What does abortion have to do with the transgender movement? Nothing. But leftist activists are trying to convince us that abortion includes so-called “gender-affirming care.” Planned Parenthood and others have been pushing the message over social media and elsewhere in an effort to get people used to the idea. Why? One reason is that Planned Parenthood admits it is the second largest provider of puberty blockers and cross-sex hormones in the country. Read their own documentation here. And read these two reports that reveal the lucrative connection between the abortion giant and the transgender movement.
But it is also building their culture of death and destruction. I’m not saying they all see it that way, but pushing for abortion up to birth and the physical and psychological destruction of teens and even pre-teens in the name of “equality” is evil.
Polls show a large percentage of Americans do not support transitioning children with hormones or surgeries. So, leftists are hiding it in ballot measures and writing it into laws. In Ohio (potentially on the 2023 ballot) and Michigan (passed in 2022), the abortion ballot measures are so deceitfully written, it takes an attorney to figure out that both measures would allow abortion up to birth and include sex changes for children without parental consent. Read them here and here.
I will use italics below to indicate the language they use to underhandedly include sex changes, even for minors.
Ohio’s measure uses the term individual to covertly include children, and “reproductive decisions… not limited to … abortion” to covertly include sex-changes. If this was an abortion measure, it would just say that, and it wouldn’t include this kind of language that other states are defining as so-called “gender-affirming care” and courts will look to for direction.
Michigan’s constitutional amendment calls reproductive freedom a right and includes sterilization but is not limited to abortion. It, too, uses the term individual instead of woman or adult to ensure even children can get abortions or sex changes without parental consent.
Ohio’s and Michigan’s measures read a bit like Oregon’s proposed law and Colorado’s recently signed laws. Read here and here to see how the news media are using the Left’s language, and how the definition of reproductive freedom/decisions are being defined to include so-called “gender-affirming care.”
In very progressive states like New York, the abortion industry can get away with spelling it out in plain language, “… rights to an individual based on their ‘pregnancy, pregnancy outcomes, and reproductive healthcare and autonomy.” It includes ethnicity, disability, age, and sex, including sexual orientation, gender identity, gender expression, pregnancy, pregnancy outcomes, and reproductive healthcare and autonomy.” The key words here say it all and will be used to set a standard for defining “reproductive healthcare/freedom” or “reproductive decision” throughout the country.
Maryland, same thing. The measure uses “reproductive freedom” instead of abortion, not just to make it sound better to voters, but so they can include sex changes. It calls “reproductive freedom” a fundamental right and says that right includes ending a pregnancy but is not limited to abortion. It goes on to ensure individuals (not just adults) have a right to reproductive liberty. So, although Maryland didn’t write it out as blatantly as New York, the language it did use allows the same thing: abortion to birth and sex changes, even for children.
Also, in states that are moderate or conservative, the abortion industry includes a limitation to abortion, but then takes it all back with near universal exemptions. More on that below.
So, when you see “reproductive healthcare/freedom/liberty,” “autonomy,” “reproductive decisions,” or “not limited to…” think sex-change drugs and surgeries. Because that’s how the courts will read it.
If the language uses “individual” or “person,” think no age limit; it includes children at any age for both abortion and sex changes.
If the abortion language sets a limit at viability or some other gestational age, check the exceptions! These ballot measures include exceptions for the “health of the mother.” Courts have interpreted that phrase to include emotional or mental health, and thereby allow abortions at any stage if the woman simply feels distressed. This has always been understood to mean no limits up to birth if the woman wants it, and the abortionist (self-servingly) signs off.
It’s there, but it takes a skilled attorney to connect the dots. The abortion industry knows most Americans do not support sex-change surgeries in state law, especially for children. And most Americans also do not support abortion up to birth. The industry knows these facts—that is exactly why they use crafty language to hide such extreme policies under vague wording and then redefine that language elsewhere.
One more thing: They will always cloak the measure in the nicest title:
“The Right to Reproductive Freedom with Protections for Health and Safety”
“Equal Protection of Law Amendment”
“Right to Reproductive Freedom Amendment”
Cathi Herrod is the president of Center for Arizona Policy (CAP), a nonprofit advocacy organization committed to promoting and defending the foundational principles of life, marriage and family, and religious freedom.
