Gene Robinson, columnist for the Washington Post, talks with Rachel Maddow about the shocking extremism of the state-level Republican legislation restricting women's reproductive health rights.
Personhood Bill Resembling Failed Mississippi Measure Advances In Virginia House
Laura Bassett First Posted: 02/14/2012 2:53 pm Updated: 02/14/2012 10:22 pm
The GOP-controlled Virginia House of Delegates Monday advanced a "fetal personhood" bill that would give legal rights to a human fertilized egg and a measure that would require women seeking abortions to first undergo trans-vaginal ultrasound tests. Delegates rejected an amendment that would have ensured contraception remains legal once the personhood bill goes into effect.
The personhood bill [ http://www.richmondsunlight.com/bill/2012/hb1/fulltext/#HB1 ], sponsored by Del. Bob Marshall (R-Prince William), defines the word "personhood" in the Code of Virginia as beginning at the moment of fertilization. Voters in Mississippi, one of the most socially conservative states in the nation, rejected a similar measure [ http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/11/09/mississippis-failed-perso_n_1083960.html ] in October because it complicated the legality of stem cell research, in vitro fertilization, abortion in cases of rape, incest or life endangerment, and certain kinds of birth control.
Marshall said he's been working on passing a bill like this in Virginia for the past 20 years and insisted that the bill would not "directly" affect contraception or abortion -- it just provides a legal framework for mothers to sue if anything happens to her unborn baby.
“The legal effect here is [if] a pregnant woman is driving in an intersection and someone runs into her, she can sue for loss of a child,” he said. “Under the current code, a mother cannot do that. [The bill] has no direct legal effect on abortion or birth control.”
But House Democrats, in a press release on Monday, expressed concerns that the bill could have farther-reaching consequences than Marshall acknowledges. House Minority Leader David Toscano (D-Charlottesville) called it "another example of misplaced priorities."
“Yet another extreme bill on a social issue emerges, and House Republicans saved the most controversial one for last,” he said. “House Democrats are focused on education, economic opportunity, and transportation while the GOP continues to push a narrow, divisive agenda.”
To mitigate Democrats' concerns, Del. Vivian Watts (D-Fairfax) tried to attach an amendment to the bill that would declare that nothing in it could be construed to outlaw any form of legal contraception, since some kinds of birth control have the potential to prevent a fertilized egg from implanting in the uterus. The House voted 64 to 34 against considering the amendment.
Personhood bills, far more restrictive than any other anti-abortion provision on the books, could directly challenge Roe v. Wade. Similar legislation is being considered in at least 12 other states, either as a ballot measure for voters or as a bill to be decided by the state legislature.
In response to the measure, Virginia senate candidate Tim Kaine (D) took the opportunity to distinguish his views on reproductive rights from those of his Republican opponent, George Allen, ahead of what is expected to be a close and important Senate race between two former governors. While Allen hasn't officially endorsed Marshall's bill, he notes on his website [ http://www.georgeallen.com/virginia-values-for-washington/#life ] that he "believe[s] life begins at conception and support[s] legislation declaring the personhood of every individual life."
Allen's campaign did not respond to requests for comment for this article.
Kaine sharply criticized the personhood bill in a statement on Monday, assuring voters that as senator he would "fight for affordable and accessible contraception."
"I strongly disagree with the House of Delegates' vote to enact personhood legislation," he said in a statement. "This reckless proposal, supported by my opponents, including Bob Marshall and George Allen, could threaten access to some forms of birth control for women across Virginia. Even when given the opportunity to reaffirm their support for contraception, Marshall and Virginia House Republicans rejected a measure to create a safe harbor protecting women's access to birth control."
Va. House says no exceptions on ultrasound viewing before abortion
The Associated Press 7:14 AM, Feb. 14, 2012
RICHMOND — House of Delegates Republicans have rejected a last-ditch bid by Democrats to allow women seeking abortions to opt out of an invasive ultrasonic procedure under anti-abortion legislation set for a final House vote Tuesday.
Legislation that has advanced on the strength of a GOP majority would force women to undergo a “transvaginal ultrasound” that produces fetal images.
