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You think the "W" stands for "women?" T

Post by Iris » 10-09-2004 10:42 PM

PLEASE FEEL FREE TO CROSS-POST ANY OF THIS OR ALL OF IT!!


One of Bush's remarks in the last debate caused me alarm, so I decided to look up the truth about the Bush administration's treatment of women. Here's what I've found, so far... feel free to add to this.

Women's Rights

Bush White House Perpetuates the Wage Gap

With new leaked White House salary figures and an Excel spreadsheet, crack Washington Post researcher Margot Williams determined in July that men in the Bush White House earn an average of $76,624 a year, and women earn $59,917 on average. That means Bush women are paid about 78 cents for every dollar that Bush men earn—similar to the wage gap that still exists between men and women throughout the U.S. (In 1963, women employed full-time in the U.S. were paid, on average, only 59 cents to the dollar received by men; in 2001 women were paid 76 cents for every dollar received by men.) At the White House, the gap is the result of the predominance of men in highest-paid jobs; 12 of the 17 White House staffers earning $157,000—the top of the pay scale this year—are men. Men and women are paid similar salaries for similar work, says The Post, but fewer women hold top positions.

Sources: "Leaked Salary List Shows Bush's Highest Paid Staff Mostly Male," Dana Milbank, The Washington Post, July 13, 2004; "White House Salary List Released," Ken Herman, Cox News Service, July 13, 2004; NOW, "Pay Equity: A Long Overdue Step in the Road to Equality," April 9, 2003.


Bush & Co. Policies Mean Fewer Jobs for Women

1.3 million jobs have disappeared since the recession began 38 months ago in March 2001, inaugurating the only period of sustained job loss for women in the past four decades. Women workers lost more than 300,000 jobs between the start of the recession in March 2001 and March 2004. Even though the past three months have seen what the Economic Policy Institute's JobWatch.org calls "healthy gains," the group says it would be a mistake to attribute these gains to the Bush administration's tax cuts, which took effect in July 2003 with the stated goal of creating of 5.5 million new jobs by the end of 2004. In fact, since the tax cuts took effect, the U.S. has seen the greatest sustained job loss since the Great Depression.

Sources: "Labor Market Experiences Third Month of Healthy Job Growth," JobWatch.org; "Record-Breaking Job Loss Continues for Women, Three Years After Start of Recession," Institute for Women's Policy Research, June 2, 2004; "Bush Administration's Tax Cuts Not Fulfilling Job Creation Promises," Economic Policy Institute, June 2004; "Greatest Sustained Job Loss Since the Great Depression," Economic Policy Institute, June 2004


Bush Administration Remembers Reagan as Breaking Ground for Women

At a June awards luncheon for women in government, Lynne Cheney invoked the struggles of suffragists and late former president Ronald Reagan. The Gipper, a feminist champion? In the early 1980s, polls found that many women held the opposite view. "I realize that historians have not usually thought of him as a man who broke way for women," Cheney said, departing briefly from her prepared text at the Library of Congress. But she listed some of his appointments, including her own as the first female chairman of the National Endowment for the Humanities, to make the case. Reagan named Margaret Heckler secretary of health and human services, Ann Korologos secretary of labor, Elizabeth Dole secretary of transportation and Jeane Kirkpatrick ambassador to the United Nations. Cheney called these appointments "a record for that time." As a kicker, she noted that within one year of Reagan's inauguration, he nominated Sandra Day O'Connor to the Supreme Court. Meanwhile, sharp readers remind us that Reagan "legitimized racism, intolerance, homophobia, attacks on the environment and women's rights, corporate greed and corruption and more scandals per week than any other administration until Bush and his cronies came along. Reagan was an unmitigated disaster ... the media seems to have been infected with Alzheimer's when it comes to the disgraceful legacy of a boorish bigot." As Truthout.org pointed out back in April 2004: Ronald Reagan was the first to issue the global gag rule that yanked vital funding from women's health clinics worldwide.

Sources: "Spinning One for the Gipper," The Washington Post, June 10, 2004; "Reagan Remorse," The Contra Costa Times, June 18, 2004; Truthout.org, April 25, 2004


FDA Responds to Political Pressure, Rejects Over-The-Counter Emergency Contraception

Overruling the advice of its own scientific advisors, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration on May 6 rejected over-the-counter sales of emergency contraception (EC), prompting NOW and other critics to accuse the agency of responding to political pressure from the Bush administration. In December, two FDA scientific panels voted 23-4 in support of making EC available without a prescription. Afterward, the agency was subjected to political pressure from conservatives who argued that increased access to EC would encourage teenagers to be sexually active. While acting drug chief Dr. Steven Galson denied that politics played a role in his decision, women's rights advocates said otherwise. "The FDA is playing politics with women's lives and contributing to the deterioration of public health in this country," NOW President Kim Gandy said. "The FDA has set aside its mission and caved to political pressure from the Bush administration and its allies who oppose birth control." Barr Laboratories, makers of the Plan B emergency contraception brand, plan to rapidly seek approval for nonprescription sales for people aged 16 years and older. "It's a matter of weeks and months to deal with this objection," said Barr chief executive Bruce Downey, saying that means the FDA could reconsider the issue within a year. "Clearly ... the door's open, and we plan to go through it."

"FDA May Reconsider Morning-After Pill," Associated Press, May 8, 2004; "Politics Triumph in FDA Battle over Morning-After Pill," National Organization for Women, May 6, 2004; "U.S. Rejects Wider Access to Morning-After Pill," Lisa Richwine, Reuters, May 6, 2004; "U.S. Rules Morning-After Pill Can't Be Sold Over the Counter," Gardiner Harris, The New York Times, May 7, 2004


Bush Administration Deletes Women's Issues Information from Government Websites

The Bush administration has quietly deleted and altered information on women's issues from government agency websites, a research group has found. A report from the National Council for Research on Women (NCRW), released in mid-April, says the deletion of information on subjects including pay equity and childcare was "apparently [done] in pursuit of a political agenda." At least 25 publications were removed from the website of the Department of Labor's Women's Bureau alone. Some items that were not deleted were reportedly altered: For example, information about the use of condoms to prevent the spread of sexually transmitted diseases was changed to say that the effectiveness of condoms was "inconclusive." The National Cancer Institute's website was changed in 2002 to say studies linking abortion and breast cancer were inconsistent; an outcry from scientists resulted in an amendment to say abortion is not associated with an increased risk. The NCRW report also indicated that key government offices such as the Office of Women's Initiatives and Outreach in the White House and the President's Interagency Council on Women have been disbanded, with attempts made at the Pentagon to disband the Defense Advisory Committee on Women in the Services. Finally, the report found that as of March 2004, Attorney General John Ashcroft had failed to conduct and publish a study required under the Violence Against Women Act to investigate discrimination against domestic violence victims in getting insurance.

