Slaughter: ‘War on women’ continues

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Fed up with the House Republicans’ focus on restricting women’s health rights instead of considering a real economic agenda for women and families, pro-choice members of Congress protested a House Judiciary Committee markup of another anti-choice bill Wednesday.

The protest was led by Rep. Louise Slaughter, of Fairport, and Rep. Diana DeGette, of Colorado, both Democrats and co-chairs of the Pro-Choice Caucus. There are no women on the Republican side of the Judiciary Committee.

“It’s increasingly evident that the only women’s agenda that the Republicans have put forward is to take away your health care rights and then tell you to get lost,” Slaughter said. “Women are sick and tired of these constant attacks on our constitutionally-protected right to choose, while priorities like equal pay, fair wages and paid family leave go unaddressed. …”

House Resolution No. 7, the “No Taxpayer Funding for Abortion Act,” would enact far-reaching restrictions on women’s health that would also impact private insurance coverage of abortion procedures, according to the release.

A previous version of this legislation made headlines in 2011 for trying to change the definition of rape.