| Politics Trent Franks Feels Your Pain The GOP's tactics for passing the Arizona congressman's unconstitutional abortion bill. By David Weigel
Posted Wednesday, Jun 19, 2013, at 01:17 AM ET  It's the day of the vote for one of the biggest bills of his career, and Arizona Rep. Trent Franks has been sidelined. The Pain-Capable Unborn Child Protection Act (no easy acronym), which had been a pipe dream in the last Congress, was coming to the floor and expected to pass. The trial of Philadelphia's illegal-late-term abortionist Kermit Gosnell, and the attendant gross-out media attention, powered the bill out of committee. So, typically, the bill's author would lead the debate on his product. Alas. During the bill's last mark-up, Franks had chastised Democrats for trying to "make rape and incest the subject" of the abortion debate. "You know," he'd said, "the incidences of rape resulting in pregnancy are very low." He'd defied the First Commandment of post-2012 Republican politics: Thou Shalt Not Mention Rape, Especially if Thou Ist a Guy. Franks bowed to reality and allowed Rep. Marsha Blackburn, a Tennessee conservative with a winsome TV presence, to lead the debate. Outside the House chamber, I ask Franks if he'd really wanted to leave the game with the ball sitting on the 1-yard line. "Absolutely!" says Franks. "We've always wanted as many of the women of this House as possible to speak on the bill. The women of this country, and I think even the women of the House of Representatives, are more pro-life than the men are. The hope is to take away some of these ancillary arguments that have nothing ... To continue reading, click here.
Also In Slate
Trent Franks Feels Your Pain
Seven Seconds in Heaven
The End of the Unpaid Internship
|
 |
No comments:
Post a Comment