Sources: "U.S. Deletes, Alters Gender Issue Web Data," Deborah Zabarenko, Reuters, April 28, 2004; "MISSING: Information About Women's Lives," The National Council for Research on Women, March 2004.


Bush & Co. to Women: Male Lawmakers (Not You or Your Doctor) Know What's Best For You

On Nov. 5, George W. Bush signed into law the most significant restriction on abortion in the 30 years since Roe v. Wade. Accompanied by a cadre of men, Bush delivered what House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) called "a slap in the face to women across America" by signing the so-called Partial Birth Abortion Ban. Pelosi, angered by the celebratory nature of the bill-signing event, decried the gathering as "a group of men celebrating depriving women of a medical procedure that could save their health and their lives." Opponents of the ban hope that this will be "a wake-up call to voters who support abortion rights."

Sources: The Washington Post, "Bush Signs Ban on Late-Term Abortions Into Effect," Nov. 6, 2003; San Francisco Chronicle, "Bill-Signing Photo Angers Pelosi: Men Surrounded Bush When he OKd Limits on Abortion," Nov. 8, 2003; New York Times, "In Anti-Abortion Campaign, One Leap for Incrementalism," Nov. 6, 2003


Ashcroft's Civil Rights Division to Enforce Abortion Procedures Ban

Adding insult to injury, the Bush administration has given the civil rights division of the U.S. Department of Justice the task of enforcing the dangerous new ban on abortion procedures. Despite the fact that three federal judges have already blocked enforcement of the law (a nearly identical state law was declared unconstitutional just three years ago), the Justice Department, under John Ashcroft, said it "will continue to strongly defend the law ... using every resource necessary." The decision to charge the civil rights division rather than the criminal division with enforcement of the law has provoked outcry. Democratic members of the House Judiciary Committee accused Ashcroft of "perverting the federal government’s role in promoting civil rights." In a letter to Ashcroft, House Democrats said "it is Orwellian that you would have the civil rights division enforce a law which has been essentially found by the Supreme Court to violate the civil rights of millions of American women." Groups opposing abortion rights see gaining civil rights for fetuses as another step towards the eventual overturn of Roe v. Wade.
Sources: Associated Press, "Government Promises to Defend New Abortion Law," Nov. 7, 2003; The Guardian, "Fury at Bush's Civil Rights Policing of Abortion Ban," Nov. 8, 2003


Bush Administration Goes After Non-Profits That Oppose His "Abstinence Only" Policy

Salon.com reports that "some nonprofit organizations that don't agree with the Bush administration's 'abstinence only' philosophy" have been "repeatedly investigated by the government, while faith-based groups get a free pass." Advocates for Youth, a national nonprofit that provides teens with comprehensive sex education, had never in its 18 years as a federal grantee been subject to an audit by the government. Over the past year it has been subjected to three. The organization claims that "it's being unfairly targeted because of its negative views towards the administration’s abstinence-only education policies." Their claims are supported by a leaked Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) memo published by the Washington Post in July 2001. The memo describes Advocates for Youth as "ardent critics of the Bush administration." And Advocates for Youth are not the only ones being targeted. Three reviews have been conducted over the past 10 months of San Francisco's STOP AIDS program. The Sexuality Information and Education Council of the United States (SEICUS) has undergone two audits this year. While Advocates for Youth, STOP AIDS, and SEICUS have all "come through their audits with flying colors," last year a number of faith-based organizations receiving federal grants were found guilty of misusing government money. For example, a number of sex-education programs funded by Louisiana Governor Mike Foster's Program on Abstinence "were found guilty in a federal court of openly violating the constitutional tenet of separation of church and state." However, none of these Louisiana nonprofits have been subject to an HHS audit. James Wagoner, president of Advocates for Youth says, "Our complaint is not with getting audited" but "with the selective and political nature of these audits. Ideology is invading—if not subverting—science within the Department of Health and Human Services."

Source: Salon.com, "No Sex, Please—Or We'll Audit You," Oct. 28, 2003
Last edited by Iris on 10-10-2004 12:41 AM, edited 1 time in total.
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Post by Iris » 10-09-2004 10:47 PM

Bush's Posturing on Sex Trade Meets Skepticism

The Associated Press reports that human rights groups were skeptical about President Bush's demands that foreign nations crack down on the international sex trade, saying the problem can only be solved by addressing root causes like poverty and poor education. In his recent speech to the United General Counsel, Bush ended with warnings about the dangers of the trade in sex slaves. In a sleight of hand, Bush said that the U.S is committing $50 million to organizations that give shelter and medicine to exploited women and children, but did not say whether that money was new or already allocated. Jodi Jacobson, executive director of the Center for Health and Gender Equity, said the U.S. has not done enough to fight related issues like AIDS. The Bush administration has promised $15 billion for five years to combat AIDS, but part of the AIDS bill will deny funds to any group or organization working with female prostitutes that do not have a policy explicitly opposing prostitution, a provision rights groups oppose. "You cannot straitjacket the groups that are working with trafficking survivors," says Ritu Sharma, executive director of Women's Edge Coalition.

Source: The Associated Press, "Bush Stand on Sex Trade Meets Skepticism," Sept. 24, 2003.


