrender, having already given the Republicans Social Security and Medicaid/Medicare cuts and his lunch money.
One wonders what a President Hilary Clinton would have directed Sebelius to do. One assumes she would have acted as a mother.
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December 12, 2011 at 10:19 am
The scary thing is the Obama bumper sticker. All it says is “2012”. There is no slogan, they can’t come up with one except as you suggest, Charles, the “alternative” argument. And I can’t figure out a bumper sticker that sends the message that “I saved us from a Depression”.
I also think Hilary might have done the same thing…
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December 13, 2011 at 11:43 pm
a few years ago, i heard anti-abortion people referring to obama as the “most pro-abortion president in history”.
i think those people were wrong.
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December 14, 2011 at 7:29 am
rogelio, they need somebody to vent their anger on. It doesn’t matter that they’re wrong; it matters that they are angry about something else and unable to examine what it is.
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December 14, 2011 at 9:16 am
good morning chuckles. 😀
you make a good point.
i have encountered a number of anti-abortion people whose stances are due to religious beliefs, who were on rants about obama.
if they were US citizens, i have asked them if they pray for their president.
all too often, the responses would be along the lines of “yes, BUT…”, or they would answer the question with another question : “do you really think that this idiot…”, or any number of responses that were indicative that they WANT him not to do a good job as president.
i find that such responses tell far more about them than it does about obama.
some people actually WANT him to perform poorly as their president, even though it would be detrimental to their country.
i think he walked into office with a huge mess to clean up and your congress has battled him along the way.
pat made a good point about the possibility that his support of sebelius’ decision regarding plan b. ( although it is still speculation on our part.) being projection of his concern for his daughter.
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December 14, 2011 at 11:33 am
It’s funny. I dont even know what they mean when they say he is the “most pro-abortion President.” Indeed, he is pissing off the pro-choice groups a lot! Again, I think what is happening is people, on both sides of this (or any other issue), just get locked into their bumper sticker slogans and they run with it because it doesn’t take energy. Thinking through an issue, challenging the mantra, does take energy. Again, that’s where Rogie is different. I also like to think I am different as well because, as I did in this piece, I challenged my pro choice friends as well. And that, sometimes, tends to get you in trouble unfortunately…
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February 9, 2014 at 6:53 am
As an employee of an ipeendndent living center, I find this a great step foward. However, in three months, my position will be eliminated because this administration and Congress cannot work together to reauthorize the Work Incentive Planning and Assistance program. Community Work Incentives Coordinators, certified and security cleared through Social Security, help people with disabilities to go to work, by helping people with disabilities to navigate the confusing rules of Social Security and work. Without us, many with SSA benefits will never leave behind the fear and misinformation and raise their quality of life though work. So, the government adds a program to help people with disabilities live more ipeendndently, but takes away a resource to help them raise their quality of life? Let’s not give with one hand, and take away with the other.
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April 2, 2014 at 11:05 am
And I was just wondering about that too!
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December 14, 2011 at 11:49 am
More info about mental health and abortion:
• Having an unwanted pregnancy is associated with an increased risk of mental health problems. However, the rates of mental health problems for women with an unwanted pregnancy are the same, whether they have an abortion or give birth.
• The most reliable predictor of post-abortion mental health problems is having a history of mental health problems. In other words, women who have had mental health problems before the abortion are at greater risk of mental health problems after the abortion.[Like Jewels Green, who had prior mental problems and family dysfunctional issues–who is now being paraded around in the prolife circles]
• Some other factors may be associated with increased rates of post-abortion mental health problems, such as a woman having a negative attitude towards abortions in general, being under pressure from her partner to have an abortion, or experiencing other stressful life events.
http://aomrc.org.uk/component/content/article/38-general-news/283-systematic-review-of-induced-abortion-and-womens-mental-health-published.html
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December 14, 2011 at 1:21 pm
If the president was thinking about his daughters or not we might never know, but clearly he was not trying to piss off anybody.
He was thinking with the same intelligence he always had.
Unfortunately, people still not able to discern from one thing to another.
