By Gene Zitver
Last week, Sixth District Congressman Ben Cline – who claims to care deeply about the “unborn” – had two opportunities to vote in the House of Representatives to help pregnant women.
He chose not to.
Cline was one of 90 Republicans to vote no on the Pregnant Women in Custody Act (HR 6878) to establish standards for medical care and nutrition for women in custody. The bill passed 324-90.
The Pregnant Women in Custody Act, authored by Reps. Karen Bass (D-CA) and Guy Reschenthaler (R-PA), is designed to address health disparities that impact incarcerated women who are pregnant or in postpartum recovery. It guarantees minimum levels of health care and nutrition for the pregnant inmate and her newborn children, limits the use of restraints and solitary confinement, and offers incentives to states to adopt similar protections.
Then Cline was one of only 44 Republicans to vote no on the Doula for the VA Act (HR 2521) to require the Secretary of Veterans Affairs to conduct a study on the feasibility and advisability of furnishing doula services for veterans. (A doula helps women during and after childbirth.). The bill passed 376-44.
You may recall that Cline was a no voter last year on the Pregnant Workers Fairness Act, requiring private-sector employers with 15 or more workers to make “reasonable accommodations” for pregnant employees.
It seems the “pro-life” congressman can’t bring himself to act on behalf of pregnant women and help them deliver healthy babies.
Gene Zitver is the editor of ClineWatch.