Bush Reinstatement of Gag Rule Resulting in Deaths, Disease Globally

Women's eNews reports that the global gag rule "has led to closed clinics, cuts in healthcare staff and dwindling medical supplies, leaving women, children and families without access to vital healthcare services." This policy, reinstated by President Bush in 2001 as one of his first acts in office, prohibits any organization receiving population funds from the U.S. Agency for International Development from using those or other funds to provide or promote abortion. The gag rule also led to shortages in contraceptives due to large cuts in funding to organizations that refused to sign the rule. By 2002, the gag rule had cut off shipments of USAID-donated supplies to 16 developing countries, because the only recipients in those countries were members of the International Planned Parenthood Federation which lost $20 million in USAID funds because it refused to comply with the policy. Condoms procured with HIV/AIDS funds are not subject to the rule, but critics of the rule say that, in practice, organizations that refused to sign the rule have not been able to get funds earmarked for HIV/AIDS prevention. Hillary Fyfe, chair of the Family Life Movement of Zambia, asserts, "I think they are killing these women, just as if they are pointing a gun and shooting. There is no difference."

Source: Women's eNews, "Report: Global Gag Rule Spurring Deaths, Disease," Sept. 25, 2003.


Bush Expands Global Gag Rule

President Bush issued an executive memorandum over the Labor Day weekend expanding the global gag rule to include family planning funds administered by the U.S. Department of State. The "global gag rule" is a policy that denies United States family planning funds to any international organizations that perform abortions or refer patients to abortion services, even with their own funds. Bush's latest action extends the gag rule to all assistance for voluntary population programs funded through the State Department. The Center for Reproductive Rights reports that "this drastic expansion means that more of the world's most vulnerable women, including refugees, will be denied basic health care services."

Sources: Executive Memorandum, "Assistance for Voluntary Population Planning," August 29, 2003; Center For Reproductive Rights, "Expanded Global Gag Rule Limits Women's Rights and Endangers Their Well-Being," Sept. 5, 2003.


UNFPA, Condemned by Bush Administration, Loses Additional $50 Million in U.S. International Family Planning Funds

With a narrow majority, the House of Representatives voted to block $50 million in international family planning funds to the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA), based on the unsubstantiated argument that the program supports China's coercive population control policy. The Bush administration and some GOP lawmakers disparaged UNFPA—a program which provides millions of dollars to promote contraception, as well as safe birthing and child care practices for poor women in more than 150 countries—saying that it violates U.S. law by supporting China's "one child" policy, which they claim sometimes entails coerced or forced abortions. Yet UNFPA officials assert that the program does not promote abortion, and an investigative panel convened by Bush last year reported that there was no evidence that UNFPA promotes coerced abortions or involuntary sterilizations in China. Despite the panel's findings, the Bush administration withdrew $34 million from the program in 2002 and did not request any funding for the program in Bush's 2004 budget. As a result of the House vote, it appears that UNFPA will not receive any funding this year either.

Source: Washington Post, "House Blocks Family Planning Funds," Juliet Eilperin, July 16, 2003


House Votes to Ban Safe Abortion Procedures; Bush Has Repeatedly Promised to Sign Bill into Law

In what could become one of the most significant restrictions on abortion in decades, the U.S. House approved the so-called Partial-Birth Abortion Ban bill, H.R. 760, on June 4. In his 2003 State of the Union address, Bush urged Congress to give him a bill he could sign, and has repeatedly promised to sign the legislation, which passed the Senate earlier this year in a slightly different form. The bill would ban an array of safe, common abortion methods used in the second or third trimester of pregnancy, and provides no exception for the woman's health. A number of abortion rights groups, including the Planned Parenthood Federation of America and the National Abortion Federation, have said they will immediately file suit to block the legislation once the president signs it.

Sources: Washington Post, "House Votes to Restrict Abortions," Juliet Eilperin, June 5; New York Times, "House Bans an Abortion Method," Robin Toner, June 5; Associated Press, "Abortion Bill Approved By House," Jim Abrams, June 5.


Bush: Discrimination Against Women Not As Serious As Racial, Ethnic Discrimination

At a recent press conference, George W. Bush indicated through White House spokesperson Ari Fleischer that he does not consider discrimination against women to be an offense as serious as racial or ethnic discrimination. According to Fleischer, membership in a group that excludes women is not "a disqualifying factor" for candidates to Cabinet posts. However, when prodded, Fleischer stated that racial or ethnic discrimination is a "very different category for the President."

Sources: PR Newswire, "Press Briefing by Ari Fleischer," Dec. 11, 2002; Federal Document Clearing House, "Ari Fleischer Holds White House Briefing," Dec. 9, 2002


Bush Attempts to Confer Personhood on Embryos

The Bush administration changed the mission of the Advisory Committee on Human Research Protection—which oversees the safety of human research volunteers—to include embryos. Although the committee can only advise the Department of Health and Human Services to offer embryos the same federal protections offered to fetuses, children and adults, many consider this move the latest in Bush's attempts to confer personhood on embryos and fetuses. According to the Washington Post, many have "called the move an inappropriate political and religious intrusion." The modifications potentially limit embryo research, which scientists expect could provide cures for a number of degenerative diseases.

Source: The Washington Post, "New Status for Embryos in Research," Rick Weiss, Oct. 30, 2002


Validity of Charges Against UNPFA Questioned by Knight Ridder Investigation

Debunking Bush & Co.'s trumped up charges against the United Nations Population Fund (UNPFA), an investigation by Knight Ridder has raised more questions about the validity of claims made by the Population Research Institute (PRI) that UNPFA knowingly supported China's coercive family planning programs. The allegations made by PRI—which is headed by anti-abortion and anti-family planning Steven Moshe—led to Bush's July withholding of more than $34 million in funds that Congress had appropriated for UNPFA. The administration recently announced that it would transfer the $34 million to a United States Agency for International Development program that aims to improve children's health in other countries.

