Want to know how dumb our politics is? The U.S. Senate voted 51-39 on Wednesday in favor of the Right to Contraception Act, but because of the arcane filibuster rule, you need to get 60 votes, not just a majority.
And so, legislation backed by seven in 10 Americans failed, as several Republican-led states have already restricted access to contraceptives, and others are working to join them.
“It’s outrageous that the Senate couldn’t pass this bill to protect access to contraception, a safe, effective, and widely used form of care that has come under attack since the Supreme Court’s disastrous Dobbs decision,” U.S. Sen. Tim Kaine, D-Va., said in a statement after Wednesday’s failed vote.
“When given the opportunity to show that they support this commonsense measure, many of my colleagues on the other side of the aisle chose extremism. I’ll keep pushing to pass legislation to protect Americans’ reproductive freedom,” Kaine said.
We also got a statement blasting Republicans from U.S. Sen. Mark Warner, D-Va.
“In the years since Roe v. Wade was overturned, we have seen countless attacks on reproductive rights across the country including, unfortunately, in Virginia,” Warner said. “Birth control is an essential part of health care, and the right to decide if and when to start a family should never be taken away from individuals. This legislation would have protected the right of women and families to access contraception without delay, harassment, or intimidation. I’m disappointed by today’s vote, but I will continue supporting measures that allow women to access the care they need.”
One way to do that, Sen. Warner, Sen. Kaine, would be, the filibuster isn’t enshrined in the Constitution, you know.
Just sayin’, if 51 out of 100 want to pass a bill, it should pass.
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Chris Graham