Governor Hobbs has proposed a budget that is a radical’s dream. It increases funding for a laundry list of pet programs of the radical left, while at the same time cutting programs that are supported by the vast majority of Arizonans. The Hobbs budget expands funding for illegal immigrants and increases taxpayer funding of abortions. At the same time, Hobbs would kill the expansion of our popular parental school choice program and defund the Border Strike Force.
House Majority Leader Leo Biasiucci describes the Hobbs budget: “Attacking school choice, peddling state-funded abortions, and incentivizing illegal immigration in Arizona are all non-starters and, frankly, something you’d expect to see proposed by a politician in California, not Arizona.”
In response to Hobbs’ radical budget, Republicans passed a responsible, “baseline budget” which would continue state spending at last year’s budget levels, with adjustments to education and health care programs to account for inflation. When asked if Hobbs would reject the baseline budget Rep. Biasiucci responded, “If she does that, it’s party politics. This is everything we need to make sure that schools don’t shut down, make sure government stays open, make sure all our essential services stay open while we figure out what we need to do with the rest of the money.” Unfortunately, Hobbs vetoed the legislature’s reasonable budget. She is playing a game of chicken, threatening a government shutdown.
If Republicans stay united, the taxpayers will be protected from the free-spending Democrats. Given the one-vote margin in each house, we can’t afford to lose a single Republican vote. To protect us from Hobbs’ costly budget, it is essential that Republicans stick together.
I have heard disturbing reports that some Republicans are quietly signaling they are willing to cut a deal with the Democrats behind the backs of their leadership. That would severely weaken the bargaining position of Republicans as they negotiate for smaller government. More important, it would betray their constituents who voted for them based on their promises to limit the growth of state government.
Why on earth would Republicans be willing to cave to the Hobbs budget? There are a couple of possibilities. They could trade their votes for a pet project. Or they could be self-promoters with a messianic complex seeking acclaim from the liberal press as “rising above the partisan bickering.”
Believe it or not, it could happen here in Arizona. Around the country and in Congress, turncoat Republicans have made side deals to expand government spending. And though it seems odd, these quislings frequently represent “safe” Republican districts. Senator Romney comes to mind, and he is not alone.
In California, back when Jerry Brown was governor, a Republican representing the most Republican district in the state voted for the bloated budget after she had promised to oppose it. When asked why she flipped, she blithely replied that she got a new library for UC Irvine. Another Republican sold out for even less—Willie Brown promised him an office with a wet bar in it. Judas at least got thirty pieces of silver. As sure as night follows day, the press heaped praise on both of them for their “courage” in avoiding a budget impasse. But in truth, they voted against the interests of their constituents.
To avoid such a betrayal from happening here in Arizona, conservatives must press their representatives for a firm commitment that they won’t cut a side deal on the budget. We must lock in those commitments now and shut down any side deals before negotiations start in earnest.
My State Senator is Ken Bennett, and my representatives are Quang Nguyen and Selena Bliss. LD 1 is the most Republican district in the state. Conservatives shouldn’t have to worry about them keeping faith with their promises to the voters, but as President Reagan told us, “Trust but verify.”
Therefore, I am asking all three for a firm commitment that they will only vote for a budget that is supported by the rest of their Republican colleagues. The great conservative Senator Everett Dirksen famously said, “When I fell the heat, I see the light.” And I hope conservatives in all Republican districts will turn up the heat, so Republicans stay united to protect the wallets of the taxpayers.
Otherwise, it will be every legislator for themselves, and they’ll cut the hog fat. And we the taxpayers will be the hog.
Pat Nolan is the Director Emeritus of the Nolan Center for Justice at the American Conservative Union, and lives in Prescott.
For a number of years, the Grand Canyon State has been home to some of the most pro-life and pro-family lawmakers, officials, and advocates in the nation, giving Arizona a superior reputation for protecting life and parental rights. Even with a drastic change in values from the state’s new governor, some legislators are still seeking to augment their state’s pro-life standing.
