California Gov. Newsom on right to contraception bill failing: "Republicans are at it again"
SACRAMENTO — California Gov. Gavin Newsom issued a fierce response Wednesday in the wake of U.S. Senate Republicans blocking legislation protecting access to contraception nationwide.
The Right to Contraception bill needed 60 votes to advance but failed with 51 votes in favor to 39 against. Only two Republicans voted in favor.
In a video statement posted to the California Governor account on X, Newsom said:
"Well, in case you missed this. Republicans are at it again. Republicans in the U.S. Senate just blocked a bill that would have protected access to birth control across the country. After overturning Roe, the so-called 'Party of Freedom' has repeatedly blocked efforts to help women access IVF, birth control, and abortion.
While the GOP tries to take us back to a pre-1960s world, California is proud to provide comprehensive protections for contraceptives as well as reproductive health care. We will never stop fighting for you and your right to control your body and your future."
The Right to Contraception Act, which Democrats introduced following the historic move by the U.S. Supreme Court to overturn Roe v. Wade, would have codified the right to contraception in federal law.
One Senate Republican, Joni Ernst, in opposition to the bill argued that the Democratic effort goes "far beyond the scope of providing access to contraception," creating a precedent to "mandate access to abortion drugs for women and girls of all ages," CBS News reported.
"The @GOP just voted to BLOCK the right to contraception. So much for freedom. All these people want are power and control," Newsom said in a separate post featuring a video of a portion of Wednesday's vote.
In November 2022, California voters approved protecting reproductive rights, including the right to an abortion and contraceptive care, under the state constitution.
President Joe Biden also released a statement calling the vote "unacceptable."
"This is the second time since the Supreme Court's extreme decision to overturn Roe v. Wade that Congressional Republicans have refused to safeguard this fundamental right for women in every state. It's unacceptable.
Today's vote comes two days before the 59th anniversary of the Supreme Court's landmark decision in Griswold v. Connecticut, which established that the fundamental right to privacy protects the ability to make deeply personal decisions free from the interference of politicians, including to access contraception."
Senate Democrats are also planning a vote next week on a bill establishing a nationwide right to in-vitro fertilization, or IVF. This effort began following an Alabama Supreme Court ruling this February that embryos created through IVF are children, and thus, are subject to wrongful death of a minor claims if damaged during the treatments. The month after that ruling, Alabama's governor signed legislation into law protecting IVF providers and their patients from potential legal liability.
