One of my favorite Bush moments came, oddly enough, almost immediately after he was inaugurated, before he’d had a chance to do much damage. The president met with a group of Roman Catholic bishops in the White House to tout his support for the “the Mexico City” policy, which bans federal aid to family planning groups that offer abortion counseling. (It got its name because Ronald Reagan launched the ban in Mexico City in 1984.) Bush, anxious to show his support for issues of direct concern to the church, didn’t know that a live microphone was piping his remarks directly into the White House press room.
The president had just signed an executive order on the policy, literally just days prior to speaking to the bishops, but he clearly had no clue what he’d just done. Bush ended up bragging about “the money from Mexico, you know, that thing, the executive order I signed about Mexico City.” The nonsensical comments were a subtle hint, early on his presidency, about Bush’s not-quite-towering intellect.
Nevertheless, I suspect given the House Dems’ modest steps yesterday, someone’s probably briefed the president about what that policy is all about.
House Democrats narrowly passed a measure yesterday to provide contraceptives to overseas organizations that had been banned from receiving foreign aid because they provided or promoted abortion.
The amendment to an important antiabortion measure in the House foreign aid spending bill was a rebuke to President Bush, who has strictly opposed providing any assistance to groups that promote abortion. The Reagan-era measure, known as the Mexico City policy, was fiercely protected by Bush, who has issued two veto threats over the foreign aid bill should Democrats attempt to alter any of the antiabortion measures it contains.
The change to the measure may prove to be the House Democrats’ only significant challenge to the antiabortion riders that have been added to a range of annual spending bills by abortion opponents over three decades.
It was, to be sure, a modest step in progress’ direction, but given the last six years, even one step is encouraging.
Rep. Nita M. Lowey (D-N.Y.), sponsor of the amendment and chairman of the Appropriations subcommittee on state and foreign operations, sought to reassure Republicans that the contraceptives provision does not shake the core antiabortion portion of the policy. “What I did was put in a very narrow provision that will reduce abortion, unintended pregnancy and reduce the spread of HIV/AIDS,” Lowey said. The provision drew the support of antiabortion Democrat Tim Ryan (Ohio), who argued on the floor that “the abortion debate in the 21st century needs to be about prevention.” […]
The change in the Mexico City policy in the foreign aid bill was a carefully calibrated challenge, Democratic strategists said. By forcing floor debate on a policy that Democrats say has increased unwanted pregnancies and the number of abortions, the plan was to highlight its ineffectiveness and “the extremism” of opponents, one leadership aide said.
Lowey has chaired the House’s abortion rights task force, but under her direction the foreign aid bill left nine of the 10 antiabortion riders untouched. When Republicans put forward an amendment yesterday to restore the policy in full, she sponsored a competing amendment clarifying that the changed language does nothing to end the foreign aid ban to pro-abortion groups. It was that amendment that passed.
“It takes time to reverse the damage done by the Republicans,” Lowey said in an interview. “Rome wasn’t built in a day.”
NARAL Pro-Choice America President Nancy Keenan said, “Today’s vote marks an important first step toward reversing a seven-year policy to block reproductive health services for women overseas.”
House Republicans, predictably, said this was an effort to “gut the policy.” Frankly, we should be so lucky.
Under Bush’s policy, organizations that play a vital role in women’s health are forced to make an impossible choice. If they refuse to be “gagged,” they lose the funding that enables them to help women and families who are cut off from basic health care and family planning. But if they accept funding, they must accept restrictions that jeopardize the health of the women they serve.
Yesterday was a small step towards progress. Let’s hope it was the first of many.