Senator Jake Hoffman introduced SB 1146, which “requires the State Board of Investment to identify U.S. companies that donate to or invest in organizations that promote, facilitate or advocate for abortions for minors or for the inclusion of, or the referral of students to, sexually explicit material in grades K-12,” according to the purpose of the bill provided by the Arizona Senate. Hoffman’s legislation would require “the State Treasurer to divest from the identified companies.”
SB 1146 has eleven co-sponsors: two in the Senate (Senators Anthony Kern and Justine Wadsack), and nine in the House (Representatives Joseph Chaplik, Justin Heap, Rachel Jones, Alex Kolodin, Cory McGarr, Barbara Parker, Jacqueline Parker, Beverly Pingerelli, and Austin Smith). Earlier this month, it passed out of the Senate Finance Committee, chaired by J.D. Mesnard, with a party-line 4-3 vote. Senators Mesnard, Steve Kaiser (Vice Chairman), Janae Shamp, and David Gowan voted to approve the bill; while Senators Lela Alston, Brian Fernandez and Mitzi Epstein voted to oppose.
In an exclusive interview with AZ Free News on why he sponsored this bill, Senator Jake Hoffman said, “There is no excuse for Arizona taxpayer resources being used to prop up woke corporate oligarchs that are funneling their profits into far-left extremists groups working to undermine our state’s pro-life and pro-family policies. We are in a war for the minds and souls of our future generations, and we should not sit idly by while the ruling class ‘elites’ force feed them a radical agenda that is antithetical to the values of the majority of Arizonans.”
Democrat Senator Mitzi Epstein strongly disagrees with this legislation, saying, “It would violate people’s First Amendments; their various rights to have an abortion, which is legal in Arizona or their various rights to learn about things from places that provide those materials. The Senate Democrat Caucus also warned about this bill before the Finance Committee took it under consideration this week, tweeting, “SB 1146 interjects politics into our money management where there is currently no problem. Further demonizing age-appropriate sex education and abortion care is not popular policy. We cannot afford more Republicans games.”
Should this bill pass both chambers of the Arizona Legislature, it would likely find an open door on the Ninth Floor for an expedient veto from Governor Hobbs, who made abortion rights one of the themes of her State of the State address to the Legislature in January.
Daniel Stefanski is a reporter for AZ Free News. You can send him news tips using this link.
Out of the nearly 14,000 abortions performed in 2021, at least nine babies were born alive following a botched procedure.
The data comes from the Arizona Department of Health’s (AZDHS) latest report on abortions in the state for 2021. 2020 had the exact same number of babies born alive following a botched abortion.
AZDHS issued its latest report the day after the Arizona Appeals Court ruled that the state’s near-total, pre-statehood abortion ban couldn’t be used to prosecute abortionists. The court upheld the law codified last March, which allows abortions up to 15 weeks.
State reporting on botched abortions resulting in live deliveries went into effect in August 2017. That year, the state reported at least 10 abortions that resulted in the baby delivered alive between August and December 2017. In 2018, there were 12. Then in 2019, there were 15.
The number of abortions have fluctuated slightly over the years, marking a general upward trend since 2010, when there were more abortions performed that year than in any other year since 2004: over 11,400 abortions.
2010 was the year the state began tracking abortions, due to a newly passed law at the time. The all-time high for abortions on record in one year occurred in 2011, though this year came closer to meeting that record.
In 2011, there were over 14,400 abortions; 2012, over 13,300; 2013, over 13,400; 2014, about 12,900; 2015, over 12,600; 2016, 13,300; 2017, over 12,500; 2018, over 12,400; 2019, over 13,000; and in 2020, over 13,200.
99 percent of the 2021 abortions were administered to Arizonans.
The greatest demographic of women receiving abortions were aged 20 to 24 years old (nearly 31 percent), followed by 25 to 29 years old (27 percent), 30 to 34 years old (18.6 percent), 35 to 39 years old (10 percent), 18 to 19 years old (seven percent), 40 to 44 years old (three percent), and 15 to 17 years old (nearly two percent).
There were 19 total abortions administered to girls under the age of 15. According to AZDHS data, that rate declined by over 63 percent since 2012, and by over 11 percent since 2020. Likewise, teen girls aged 15 to 19 declined in abortion rates by nearly 16 percent since 2012, but did increase by six percent since 2020.