Making the morning after pill prohibited for minors, actually is SAVING them from becoming “maybe” unfertile… I know I might be saying something wrong here but if we think it thru, that can be a possibility…
Also, if there are “pain clinics” being closed because people gets these pills as a form of drug (I never used any kind of drug, so I am not an expert in stating any kind of feeling they give, and also I never used pain medication just for the use of it) maybe the same effect can used with the morning after pill… Just think with me for a second, there are some side effects with the morning after pill, and in order to feel better a person who took that will most likely take something else, without prescription, to feel better… in my way of seeing this, is that this a domino effect kind of thing.
So I agree with the President today and most likely always, because we are not inside his office every day to understand the pressure he is under or what one of his decision can affect something else along the way. Also, he needs to think as a father because he does have two girls that are growing and someday, no matter how good the President and his wife might raise those girls, something might happen…
There is were I get totally pissed off with both sides of this subject. They always want to win, for them is not about what is right or wrong or what is helpful or not, is all about winning. Power, prestige and etc, they forget that they are deciding other people lives, people that they do not have the control of their destiny.
Long story short, you all know that I have a grandchild, and we recently found out that he might have a condition on his eyes (genetic) that he will end up loosing his eye sight some day and still there is no cure for it, So, if by accident, my daughter gets pregnant again, is it fair to bring a child to this world to have the same problem and go thru life without seeing… I told my daughter that before her and her husband do a genetic blood test she better not to get pregnant again. And if happens and she decides to have an abortion, as much as this hurts me to say, I would go with her all along!
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December 14, 2011 at 9:51 pm
Welcome back, Sonia!
A question for you: did you have any friends in childhood who got pregnant too soon? What was it like for them?
If not, can you imagine what it would have been like for you to have been pregnant against your parents’ wishes, with no remedy available to you?
And regardless of the outcome of that imagined pregnancy, what do you think you would have learned from the experience?
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December 14, 2011 at 11:23 pm
Hi Charles, thank you… hummm i think you never read other posts of mine… but that is fine, i sometimes don’t read everything that other people write as well. I was pregnant at 15 and my daughter was born before i complete 16 years old!
Even though having my daughter today is my meaning in life specially after my grandson, at that time was horrible. I went thru hell in school. And after i didn’t get married was even worse, all the boys thought they could come and have a “good time” with me just because i was a single mother and all the girls used to point at me as if i was a whore! So, as you can see, i can answer your question with lots of knowledge and experience.
I am originally from Brazil, and back in 1985, when i was pregnant, that was still something not usual to see it at high school.
In another hand, i think that if a “child” is having sex or even a “teen” is having sex too early is because something inside their house is wrong, the communication is kind of NONE and maybe they feel like left aside.
I can talk about this as well, because my daughter got pregnant after being in a stable relationship and with a guy she knew was responsible to compromise to her and their child.
I was always open to talk to my daughter about everything even when she decide to go to an OB/GYN to start on the pills so she could have SAFE sex.
I do support the President decision as a head that think outside the box and also as a mom.
I don’t know if here in US we have the same stupid say as we do in Brazil, and i will TRY to translate the best that i can, usually this is said from the boy’s family when a girl show up pregnant:
“hold your sheep because my goat is free”
So the consequences of a girl being pregnant is always only on her and with that the boy keeps reproducing without any consequences or learning how to be responsible.
SO, now i have a question to you:
Lets say you have a daughter (and if you do, please don’t take it personal) and she start dating, she just turn let say 14, and the boy is the “free goat” and his parents doesn’t care, of course you will make sure your daughter has access to the morning pill right? And what? If you give her this benefit, she will think this is ok to do it over and over again, and you still think this is OK??
On another scenario, you have a boy and is not the first time he gets a girl pregnant, you will let this keep going until when?
Anyways, it is much more complex to talk about abortion than anything else, again, i am not either side here, again, i live on a fence because i do believe that people should have a choice but i also believe that being responsible is more likely to learn…
Have a good night!