Sources: The Associated Press, "Bush Transfers U.N. Population Funds," Scott Lindlaw, Sept. 30, 2002; Knight Ridder, "Small Advocacy Group Influences American Policy," Jodi Enda, Sept. 22, 2002


Administration Withdraws Funding for Family Planning

The White House announced it plans to withhold $34 million appropriated by Congress for the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA), a decision that according to many observers will cost innumerable women and children their lives. Conservative extremists claim that UNFPA supports China's coercive abortion and sterilization programs, although a State Department investigation found no evidence to back those claims. UNFPA estimates the lost funds will translate to two million more unwanted pregnancies, 800,000 more abortions, 4,700 more dead mothers and 77,000 deaths of children under five.

Source: Agence France Presse, "U.S. Withdraws Millions from the UN Population Fund Over China Program," Stephen Collinson, July 22, 2002


Bush Administration Tries Underhandedly to Designate Fetuses as Persons

Bush's Secretary of Health and Human Services, Tommy Thompson, announced a scheme to promote fetal personhood, by designating fetuses as children eligible for funds under the State Children's Health Insurance Program (SCHIP). While the Bush administration claims the move was fueled solely by a desire to extend prenatal care, activists expressed concern that the goal of Thompson's proposal is to undermine abortion rights. Activists also lamented that the Bush administration did not simply extend full prenatal health care to all pregnant women.

Source: Knight Ridder, "Bush Administration Ignites Abortion Debate with Health-Care Proposal," Jodi Enda, Feb. 1, 2002


Bush Addresses Anti-Abortion Protestors

On the 29th anniversary of Roe v. Wade, Bush addressed anti-abortion rights marchers via cell phone, saying: "Everyone there believes, as I do, that every life is valuable; that our society has a responsibility to defend the vulnerable and weak, the imperfect and even the unwanted; and that our nation should set a great goal that unborn children should be welcomed in life and protected in law."

Source: The White House, "President's Phone Call to March for Life Participants," Jan. 22, 2002


Bush Declares 29th Anniversary of Roe "National Sanctity of Life Day"

Bush declared January 22, 2002, the anniversary of Roe v. Wade, "National Sanctity of Human Life Day" in a proclamation that not-so-subtly likened abortion to terrorism. The proclamation stated: "On September 11, we saw clearly that evil exists in this world, and that it does not value life ... Now we are engaged in a fight against evil and tyranny to preserve and protect life."

Source: The White House, "National Sanctity of Human Life Day, 2002," Jan. 18, 2002


Bush Nominee Declares Support for Reevaluation of Mifepristone

At his confirmation hearing, Bush's Secretary of Health and Human Services, Tommy Thompson, indicated that he would seek FDA re-evaluation of mifepristone (formerly known as RU-486, or the "abortion pill"). The Bush administration also restricted Medicaid funding for mifepristone to cases of rape, incest, or to preserve the pregnant woman's life.

Source: Newsweek, "The 'Abortion Pill': Not Stocked Here," Jane Spencer, June 19, 2001


Bush Tries to Eliminate Required Contraceptive Coverage for Federal Employees, Dependents

In the 2002 budget, Bush proposed eliminating required contraceptive coverage for female federal employees and for federal employees' dependents. Lawmakers in both houses of Congress indicated they would fight to keep a provision that requires federal health plan providers to offer federal employees the five birth control methods approved by the Federal Drug Administration. Andrea Brooks, director of the women's and fair practices department at the American Federation of Government Employees, called the proposal "extremely discriminatory."
Source: The Washington Post, "Cut in Birth Control Benefit Of Federal Workers Sought," Ellen Nakashima, April 12, 2001

White House's Budget Would Cut Maternal, Child Health Programs
Bush's 2002 proposed budget seeks to cut the Maternal and Child Health Block Grants that provide health care to women before, during and after pregnancy, according to the House Democratic Policy Committee. The budget would also freeze the Healthy Start program, which has been shown to reduce infant mortality and morbidity.

The White House Bulletin, "House Democrats Claim Bush Budget Devastates Spending For Children's Programs," March 21, 2001


Bush Reinstates Global Gag Rule

On his first day in the Oval Office, Bush reinstated the infamous Global Gag Rule, cutting off U.S. funding to international family planning organizations that offer abortion counseling or services with their own privately-raised funds, lobby the host government for abortion law reform, or disseminate information about abortion. The policy had been instituted under the Reagan administration in 1984 and had been overturned by President Clinton.

Source: The Washington Post, "Bush Reverses Abortion Aid," Mike Allen, Jan. 23, 2001


Bush Supports Ban on Military Women, Dependents Abroad from Obtaining Abortions at Military Hospitals

Bush supports the policy that prohibits military women serving abroad, and their dependents, from obtaining safe medical abortions at military hospitals, even if they pay with personal funds. As a result of current policy, servicewomen must travel long distances for an abortion or have an abortion locally, which is extremely dangerous in some countries, especially the Middle East. They must also obtain permission from their commander, in another difficult hurdle, in order to take leave for the procedure.

Source: NARAL, "The Powers of the President: Reproductive Freedom and Choice"
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Post by Iris » 10-09-2004 10:58 PM

Betraying Iraqi Women

Despite the Bush administration's assurances to the contrary, conditions for women have worsened substantially as a result of the U.S. invasion of Iraq and its continuing aftermath. The contrast between the rhetoric and the reality is stunning. One year ago, in July 2003, Undersecretary of State Paula J. Dobriansky wrote, "Indeed, the commitment of the United States to the human rights of Iraq's women is unshakable and manifested clearly by our activities on the ground as well as our policy statements." Tom Paine Saturday July 17, 2004



Expendable Women

One of the uglier aspects of the Bush administration's assault on women's reproductive rights is its concerted undermining of the United Nations Population Fund based on the false accusation that it supports coerced abortions in China.

The fund supports programs in some 141 countries to advance poor women's reproductive health, reduce infant mortality, end the sexual trafficking of women and prevent the spread of H.I.V. and AIDS. Yet under pressure from conservative religious groups, the administration is expected to withhold the $34 million that Congress appropriated this year for these vital efforts, much as President Bush blocked the $34 million Congress approved in 2002 and last year's $25 million allocation. NY Times Monday July 05, 2004



Where are the women in the new Iraq?

