Lindsey Graham Brings His Anti-Abortion Bullsh*t To The Sunday Shows

And the Republican Party is like SHUT UP! SHUT UP! SHUT UP!

Last week, South Carolina GOP Senator Lindsey Graham announced a proposed national 15-week abortion ban, and many Republicans werethrilled  pissed !

But while many were trying to find the correct way to admonish Graham without fully admitting his ban is what they want, good old political remora Graham got EXACTLY what he wanted: A Sunday show appearance.

 youtu.be 

Graham, appearing as jubilant as when he's getting   credibly accused sexual predators confirmed to the Supreme Court, was asked by "Fox News Sunday" host Shannon Bream about his seemingly idiotic mid-term "strategy." Bream read statements from both Democrats and Republicans remarking on how bad a move this is for Republicans, who have been feeling the backlash from the Dobbs v. Jackson Women's Health decision.

Graham's answer?

GRAHAM: I'll just say what I believe. Number one, I'm "pro-life" even in an election year. And to those that suggest that being pro-life is losing politics, I reject that. So, listen to what I'm saying and you decide today who you're with.

Oh, Graham is going with self-important egotism mixed with faux -hero mythologizing. OK.

Graham tried to cry victimhood by blaming Democrats and said the legislation they proposed a few months ago , the Women’s Health Protection Act, which passed the House, proposed "abortion on demand up to the moment of birth." It should come as no surprise that Graham is lying about that bill, which merely seeks to codify reproductive rights in federal law.

Graham then tried mixing in a bit of racism by saying the Democratic plan would make the U.S. "like China and North Korea." (This is the new "pro-life" line. It is not a good line.)

But it was when he was trying to cast himself as magnanimous that Graham made his worst comparison.

GRAHAM: What did I do in response? I said at 15 weeks when the baby can feel pain, it sucks its thumb, that we’re going to ban abortion, except in the cases of rape, incest, life of the mother. We're talking almost 4 months into the pregnancy. It puts us in line with France [...] Germany, England ...

Graham is lying by omission.

It’s true that many European countries have time limits. For instance, Switzerland (12 weeks), France (14 weeks), Sweden (18 weeks) and the UK (24 weeks). But they ALSO HAVE free healthcare, contraceptives, abortion care and comprehensive sex education. Each of these countries also has generous paid parental leave : running through the same four countries, for leave it's Switzerland (14 weeks), France (16 weeks), Sweden (12 months maternity and six months paternity leave), and the UK (52 weeks, 39 which are paid). The US is one of only six countries IN THE WORLD that doesn't provide paid leave for parents. And that's not even bringing up the other robust social safety nets that makes family planning decisions much different in America from the rest of the world.

The real truth is that Lindsey Graham would hate it if America's abortion laws really were like Europe's. But Graham won't let facts get in the way of casting himself as a populist hero.

GRAHAM: Only thing I got going for me is every "pro-life" group in America and about 70 percent of the American people. [...] The people are with me and the Democratic party is extreme. [...] To my Republican colleagues, now is the time to stand up and be counted. The "pro-life" movement is counting on you. When you're asked about abortion, the answer can't be "I'd like to lower inflation." Give a logical answer.

Bream then showed footage of Graham flip-flopping on leaving abortion rights to the states after the Dobbs decision and what he's doing now. It was just more evidence that everything the GOP has said about leaving it to the states is a lie.

GRAHAM: Here's what Dobbs says: Elected officials can make the decision, state or federal. I'm not inconsistent. In 2020, I had a bill on the floor [...] that banned abortions after 20 weeks [...] I had 51 Republicans voting with me and two Democrats. To suggest that I’m new to the game opposing late-term abortion is ridiculous.

We're not biologists, but if in 2020 Graham believed 20 weeks was an appropriate limit for abortions, how is it that two years later somehow fetuses develop five weeks faster? Seems in his attempts to justify his stupidity, Graham kinda accidentally gave away his inconsistency.

Reminder: Graham has virtually no support from Senate Republican leadership on this.

“Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell asked by CNN’s @mkraju if he would put Sen. Lindsey Graham’s (R-SC) 15-week abortion ban on the floor if Republicans take the Senate: “I think most of the members of my conference prefer that this be dealt with at the state level.””

— The Recount (@The Recount) 1663095097 

And as far as this mythical public support that Graham keeps thinking he has? Well, even Fox News couldn't hide that one from their viewers.

On CNN's "State Of The Union," GOP Senator Mike Rounds tried, like many others, to put Graham's shit back in the bottle.

“Mike Rounds says on CNN that he does not support Lindsey Graham's national abortion ban, though he leaves the door open for legislation of that sort in the future”

— Aaron Rupar (@Aaron Rupar) 1663508169 

In so many ways right now, the GOP is making it clear that the only things it cares about are misery, cruelty, and controlling people.

It's always "pro-Life, but not like that!" when it comes to conservatives.

Have a week.

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