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December 15, 2011 at 7:28 am
Hi, Sonia,
It’s not that I didn’t read it, but I don’t remember as well as I did 60+ years ago– and unfortunately your personal experience is just one of thousands I’ve encountered, and they do get jumbled together. I am very happy to see you are not of the “If-I went-through-Hell-you-can-too” school of thought.
I was a single parent for the last 75% of my child’s upbringing. I arranged for Planned Parenthood to give him all the information I had never known; I would have done so for a daughter. There is nothing an adolescent needs more than access to the full range of options when unintended pregnancy is no longer an abstract concept. To any teen the realization that she’s pregnant must be terrifying.
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December 15, 2011 at 7:31 am
ps– the first time he would have impregnated someone I would grant the possibility of a mistake. The second time he fathered a child would have been the last time he fathered a child. I wasn’t raising him to be stupid.
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February 8, 2014 at 1:12 am
The circumstances of these poeple is deplorable! I know the letters are not the full story, however, when someone is transferred from Medicare into Medicaid, they should NOT lose benefits. Have any of you tried writing to your congressional seat individuals? Is this a problem across the U.S. or just in certain states?Monies are short for everything and everyone needing help. That is a fact. We have added so many poeple to our Health responsibility programs and Social Security that we have robbed the tills of support from the poeple who have built our nation. Sad, but true. There is an old adage. God helps those who help themselves but in these times, it can be impossible to help oneself.My heart goes out to these poeple. I try to fight everything that is fighting against our survival, but the problem seems to be world wide when it comes to getting help. I wish I could offer you more than prayers and hope. I do wish you would become more active politically if you are not all ready doing so. Nothing will get done until America stands up and screams for its rights. The hippies did it in the 70 s, but the Tea Party isn’t going to do a damn about it in the 2012 s plus! They are not grass roots individuals and are just as wrapped up in the greed mess as all the other organizations. Just don’t give up hope. Keep fighting. It may not be soon enough to help you, but it might be soon enough to help your children. That’s what I did with things such as getting a deduction for the money single moms paid out for babysitting. It didn’t help me, but it did help the next generation.Best of luck and God Bless all of you! Patti
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December 15, 2011 at 9:58 am
You are right Charles, having the right information is KEY for all teens to think twice before getting pregnant, unfortunately, that is the bad side of the Pro-Life people, the are so stubborn, that they rather believe in a OLD book that say things that doesn’t fit with our day-to-day anymore, instead to teach kids and teens consequences of all they do…
I have always being the kind of mother that all the girls (my daughters friends) like to be around and talk. Even now, some of them already married, when they have problems they come to talk to me for advice or so. I am not an expert in marriage, have never being married, but sometimes this young girls think that all will always be a fantasy and if they talk to the wrong person, they will end up getting a divorce!
Thank you for the answers! 🙂
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December 16, 2011 at 2:31 pm
It is so coooool to have Sonia back! we missed your articulate and well thought out posts, Sonia! I hope you continue to chim in…
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December 23, 2011 at 6:03 am
I agree with all the above!!! Glad to see you back Sonia…you sometimes have a different view on things since you were not raised in the USA… but more importantly…it feels like you are an old friend…that has come home!!! So don’t stay away so long!!!
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December 17, 2011 at 9:43 am
C’mon folks. There are a lot of people reading this piece. Isn’t there anyone out there who is totally pissed off at the President?????
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December 18, 2011 at 8:14 pm
Pissed off at whom? The Caver in Chief?
It is going to take the Democratic Party a century to get over what’s been done to America by the post-1970’s Democratic Party.
Anybody want to hear about their adoption of the Gingrich-/DeLay “pay to play” system that replaced seniority as the pre-requisite for the top House assignments?
Obama’s a product of it all. Hardly surprising that he would overrule science on Sebelius’ decision.
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December 18, 2011 at 8:57 pm
Ah, Charles, but there was so much hope that he would be different, wasn’t there? But he’s just playing to the middle, which is probably smart…
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December 19, 2011 at 5:52 am
Any Democratic President who offers up Social Security as a bargaining chip is not playing to the middle; he’s willing to destroy what Democrats fought for and stood for. He’s just a lawn jockey for the 1%.
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