NOW THAT the Iraqi Governing Council has been dissolved, the transitional government taking its place is being hailed as "diverse" for its multiethnic, multiconfessional representation. Yet while outsiders and Iraqi politicians are busy divvying up the future government along religious and ethnic lines, they are sidelining the single largest group of Iraqi citizens -- women, the one constituency with the potential to exert a unifying effect on the country. Boston Globe Tuesday June 22, 2004



U.S. Accused of Seeking to Isolate U.N. Population Unit

WASHINGTON, June 20 - The Bush administration, which cut off its share of financing two years ago to the United Nations agency handling population control, is seeking to isolate the agency from groups that work with it in China and elsewhere, United Nations officials and diplomats say.

Pressed by opponents of abortion, the administration withdrew its support from a major international conference on health issues this month and has privately warned other groups, like Unicef, that address health issues that their financing could be jeopardized if they insist on working with the agency, the United Nations Population Fund. New York Times Sunday June 20, 2004



Muzzling Abortion

IN THE 2000 campaign, George W. Bush maintained a studiously moderate stance on social issues. Once he assumed office in January 2001, he betrayed that position and delighted his right-wing base by attaching antiabortion conditions to foreign assistance. These conditions laid down that family planning groups accepting federal money must not perform abortions, or even provide information about them to their patients. As we said at the time, forcing an organization to censor its views as a condition of receiving government money would be unconstitutional on free-speech grounds in this country. Mr. Bush's calculation, we supposed, was that Americans would overlook his contempt for free speech if the consequences were limited to far-off poor countries. Washington Post Wednesday June 16, 2004



Wrong to limit contraception pill

Women deserve easy access to emergency contraception pills. The Food and Drug Administration has chosen to be an obstacle to preventing pregnancies and reducing abortions. Politics rules. The Bush administration talks about science, but acts on pseudoscience. In refusing to allow emergency contraceptives to be sold over the counter, the FDA rejected the overwhelming recommendation of its own scientific advisory panel. The panel said tests, which included girls under 16, had shown women can use the so-called morning-after pills safely and effectively without a doctor's prescription. Seattle PI Monday May 10, 2004

Analysis: Plan B could reduce abortions LAKEWOOD, Ohio,
May 7 (UPI) -- The Food and Drug Administration's decision to deny women direct access to emergency contraception prevents what many regard as the best opportunity to achieve a real substantive reduction in the number of abortions in the United States. Plan B, the emergency contraceptive that was the subject of the FDA's ruling Thursday, works in two ways: It inhibits or prevents ovulations and it impairs sperm from fertilizing the egg. It works best when used within three days of unprotected sex, but it can work for up to five days after unprotected sex. Most important, experts said, it prevents pregnancy either before fertilization or before attachment of the egg to the uterus. It also cannot harm an embryo that has begun to grow in utero, so technically it does not cause an abortion. UPI Friday May 07, 2004



Bush stacks federal courts

President Bush is trying to stack the federal courts with anti-choice conservative judges. NARAL Prochoice America Thursday April 08, 2004



Reproductive Rights Assaulted

At a bill-signing ceremony at the White House, and in federal courtrooms across the country, the Republican campaign against women's basic reproductive and privacy rights reached an ominous new stage last week. In Washington on Thursday, President Bush signed the Unborn Victims of Violence Act, which advances the administration's anti-choice agenda under the guise of law enforcement. Like numerous similar state laws, the new federal law makes it a criminal act to harm a fetus, separate from the crime of attacking a pregnant woman. NY Times Monday April 05, 2004



Betraying Afghan women

THE BUSH administration should not be encouraging the Afghan president, Hamid Karzai, to court what he and US officials have been calling moderate Taliban elements. With an Afghan presidential election scheduled for June, it may be tempting to try splitting some Taliban figures away from the main body of the fundamentalist movement. Part of the calculation behind such a move by Karzai may be to solidify support among his fellow Pashtuns, a majority of the country. Moreover, it is within Afghan traditions to coax one's enemies to change sides. Nevertheless, this tactic should be dropped both on moral grounds and because it is unlikely to be effective politically. Boston Globe Sunday February 15, 2004



Invasive procedure / Ashcroft goes too far in seeking medical records

Americans have accepted with relative good humor post- Sept. 11 government encroachments on their civil liberties that have been presented as necessary to improve security. The latest offense, however, has nothing to do with security, but is being pursued by Attorney General John Ashcroft's Justice Department as part of the Bush administration's religious right-oriented anti-abortion policy. Post Gazette Sunday February 15, 2004



Bush steps up attack on women's rights

No one expects George W. Bush to protect a woman's right to choose -- he's been explicitly anti-choice since 1994. One might think, however, he could at least commit to supporting the kind of sexual health information and contraceptive access that reduces the need for abortion. The administration and anti-choice hard-liners in Congress actively are attacking family planning and medically accurate sexual health education, which are proven ways to reduce the number of abortions and the spread of sexually transmitted infections, including HIV. This is but a part of a coordinated assault on women's rights, which began the day Bush took office and continues to gather steam. Ultimately, anti-choice politicians hope to stack U.S. courts with justices who will help them overturn Roe v. Wade -- but they're not waiting for that day to begin undermining the right to choose. Seattle PI Thursday January 22, 2004



Bush cuts Title IX

The Commission on Opportunity in Athletics recommended sweeping and debilitating changes to Title IX. Feminist Majority Foundation Thursday January 01, 2004



Bush further restricts federal aid to international family planning groups

President Bush on Friday further restricted federal aid to international family planning groups that counsel abortion, provoking a new condemnation from a leading abortion rights group. News Batch, Wednesday October 08, 2003



Bush diverts funds to promote marriage

A Bush administration proposal to divert almost $2 billion in scarce welfare funds to promote marriage should be squashed. As one state's effort shows, jobs and education lead to marriage, not the other way around. Religious Consultation Wednesday September 10, 2003



Lack of women in Afghan government leaves protection of rights in doubt

Noting that the Iraqi constitutional commission is made up entirely of men, the constitutional experts provided to Iraq by the Bush administration are all men, and 22 out of 25 members of the Iraqi governing council are men, Zeitlin said that it is still unclear whether democratic institutions will take hold in Iraq and if they do, whether they will include and protect women. Common Dreams Wednesday August 27, 2003