There were 31 abortions administered to women at or over the age of 45.
In 2021, about 15 percent of those who obtained abortions were married. That percentage has remained stagnant over the years, reaching a brief high of 17 percent in 2012 but ultimately averaging at about 14 percent. Unmarried women have generally made up 79 to 87 percent of abortion patients.
The largest portion of missing data concerned the educational status of the women receiving abortions. About 38 percent of that data was missing.
The following were the top-five clinics that performed the most abortions in 2021, in order: Camelback Family Planning, nearly 4,000; Family Planning Associates Medical Group, over 3,500; Planned Parenthood Tempe Health Center, nearly 1,600; Planned Parenthood Glendale Health Center, nearly 1,200; and Desert Star Family Planning, over 870. The state listed 17 facilities that performed abortions.
In addition to requiring abortion providers to report on botched abortions that result in a live birth, the state requires abortionists to use “all available means and medical skills [to] promote, preserve, and maintain the life” of the baby.
Only three abortions were partially or fully paid for using state monies through the Arizona Health Care Cost Containment System (AHCCCS). There weren’t any abortions paid for using state monies in 2020.
Corinne Murdock is a reporter for AZ Free News. Follow her latest on Twitter, or email tips to corinne@azfreenews.com.
Former Arizona Senate President Karen Fann said Rep. Ruben Gallego’s (D-AZ-03) support for abortion was a crime.
Gallego lamented that Arizona could limit abortions on Monday, which marked 50 years since the Roe v. Wade Supreme Court (SCOTUS) decision legalizing abortion.
“Today, we should have been celebrating the 50th anniversary of Roe v. Wade. Instead, extremist officials ripped away the right to choose, leaving women in Arizona and too many other states without basic reproductive freedom,” wrote Gallego. “But make no mistake: this fight isn’t over.”
SCOTUS determined that the Roe v. Wade decision invented a constitutional right based on the “right to privacy”: a legal theory created by the late SCOTUS Justice Louis Brandeis in the 1890s. Brandeis’ invention informed the landmark decision Griswold v. Connecticut, the precursor to Roe v. Wade.
The state currently has a ban on abortions after 15 weeks’ gestation in place, enacted last year. The Arizona Court of Appeals ruled last month that the state may not prosecute doctors under the pre-statehood ban on abortion. However, the court didn’t repeal the law. Instead, the appeals court clarified that the later laws, including the 15-week ban enacted last year, were the standard to follow.
State abortion laws also limit abortion access in other ways. Telemedicine health care may not be used to obtain abortion pills. However, the state doesn’t have bans on funding travel and procedure costs for women obtaining abortions outside the state past the 15-week period.
The SCOTUS decision overturning Roe v. Wade was leaked early last May. SCOTUS announced last week in a 20-page report that they were unable to identify the source of the leak. Politico published the draft opinion; it appears they’re unwilling to reveal their source.
Gov. Katie Hobbs, at the time the Secretary of State, responded to the draft leak last year with an expletive railing against those she perceived to be ruling the state.
“F**k the patriarchy,” tweeted Hobbs.
The draft leak incited mass protests and riots at the Arizona Capitol and nationwide. An activist group with the University of Arizona (UArizona) and Planned Parenthood ties petitioned to make abortion a constitutional right in the state — an effort which ultimately failed.
In a Sunday statement, President Joe Biden called on Congress to codify the legalization of abortion. Biden characterized abortion as a “constitutional right.” The president also promised a Presidential Memorandum ensuring a right to abortive medications, which Vice President Kamala Harris announced during a visit to Florida. Ahead of the announcement, Harris declared that those opposed to abortion were “extremist,” and in violation of women’s constitutional and reproductive rights.
“We are looking at a situation where extremist so-called leaders in states around our country are depriving women of the right to have access to reproductive health care,” stated Harris.
On the commemoration of the 50th anniversary of Roe v. Wade, I’m in Tallahassee, Florida to discuss the fight for reproductive rights. Tune in. https://t.co/1cX4gFt96L
