Mike Pence Loses Another Battle Against Women's Choice

Mike Pence: divisive voice of GOP hate-- yesterday, today, tomorrow

For the last few days right-wing extremist Mike Pence (R-IN) has been working himself into a lather on Twitter (and on Hate Talk radio and Fox) about the right of women to reproductive choice. Taking some time out from his daily ritual of regurgitating Republican talking points from conservatives' failed battles against Social Security and Medicare, he decided that the best thing he could do to help America at this point would be to defund Planned Parenthood. He's sent out dozens of tweets in the last couple of days about the horrors of choice; he actually sounds like he's mentally ill and liable to hurt those around him or perhaps himself. I wonder if he's ever considered seeing a psychiatrist. (And if you think these right-wing maniacs are sane, you probably don't read their frighteningly psychotic blogs much. The comments from the GOP base are especially enlightening.)


Yesterday Pence got his chance to show the world what a narrow minded imbecile he is (again), turning the debate over appropriations for the Departments of Labor, Health and Human Services, and Education into a fundamentalist jihad against Planned Parenthood. Ultimately the appropriations bill passed the House 264-153, 20 Republicans crossing the aisle to vote for a normal functioning of government, while 5 mangey Blue Dogs-- Baron Hill (IN), Frank Kratovil (MD), Jim Matheson (UT), Glenn Nye (VA) and Gene Taylor (MS)-- joined Pence and the rest of the Republican obstructionists to vote no. But first came Pence's anti-choice amendment. Only 9 Republicans crossed the aisle to defend women's right to choice: Judy Biggert (IL), Mike Castle (DE), Charlie Dent (PA), Rodney Frelinghuysen (NJ), Lynn Jenkins (KS), Mark Kirk (IL), Leonard Lance (NJ), Fred Upton (MI) and Greg Walden (OR), all Republicans in Democratic-leaning districts. Pence crowed all day how he managed to get 20 Democrats, though almost none were actual Democrats, just a pack of reactionary Blue Dogs, to cross the aisle in the other direction and vote against women's choice. The anti-choice Democrats:

Dan Boren (Blue Dog-OK)
Bobby Bright (Blue Dog-AL)
Travis Childers (Blue Dog-MS)
Jerry Costello (IL)
Lincoln Davis (Blue Dog-TN)
Joe Donnelly (Blue Dog-IN)
Brad Ellsworth (Blue Dog-IN)
Parker Griffith (Blue Dog-AL)
Lipinski, Jr (TN/IL)
Jim Marshall (Blue Dog-GA)
Mike McIntyre (Blue Dog-NC)
Charlie Melancon (Blue Dog-LA)
Alan Mollohan (WV)
Collin Peterson (Blue Dog-MN)
Nick Rahall (WV)
Heath Shuler (Blue Dog-NC)
Ike Skelton (MO)
Gene Taylor (Blue Dog-MS)
Charlie Wilson (Blue Dog-OH)
Madeleine Bordallo (Guam)

Anti-choice fanatic Kathy Dahlkemper (Blue Dog-PA) managed to absent herself from the debate and avoided voting. And the two Republicans who try hardest to pass themselves off as Democrats, Ahn Cao (LA) and Mary Bono Mack (CA) both voted against choice. In the end, Pence's amendment lost 183-247. I wonder why the secessionist sociopath who Texas is still stuck with as governor, Rick Perry, hasn't declared choice null and void in his state, the way he's claiming he may do if health care reform is passed-- because we all know Texans don't need or want no effin' health care. Could Rush Limbaugh and dittoheads like Perry actually start a second Civil War? Who would even want to keep most of Texas and South Carolina in the Union?