***Video of press conference HERE***
Senator Murray: “This is a fundamental right that we will not budge on—we will do absolutely everything we can to protect every woman’s right to an abortion. Speaker Johnson can listen to that message now, or he can learn it the hard way.”
Washington, D.C. – Today, U.S. Senators Patty Murray (D-WA), Chair of the Senate Appropriations Committee, Debbie Stabenow (D-MI), Tammy Baldwin (D-WI), Mazie Hirono (D-HI), Maggie Hassan (D-NH), Tina Smith (D-MN), and Laphonza Butler (D-CA), held a press conference responding to the recent election of anti-abortion extremist Mike Johnson as Speaker of the House, and affirming Senate Democrats’ unshakeable commitment to protecting abortion rights and being a firewall against any attempts by the new House speaker or the Republican House majority to further restrict abortion access. At the press conference, the senators sent a clear message that Johnson must put aside any extreme tactics and partisan policy riders when it comes to abortion—or any other issue—so that Congress can responsibly fund the government and tackle the other pressing challenges our nation is facing.
“We are here today to respond to the deeply concerning and profoundly extreme anti-abortion record of the new Republican Speaker, and to make clear to Speaker Johnson—if he is serious about being a leader, and getting things done—then he needs to leave the radical, anti-abortion crusading at the door,” Senator Murray said at today’s press conference. “Because that kind of extremism is not going to fly with the American people, and it’s certainly not going to fly here in the Senate—especially if any of the Democratic women senators you see here today—have anything to say about it.”
Newly-elected House Speaker Mike Johnson has openly advocated for and backed multiple bills that would ban abortion nationwide and criminalize providers—including bans before many people even know they are pregnant and so-called personhood bills, which would not only criminalize abortion but also ban emergency contraception and other forms of birth control, stem cell research, and assisted reproductive technology like IVF. Johnson has received an A+ rating from Susan B. Anthony Pro-Life America for his long opposition to abortion rights and has celebrated efforts to criminalize health care providers, including praising a Louisiana law that would mean those who provide abortion care can be imprisoned at hard labor and fined up to $100,000. Prior to being elected to Congress, Johnson was an attorney for the anti-abortion legal organization that engineered the end of Roe v. Wade and suggested that birth control was next, and is currently fighting to overturn FDA approval of mifepristone.
“Hear us when we all say: abortion rights are not a ‘side issue’ for us, they are not just something we’d like to have,” Murray said at the press conference. “This is a fundamental right that we will not budge on—we will do absolutely everything we can to protect every woman’s right to an abortion. Speaker Johnson can listen to that message now, or he can learn it the hard way—that’s up to him. But I hope he understands that the only way to get things done in divided government is to work in a bipartisan way…and that means putting aside extreme tactics and partisan policy riders when it comes to abortion—or any other issue—so that we can responsibly fund the government and tackle the other pressing challenges our nation is facing.”
“Last year, the Supreme Court ripped away the fundamental freedom to make our own reproductive health care decisions, putting so many women at risk. Newly elected House Speaker Mike Johnson doesn’t want to stop there,” said Senator Stabenow. “While Speaker Johnson wants to take our country backwards, Senate Democrats are fighting to make sure our reproductive freedom is protected in every state.”
“Every American deserves the freedom to make their own health care decisions without interference from politicians,” said Senator Baldwin. “I am proud to stand with my colleagues to make clear to Speaker Johnson that advancing any legislation that seeks to further restrict access to abortion care will be dead on arrival in the Senate. Period.”
“MAGA Mike Johnson is as radical as they come – he spent years as an attorney working to restrict abortion access, and has made clear that he wants to outlaw abortion nationwide,” saidSenator Hirono. “With every member of the House GOP voting to make him Speaker, it’s clear his radical stance is now the mainstream position of the Republican party. If Mike Johnson thinks he’ll be able to get any anti-abortion legislation through this Congress, he better think again—Senate Democrats will continue working to protect and defend reproductive freedom for all.”
“In states across the country, women have lost their fundamental right to choose because of people like House Speaker Mike Johnson, who has defined the majority of his career fighting against abortion rights,” said Senator Hassan. “It is more important than ever to work with my colleagues to ensure equal access to abortion and uphold women’s fundamental right to determine their own future.”
