Posted by JM Ashby
Is this what Americans voted for? Perhaps it is, if you're a member of the Westboro Baptist Church.
There are a lot of serious problems facing the nation right now, so of course the new GOP led House of Representatives have to make their priorities clear. Those priorities now consist of repealing HCR, which will lower the deficit and create jobs, and now redefining rape and incest.
Federal funding is only allowed to pay for abortions in the case of rape, incest, and when the life of the mother is endangered. But a new bill with 173 co-sponsors would further limit federally funded exceptions, only allowing Medicaid to pay for abortions in the case of "forcible rape."
Forcible rape has no formal definition under federal law, Baumann notes, but legal experts and abortion advocates told him that the new wording would most likely prevent Medicaid from paying for abortions for victims of statutory rapes not involving the use of force. Baumann's sources also told him that the revised wording might also disallow funding of abortions in cases where perpetrators used date-rape drugs on their victims, or targeted mentally incapacitated women.
Some states have no definition of forcible rape on the books, calling into question whether any abortions would qualify for federal funding in such jurisdictions.
It's unlikely that such a bill would ever be signed into law, but its always good to know that your newly elected congress is working tirelessly to remedy the things that truly matter. Ya' know, like the founding fathers worked tirelessly to end slavery which is to say not at all. #BachmannHistory
Mr. Boehner where are the jobs?