If there’s one thing that just about everyone agrees on, it’s that birth control is a good thing.
Birth control is such a good thing that more than 95% of all women use it at some point in their lives.
Which is why it’s so fascinating to find that Republican gubernatorial candidate Scott Walker isn’t such a fan of birth control.
In fact, Walkerand his running mate, Rebecca Kleefischare so biased against contraception that they’ve both been endorsed by Pro-Life Wisconsin, the fringe anti-abortion group that also opposes contraception.
This is the first gubernatorial ticket to “earn” Pro-Life Wisconsin’s endorsement.
You could say that it's the most anti-woman ticket in Wisconsin's history.
So even though Walker and Kleefisch both oppose birth control, they’ve still got the chutzpah to hold a “Women for Walker” rally today.
I guess they’re going to reach out to those 5% of women who’ve never used contraception in their lives. Or maybe the women who use birth control but want to deny others the same reproductive freedom. Say, those women who are enrolled in BadgerCare, which offers family planning services.
Walker has famously said that he wants to cut BadgerCare to trim the state budget.
There goes birth control (and STD and cancer screenings) for lower-income women.
And if that isn’t extreme enough for you, after the Women for Walker rally, Walker will make an appearance with three Republican governorsHaley Barbour of Mississippi, Bobby Jindal of Louisiana and Bob McDonnell of Virginiawho make Wisconsin Republicans seem like hippies.
I mean, Mississippi is so extreme that it’s trying to grant “personhood” to fetuses as a way to overturn Roe v. Wade:
AFA president: "Road to overturning Roe v. Wade runs through Mississippi"
The American Family Association today celebrated the ruling by Hinds County judge Malcolm Harrison to put Mississippi’s Personhood Amendment (Measure 26) on the ballot in 2011. Harrison ruled against the ACLU’s attempt to prevent this question from going before voters.
The amendment will, if passed, define personhood as beginning at the moment of conception. Judge Harrison’s ruling is likely to be appealed to the state supreme court by the ACLU.
Here is a statement from AFA president Tim Wildmon:
“The Founders understood that the most fundamental right we have been given by our Creator is the right to life. Yet 3400 babies are being deprived of that right every day in America.
“The U.S. Supreme Court’s ruling in Roe v. Wade indicated that if unborn babies were legal “persons” every preborn baby would have a 14th Amendment right to life. We believe if the voters of Mississippi get the chance to decide this issue at the ballot box, instead of having activist judges decide it for them, they are going to choose life.
“The road that will lead to overturning of Roe v. Wade is going to run right through the state of Mississippi.
“The AFA is proud to have played a role in helping Les Riley and all the folks at Personhood Mississippi gather the 130,000 signatures that were necessary to get this on the ballot, and we commend Steve Crampton of Liberty Counsel for his outstanding work in defending the proposed amendment in court.”
So here’s a warning to women, moderates and independents of Wisconsin: Walker isn’t interested in you.
His schedule today just proves it (once again).
Walker just wants to surround himself with the most conservative folks in the Republican Partyas well as the most radical folks in the anti-abortion movementto advance his political career.
Walker is a purely ideological, political creature who does not intend to work with anyone outside of his radically conservative base.
It's his path to power.
I’ve heard from insiders that Walker plans to run for higher office once he’s gotten to the governor’s mansion (if he gets there). No wonder why he’s banding together with conservatives across the country, trying to make a name for himself.
We’ve already got one Sarah Palin. We don’t need another one.
UPDATE: Fair Wisconsin sent out a reminder that not only are Walker and Kleefisch anti-woman, but that they're anti-gay, too. (As is Virginia Gov. Bob McDonnell, who took away nondiscrimination protections for gay and lesbian state workers when he took office.)
Rebecca Kleefisch is no prize, either.
In a statement, Fair Wisconsin Executive Director Katie Belanger said, "Scott Walker has stated that as governor he would repeal domestic partnerships, stripping even the most basic protections from same-sex couples including hospital visitation. We're not surprised that he's welcoming into his campaign one of the most extreme governors in the country who has already removed basic protections like these from gay and lesbian individuals in his own state."