An amendment by Del. David Englin, D-Alexandria, would have allowed medical professionals to determine whether images can be obtained without being penetrated by equipment used in the ultrasound.
Women would have to give written consent to such a probe under Englin’s amendments, but not to sonograms that are not invasive. The amendment failed on 64-34 vote, setting the bill up for final House passage.
Andrea Stone Posted: 02/21/2012 7:45 pm Updated: 02/23/2012 1:50 pm
Anne Frank [ http://www.annefrank.org/ ], the Jewish girl whose diary and death in a Nazi concentration camp made her a symbol of the Holocaust, was allegedly baptized posthumously Saturday by a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, according to whistleblower Helen Radkey, a former member of the church.
The ritual was conducted in a Mormon temple in the Dominican Republic, according to Radkey, a Salt Lake City researcher who investigates such incidents, which violate a 2010 pact between the Mormon Church and Jewish leaders.
Radkey said she discovered that Annelies Marie "Anne" Frank, who died at Bergen Belsen death camp in 1945 at age 15, was baptized by proxy on Saturday. Mormons have submitted versions of her name at least a dozen times for proxy rites and carried out the ritual at least nine times from 1989 to 1999, according to Radkey. But Radkey says this is the first time in more than a decade that Frank's name has been discovered in a database that can be used both for genealogy and also to submit a deceased person's name to be considered for proxy baptism -- a separate process, according to a spokesman for the church [ http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/02/14/elie-wiesel-mitt-romney-mormon-church_n_1276148.html (first item in the post to which this is a reply)]. The database is only open to Mormons.
A screen shot of the database sent by Radkey [ http://big.assets.huffingtonpost.com/mormonbaptism.jpg ] shows a page for Frank stating "completed" next to categories labeled "Baptism" and "Confirmation," with the date Feb. 18, 2012, and the name of the Santo Domingo Dominican Republic Temple.
Negotiations between Mormon and Jewish leaders led to a 1995 agreement for the church to stop the posthumous baptism of all Jews, except in the case of direct ancestors of Mormons, but Radkey says she found that some Mormons had failed to adhere to the agreement.
The name of Nobel Peace Prize winner Elie Wiesel was recently submitted to the restricted genealogy website as "ready" for posthumous proxy baptism [ http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/02/14/proxy-baptism-elie-wiesel_n_1274271.html ], though the church says the rite is reserved for the deceased, and Wiesel is alive. Wiesel, a Holocaust survivor, was among a group of Jewish leaders who campaigned against the practice and prompted the 2010 pact by which the Mormon Church promises to at least prevent proxy baptism requests for Holocaust victims.
The Romney campaign has previously refused to comment and referred The Huffington Post to the LDS church. HuffPost emailed a church spokesman for comment Tuesday, but did not immediately receive a reply.
Radkey noted that the latest baptism of Frank by proxy is especially egregious, because she was an unmarried teenager who left no descendants. Mormon officials have stressed that church members are only supposed to submit the names of their ancestors, in accordance with the agreements.
"The security of the names submissions process for posthumous rites must be questioned, in view of the rash of prominent Jewish Holocaust names that have recently appeared on Mormon temple rolls," Radkey said about her latest find. "This one sailed straight through, with Anne's correct name in their 'secure' database."
Radkey said she expects once word gets out that church officials will scrub the records as they did with Wiesel and Weisenthal's parents.
The Mormon Church responded later Tuesday in a statement [ http://www.mormonnewsroom.org/article/violations-of-proxy-baptism-policy ] by spokesman Michael Purdy, sent to The Huffington Post: "The Church keeps its word and is absolutely firm in its commitment to not accept the names of Holocaust victims for proxy baptism."
"While no system is foolproof in preventing the handful of individuals who are determined to falsify submissions we are committed to taking action against individual abusers," the statement says, "It is distressing when an individual willfully violates the Church’s policy and something that should be understood to be an offering based on love and respect becomes a source of contention."
Video [embedded] Mormon Church Apologizes For Baptising Holocaust Victims
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