Inadequate funding for security and reconstruction in Afghanistan leaves women unsafe

Another example of the administration's failure to match action to words is the 2002 Afghan Freedom Support Act. The bill, passed with overwhelming support by the U.S. Congress and signed into law by President Bush in December, called for significant increases in funding for Afghanistan's reconstruction, to enhance democracy, political and economic stability, and security for women in the country. However, only a small portion of the funding has come through, according to Smeal, and the President did not include a request for full funding in his initial budget request for this year. OneWorld US, Wednesday August 27, 2003



Bush administration blocks abortions for overseas servicewomen

Conservatives have consistently blocked attempts to allow overseas servicewomen to have abortions without having to return home. Women's e-News, Sunday July 27, 2003



Bush supporters claims that abortions cause breast cancer debunked

Breast cancer researchers attending a three-day conference at the National Cancer Institute (NCI) in Maryland, confidently announced yesterday that the strongest statistical evidence shows no elevated breast cancer risk in women who have had abortions. Their findings foil the latest attempts by the Bush Administration and its anti-abortion supporters to impose conservative ideologies on science and medicine. MS Magazine Sunday June 01, 2003



Bush closes women's offices in federal agencies and defunds programs

Advocates for women agree that Bush is acting to reverse the modest gains made under Bill Clinton. But the White House is moving deftly. In the name of budget cutting, it is closing women's offices in federal agencies, defunding programs that monitor discrimination, and appointing people who oppose affirmative action and welfare for single mothers to policy-making posts. They're not taking legislation to the Hill and putting it up on high profile, says Martha Burk, who chairs the National Council of Women's Organizations. They're doing it through regs, policy changes, executive orders. All of this is under the radar for most citizens. Village Voice Sunday May 11, 2003



FDA appointee refuses to discuss contraception with unwed female patients

David Hager, a physician, refuses to discuss contraception with unwed female patients. Now he's part of the Reproductive Health Drugs Advisory Committee at the FDA. An outcry forced Bush to withdraw Hager's nomination to head that panel, which, under Clinton, played a major role in legalizing RU-486, the drug that can terminate a pregnancy at the zygote stage. With the religious right pressing for repeal of that authorization, it remains to be seen who will chair this crucial committee. Village Voice Sunday May 11, 2003
We must, indeed, all hang together, or assuredly we shall all hang separately. B. Franklin

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Post by Iris » 10-09-2004 11:00 PM

Bush fights UN programs that mention condoms

The Bush administration has also objected to UN family-planning and AIDS-prevention programs that offer or merely mention condoms. Village Voice Sunday May 11, 2003



Bush opposed rehabilitation program for war crime victims if it offered abortion information

According to Planned Parenthood, the U.S. even opposed efforts to provide special rehabilitation for female victims of war crimes, because the measure might be construed as offering information about abortion to girls who have been raped. Village Voice Sunday May 11, 2003



Republican bill denies doctor-patient abortion discussion

A bill passed by the Republican House would allow health care companies to prevent their doctors from discussing abortion. Here is this decade's version of silence = death. Village Voice Sunday May 11, 2003


HHS apointee proposed denyng benefits to cohabitating couples

At the Department of Health and Human Services, Wade Horn was put in charge of family support. A firm believer in using welfare to encourage marriage, Horn has proposed denying benefits to cohabitating couples and withholding money from single mothers until all married couples have been served. Village Voice Sunday May 11, 2003



On his first day in office, Bush reinstated the global gag rule to hinder family planning

Bush?s campaign against reproductive rights is not limited to the United States. On his first day in office, Bush reinstated the global gag rule, which prevents international family planning organizations with any U.S. funding from providing abortion services or counseling, even with non-U.S. funds. Yale Herald Friday April 04, 2003



Bush wants legal protection for the fetus at the expense of maternal health

Physician's treatment of pregnant women is necessarily influenced by the legal status accorded to the fetus. To the extent that a fetus is considered a "person" under the law, it may have legal rights that may be used to restrict the mother's rights. Recently, anti-choice efforts to elevate the fetus's legal status have resulted in new laws and policies designed to protect the fetus at the expense of maternal health. Center for Reproductive Rights Saturday February 01, 2003



The Bush administration tried to stop contraceptive funding for federal employees

Funding for Contraceptive Coverage for federal employees ? In his FY 2002 budget, President Bush eliminated funding for contraceptive coverage in the Federal Employee Health Benefits Plan (FEHBP). The House restored funding for the year, and Bush did not exclude coverage in his FY 2003 budget. (FEHBP has covered Viagra since its introduction in 1998.) Rep. Jan Schakowsky Wednesday January 22, 2003



Bush administration fights abortion rights in developing nations to appease anti-choice constituents

Restricting the right to abortion in developing nations is a major foreign policy initiative of the Bush administration; it appeases anti-choice constituents without offending more moderate conservatives. Women's e-News Monday January 20, 2003



Bush believes discrimination against women is less serious that racial or ethnic discrimination.
The Truth About George, Monday December 09, 2002



Under Bush, the U. S. failed to sign the UN Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against
Common Dreams, Saturday August 10, 2002



The Bush administration inflated charges against UN Family Planning program

NARAL, Monday July 22, 2002



House Passes Partial Birth Abortion Bill

The GOP-controlled House on 2002-07-24 passed legislation that would outlaw partial birth abortions except in cases where it is necessary to save the woman's life. The bill (HR 4965) was passed by a vote of 274-151. Critics charged that the bill may be unconstitutional. The Supreme Court struck down a Nebraska partial birth abortion law in June 2000, partly because it failed to provide exceptions protecting the health of the mother. The Senate, controlled by Democrats, is not expected to consider the bill. Policy Almanac Tuesday June 18, 2002



On the anniversary of Roe v. Wade, Bush declared National Sanctity of Life day

National Organization For Women, Tuesday January 22, 2002



Bush tried to shut down the Department of Labor's network of regional women's offices.

