According to the Kansas City Star, Missouri Republican U.S. Sen. candidate Mark McCloskey last week defended the implications of his support for a total, zero-exception abortion ban, saying “he believes 13-year-old rape and incest victims should not be allowed to have abortions.”
In the weeks since Texas’ abortion ban was enacted, a number of 2022 Republican Senate candidates have cheered the Texas ban, vocally called for further zero-exception abortion bans, and even pushed a federal abortion ban that would restrict abortion access in all 50 states. And McCloskey is just the latest to call for constitutional rights to be violated by government interference in deeply personal health care decisions.
“Sadly, in today’s Republican Party, Mark McCloskey’s hardline anti-abortion position is the rule, not the exception. In Senate races across the country, Republican candidates are embracing uncompromising bans that would fully restrict access to abortion,” said American Bridge 21st Century spokesperson Aidan Johnson. “This messy GOP primary has become a race to the bottom on restricting abortion access — and no matter who wins out, we’re going to make sure they’re held accountable in the general election.”
Kansas City Star: Missouri Senate candidate Mark McCloskey says teen incest victims should be denied abortions
By: Jeanne Kuang and Jonathan Shorman | October 27, 2021
Key Points:
- “Republican Missouri Senate candidate Mark McCloskey told an audience last week he believes 13-year-old rape and incest victims should not be allowed to have abortions, stating he had a client who was raped at 13 but who gave birth to a child who now has a master’s degree.”
- “The statements are among the most aggressive yet from Republicans seeking to curb abortions with few exceptions. Missouri passed a law in 2019 banning abortions at 8 weeks of pregnancy, with no exceptions for rape and incest, but it has so far been blocked from implementation by a federal court. Most Missouri Republicans are anti-abortion but few have addressed questions of rape and incest directly.”
- “A portion of his comments was captured and sent to The Star by American Bridge, a Democratic research organization. The full hour-and-a-half candidate forum, hosted by We the People Camden County, was also posted online.”
- “McCloskey’s opponents in the Republican primary have all staked out anti-abortion stances. Most notably, Attorney General Eric Schmitt is defending the 2019 Missouri law in federal court. On Tuesday, he announced he was joining a lawsuit against the Biden administration seeking to reinstate a Donald Trump-era order that barred family planning clinics that receive federal funding from referring patients for abortions. Former Gov. Eric Greitens has pointed out his convening of an special legislative session on abortion in 2017.”
Read the full report here.
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Published: Oct 28, 2021