“In my years working on women’s health care—at Planned Parenthood, as a policy maker in Minnesota, and now in the Senate—I’ve met a lot of guys like Mike Johnson,” said Senator Smith. “Men who are hell bent on controlling the decisions women make about their own bodies and their own lives. Speaker Johnson is an extremist on women’s health, far removed from what most Americans believe—including Republicans and Independent voters—which is that women, not politicians like Mike Johnson, can be trusted to make their own decisions about health care, including abortion. Time and time again, Republicans have told us who they are. When they say they want to ban abortion, they mean it. I take them at their word, and I won’t stop fighting to stop their dangerous agenda.”
“In states across the country, women have lost their fundamental right to choose because of people like House Speaker Mike Johnson, who has defined the majority of his career fighting against abortion rights,” said Senator Butler. “It is more important than ever to work with my colleagues to ensure equal access to abortion and uphold women’s fundamental right to determine their own future.”
Senator Murray is a longtime leader in the fight to protect and expand access to reproductive health care and abortion rights, and she has led Congressional efforts to fight back after the Supreme Court’s disastrous decision overturning Roe v. Wade last year. Murray led her colleagues at the very outset of this Congress to make crystal clear that Senate Democrats are continuing to fight to protect every American’s reproductive rights and will be a firewall against Republicans’ continued attacks on women’s rights—and that’s exactly what she’s doing now. Murray has introduced more than a dozen pieces of legislation to protect reproductive rights from further attacks, protect providers, and help ensure women get the care they need; she also co-leads the Women’s Health Protection Act, which would restore the right to abortion nationwide. Ahead of the one year anniversary of the Dobbs decision, Senator Murray led Senate Democrats in seeking unanimous consent on the Senate floor for four common-sense bills to protect women’s fundamental freedoms.
Senator Murray’s remarks as delivered are below:
“Thank you. We are here today to respond to the deeply concerning, and profoundly extreme, anti-abortion record of the new Republican Speaker. And to make clear to Speaker Johnson—if he is serious about being a leader and getting things done, then he needs to leave the radical, anti-abortion crusading at the door.
“Because that kind of extremism is not going to fly with the American people, and it’s certainly not going to fly here in the Senate—especially if any of the Democratic women senators you see here today have anything to say about it. And we do.
“Everyone needs to take Mike Johnson seriously and take him at his word because the comments he has made about abortion are truly as radical as it gets.
“Comparing abortion to the holocaust? Suggesting that abortion is responsible for school shootings?
“The American people absolutely should be alarmed because there is cause for alarm—this is the highest-ranking Republican in government, this is the man Republicans just unanimously elected to be their Speaker of the House.
“This is someone who fervently—with all of his heart—wants to force women to stay pregnant even when they don’t want to be and he wants to use the force of the law to make that a reality in all 50 states.
“Because, let’s be clear—it’s not just what Speaker Johnson has said about abortion, although his words are frightening.
“It’s what he’s done as a member of Congress, and before that, a lawyer for the very group responsible for overturning Roe v. Wade—which, by the way, is the same group working right now to overturn FDA approval of mifepristone—with Speaker Johnson’s support.
“As a Member of Congress, Speaker Johnson has supported multiple pieces of legislation that would ban abortion nationwide and criminalize providers, including a bill that would ban abortion after around six weeks—before many women even know they are pregnant.
“And, as if that weren’t extreme enough, he also backed a so-called personhood bill that would not only criminalize abortion, but also ban certain forms of birth control, ban stem cell research, and ban IVF care, which many couples rely on to start a family.
“It does not get more extreme than that!
“So, here’s our message to Speaker Johnson and the American people: Senate Democrats are going to continue to be a firewall against any new Republican attempts to restrict access to abortion.
“That means absolutely no new anti-abortion laws, restrictions, or riders are going to fly in the Senate—absolutely not.
“My colleagues know I am someone who wants to make sure Congress can actually work. I want to solve problems and help people, and I will work across the aisle to do that but I will never stand down when it comes to protecting reproductive freedom.
“Hear us when we all say: abortion rights are not a ‘side issue’ for us, they are not just something we’d ‘like’ to have. This is a fundamental right that we will not budge on—we will do absolutely everything we can to protect every woman’s right to an abortion.
“Speaker Johnson can listen to that message now, or he can learn it the hard way—that’s up to him. But I hope he understands that the only way to get things done in a divided government is to work in a bipartisan way.
“And that means putting aside extreme tactics and partisan policy riders when it comes to abortion—or any other issue—so that we can responsibly fund the government and tackle the other pressing challenges our nation is facing.
“Thank you.”
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