Women's e-News, Thursday December 20, 2001



White House denies full access to UN's Special Session on Children

Joining Sudan, Libya and the Vatican, the White House is fighting to delete language requiring that women and adolescent girls have full access to affordable, quality reproductive health care, from the draft document for the UN Special Session on Children. The U.S. maintains this position despite the fact that reproductive health care is a proven way to reduce maternal and infant mortality, which all parties agree is crucial to improve the lives of children. Center for Reproductive Rights Thursday August 30, 2001



Bush closed the White House Office for Women's Initiatives and Outreach

John F. Kennedy School of Government, Harvard University, Tuesday April 10, 2001



The Bush administration 2002 budget proposed cutting child and maternal health program

American Academy of Pediatrics, Monday April 09, 2001



Administration Restricts Medicaid Coverage of RU-486

On 2001-03-30 the Bush administration notified state Medicaid directors that Medicaid funds could not be used to cover RU-486, the so-called abortion pill, except in cases involving rape, incest, or when the life of the mother is in danger. The new policy applies to RU-486 the standards of the 1976 Hyde Amendment, which restricts the use of federal money for abortions. Policy Almanac Friday March 30, 2001



Bush Reveals Opposition to Mifepristone

At an Iowa news conference, Republican presidential candidate George W. Bush stated that if the FDA approved mifepristone, he "would not be inclined to accept that ruling by the FDA. That's abortion." He then reiterated that abortion should be illegal with the exception of rape, incest and saving the live of the mother when questioned about his stance on abortion. Feminist Majority Foundation, Monday January 29, 2001
We must, indeed, all hang together, or assuredly we shall all hang separately. B. Franklin

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Post by Iris » 10-10-2004 12:23 AM

Bush's rollback of women's rights
Get Back, Loretta
by Richard Goldstein
April 23rd, 2004 1:00 PM

unday's March for Women's Lives, which drew at least 750,000 people to the National Mall in Washington, D.C., is a good time to look at George Bush's overall record on women's issues. It's nothing to crow about (unless you're Rush Limbaugh). The administration has been steadily rolling back federal policies that help women. Abortion is just the visible part of this backlash, because it's such a hot-button issue for Bush's right wing legions. But the rest of his agenda is flying far under the radar.

Now, the National Women's Law Center has released an extensive report on "the erosion of hard-won gains for women under Bush." It's called "Slip-Sliding Away," and it examines 10 major areas of concern, from the workplace to the child care center and from the classroom to the military barracks. In each place, Bush's policies make it harder for women to achieve equal rights.

For example, the Department of Labor has "refused to use tools at its disposal to identify violations of equal pay laws," according to the report. Meanwhile, the Department of Justice has "weakened enforcement of the laws against job discrimination and even abandoned pending sex discrimination cases." In schooling, the administration has proposed "reducing funding for, and even eliminating, programs that provide gender equity." The Department of Education has refused to investigate the pervasive exclusion of women from math and science programs. And despite an outcry over previous attempts to weaken Title IX protections for women in schools, the DOE is still pursuing that goal by failing to use its "scarce resources to enforce the law."

In addition, the administration has "archived" material on sexual harassment, making it unavailable to the public, notes the report. The president's budget proposes slashing funds for services to battered women and a national domestic-violence hotline. The Department of Defense has allowed the charter of a 55-year-old committee that promoted the recruitment of women in the military to lapse. Current policy prohibits a servicewoman from having an abortion at an overseas military hospital unless she has been raped or her life is in danger—and even then, she must pay for the procedure herself.

Other moves, such as closing the White House Office for Women's Initiatives and Outreach and padlocking key offices of the Labor Department's Women's Bureau, occurred some time ago. But the rollback has steadily advanced. By now, key advisory panels in social services include people hostile to women's interests. Several Bush nominees to the federal bench have distinguished themselves with sexist comments. One potential jurist declared that women must be "submissive" to their husbands; another opined that women might not have the right to litigate against verbal sexual harassment.

Then there are the broader policy decisions that affect women's lives, such as cutting child-care budgets, freezing funds for after-school programs, and imposing harsh new requirements on welfare recipients. Plans to transform Medicare and privatize Social Security affect women disproportionately because they are more likely than men to be poor. It remains to be seen how single mothers will fare under the president's initiative to encourage marriage.

The report acknowledges that the administration has taken some constructive actions, such as prosecuting people who smuggle women into the country for prostitution. But the pattern is one of "serious steps backward."

Will John Kerry take these findings and run with them? If his reaction to Sunday's march is any sign, don't count on it. He sent his daughter to D.C. and snuck off to Iowa (though he showed up at an earlier, less publicized, abortion rights rally). Many Democratic strategists think the party should downplay women's issues in order to chip away at Bush's hold on the dude vote. (Remember, only 22 percent of white males voted for Al Gore.) If the president is to be held to account, women will have to do it. It's a matter of liberty—and life.

http://www.villagevoice.com/issues/0417/goldstein2.php
We must, indeed, all hang together, or assuredly we shall all hang separately. B. Franklin

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Post by Iris » 10-10-2004 12:27 AM

AMMO
The Bush Administration (Women's Rights)

FACT: The Bush Administration took the position that girls in war zones don't deserve recognition for the abuse that they suffer. The U.S. delegation for an upcoming UNICEF conference has sided with Sudan, Libya, and Iran on these human rights issues, apparently over fears that any recognition of abused girls would lead to counseling on birth control and abortion. The U.S. has said they won't support a conference resolution because it "encroaches on parental rights," and they "object to provisions against capital punishment or life imprisonment without parole for minors." Since the start of negotiations in February, the U.S. delegation has insisted on removing references to the 1989 Convention of the Rights of the Child, which has been UNICEF's driving force for the last ten years. The treaty was originally signed by Bill Clinton in 1995, and has since been ratified by all countries except the United States and Somalia.

COMMENT: People wonder why the U.S. was removed from the UN Human Rights council. Well, here is at least one reason. Unfortunately, it seems that the importance of sending the message to the world that "freedom of choice is murder," supercedes that of young girls being raped and tortured.



