Missouri Republicans Block Bid to Legalize Abortion in Cases of Rape and Incest
GOP state senators suggested it would be a better idea to just castrate or execute rapists instead.
Michael B. Thomas/Getty Images
Republican lawmakers in the Missouri Senate on Wednesday voted down amendments to the state’s near-total abortion ban that would allow exceptions for cases of incest and rape.
Since June 2022, Missouri has permitted abortions only in medical emergencies. The Democratic amendments were a longshot in the GOP-led Senate, with every Republican present ultimately voting against the change.
Democratic state Sen. Tracy McCreery had asked her colleagues to “show an ounce of compassion” for the victims of rape and incest. “What we’re saying is, ‘We don’t care,’” McCreery said of the state’s current abortion law, according to the Associated Press. “We’re going to force you to give birth, even if that pregnancy resulted from forcible rape by a family member, a date, an ex-husband or a stranger.”
GOP state Sen. Rick Brattin said abortion was an atrocity equivalent to that of slavery, and claimed that victims of rape or incest might be comforted by the children the law forces them to have. “If you want to go after the rapist, let’s give him the death penalty. Absolutely, let’s do it,” he said. “But not the innocent person caught in-between that, by God’s grace, may even be the greatest healing agent you need in which to recover from such an atrocity.”
His fellow Republican Mike Moon also expressed support for the existing ban and advocated for the castration of rapists.
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