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George W. Bush (Women's Rights) 07/2002

FACT: It was revealed that George W. Bush will, under pressure from conservative pro-lifers, "slash millions of dollars of funding for a UN family planning program," according to the UK Guardian. The UN program assists women in more than 140 countries with family planning, HIV and Aids prevention, health and education.



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Bush (Women's' Rights)

FACT: Bush closes the White House Office on Women's Issues and refuses to discuss the closing.



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George W. Bush (Anti-Labor, Anti-Women, Corporate Interests, Lies)

FACT: Bush repealed ergonomic safety regulations, which were 10 years in the making. Gregory A. Denier, spokesman for the United Food and Commercial Workers Union, said the regulation would have prevented 600,000 injuries a year through such changes as better workstation design for chicken de-boners and meat packers. Martha G. Burk, chair of the National Council of Women's Organizations, an umbrella for 120 groups representing 6 million people, said women suffer many ergonomic injuries from keyboard work and machine cleaning, and called the repeal "a slap in the face of women."

COMMENT: Meanwhile, Bush claims that, "The safety and health of our nation's workforce is a priority for my administration."



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Jesse Helms (Bigotry, Misogynist)

FACT: On Clinton-era HUD appointee Roberta Actenberg: "She's not your garden-variety lesbian. She's a militant-activist-mean lesbian."



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Pat Robertson (Hypocrisy, Abortion, Women's Rights)

FACT: Appearing on CNN Robertson spoke regarding China's policy of forced abortion: "Well, you know, I don't agree with it, but at the same time, they've got 1.2 billion people and they don't know what to do,'' said Robertson, founder of the Christian Coalition. "If every family over there was allowed to have three or four children, the population would be completely unsustainable... so I think that right now they're doing what they have to do." Pat does note that forced abortion may not necessarily be a good thing: since it's usually female babies that are aborted, the Chinese may soon face "a critical shortage of wives. The young men won't have any women to marry, so it will, in a sense, dilute the - what they consider the racial purity of the Han Chinese. And that to them will be a great tragedy, because then they will have to be importing wives from Indonesia."

COMMENT: So leet’s see, according to Pious Pat we must have forced abortions for foreigners and absolutely no abortions for US citizens. I see. It doesn’t matter to Pat whether a woman has an abortion or not as long as she has non say in the matter.



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Claude Allen (Abortion, Women's' Rights, Despicable behavior)

FACT: Claude A. Allen is named Deputy Secretary of Health and Human Services. Allen has been criticized as Virginia Secretary of Health and Human Resources because he said, "abortion was a sticking point" in implementing Virginia's Children's Health Insurance Program. Allen said the federal Health Care Financing Administration, which provides two-thirds of the money for the program, wanted Virginia to allow abortion coverage in instances of rape and incest, rather than just when the life of the mother is endangered.

COMMENT: Apparently Mr. Allen has no problems with rape and incest. Ahhhhh. Conservative values working for us all.



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D. Cameron Findlay (Woman's Rights, Stupidity)

FACT: At a recent meeting of US Trade Representative Robert B. Zoellick's labor advisory committee, Zoellick went to great lengths to explain how important women's empowerment was to him, and unveiled a long list of programs to help women workers around the world. Next, he turned to Deputy Secretary of Labor D. Cameron Findlay for an explanation of how Trade Adjustment Assistance had too often been ignored. Findlay: "TAA is treated like a teenage girl in the back seat of a car. You promise her anything to get what you want. And then when you get it, you leave her." According to the Washington Post, "The group, including five women union reps, was stunned.



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Kay O'Connor (Flatworlder, Stupidity, Women's Rights)

FACT: Kansas state senator Kay O'Connor recently took the unusual step of denouncing the 19th Amendment when she was asked to appear at the Johnson County League of Women Voters' ''Celebrate the Right to Vote'' luncheon. She declined, telling organizer Delores Furtado that ''You probably wouldn't want me there because of what I would have to say.'' According to O'Connor, ''Men should take care of women, and if men were taking care of women (today) we wouldn't have to vote.'' Apparently O'Connor doesn't care much what her constituents think of this view. ''If I don't get re-elected, my only punishment is to go home to my husband and my roses and my children and my grandchildren.''



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Chuck Yob (Woman's Rights, Stupidity)

FACT: According to Republican National Committeeman Chuck Yob of Michigan, the GOP is a strong supporter of women who run for elected office. In fact, Yob thinks they're particularly well suited to be secretary of state because "they like that kind of work." Our sources tell us that Yob was shocked to learn that secretary of state isn't actually secretarial work. "Well, then," he said, "perhaps they'd be better suited as nurse of state, housewife of state, or stewardess of state." Ha ha ha ha. That crazy GOP produces such clever Mysoginists!



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Crittenden, Lideen, Olson, and O'Beirne (Women's Rights, Stupidity)

FACT: Danielle Crittenden, Barbara Lideen, Barbara Olson, and Kate O'Beirne appeared in an article in Britain's Daily Telegraph to bemoan the rotten state of feminism in America. These four rich, privileged Republicans had the gall to ask America to "take back the vote - we've used it unwisely. We'd like to give it back to our husbands." They continued to explain that Bush would have won by a landslide if women hadn't been allowed to vote. This follow the same lardly-logic of the fatmaster himself, Rush "for the twinkies" Limbaugh who smartly pointed out that if Bush would have won by a landslide if blacks were not allowed to vote. Well, Rush, God knows Republicans attempted to do just that. The Florida disenfranchisement fiasco was but a small crumb on the racist GOP nazicake.

COMMENT: This baffling desire to return to the stone ages is typical of the "Promise Keepers" cult of kooks who think women are effective only as maids, cooks, nannies and sexual objects. Me thinks they are in the minority, unfortunately, they are windbags of epic proportions with wealth to force their ideas on the unsuspecting populace. Read: Scaife, Coors, Moon, Murdoch.

http://www.politicalstrategy.org/ammoke ... rights.htm
We must, indeed, all hang together, or assuredly we shall all hang separately. B. Franklin

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