The National Organization for Women, which says it will target Republican U.S. Rep. Joe Pitts in next year’s election, is holding a rally Saturday morning in opposition to the health-care amendment the congressman co-authored with Democrat Bart Stupak.
Lois Herr, the Democratic candidate for the 16th Congressional District seat, will be one of the speakers and has released a copy of her prepared remarks. Here they are, in full.
Good morning.
I want to start off with a date, and then a question. The date is January 21, 1973.
How many of you were alive on January 21, 1973? Raise your hands.
What’s important to us today about that date almost 37 years ago? For those who don’t remember, it was the day before the Supreme Court decided Roe v Wade. It was the last day reproductive choice was a crime in America. We hope.
Put simply, Joe Pitts and his radical friends want America to return to a time when women did not control their bodies, the radicals did. When a minority dictated how the majority could live. When personal religious beliefs trumped the Constitution of the United States.
Put simply, we are all here today to say to Joe Pitts and the radicals: “Not on our watch!”
We are here to say that we are morally outraged that you would hijack legislation that begins to solve one of our country’s most pressing problems. You would hijack health-care reform to further your own theocratic vision of the world.
We are here to tell you that we know what your full agenda is: to ban all abortions.
And, Joe, we’re here to tell you and your radical friends that we know you. You are mean-spirited, you are narrow-minded, and you are hypocrites. You are the people of “NO!”
When America needed strong measures to save our economy, you said “NO!”
When Congress voted to extend health insurance to millions of children, you said “NO!”
When the question was cheaper college loans for students, you said “NO!”
Extending unemployment benefits? You said “NO!”
Ban on hate crimes? You said “NO!”
And now this, Joe. You are saying “no” even to private health insurers providing coverage for reproductive health.
Joe, listen closely. Because it begins today, and ends next November. Fifty weeks from right now, on Election Day, November 4, 2010, we the people will have one clear message for you: “NO!”
A couple of days ago, one of Joe Pitts’ senior aides said in the paper that I was “insanely liberal.” Well, I like to think that I am, that we are, that America is, “sanely liberal.”
We believe in caring for and about each other.
We care about each others’ health, education, opportunities in life.
We care about being good stewards of our environment.
We care about creating a productive and sane economy that creates good jobs, rewards those who work and doesn’t punish those who fail to thrive.
We care about peace on this Earth.
We are “sanely liberal.” We are the people of “YES!”
And “yes” will always triumph over “no” in the end.
Thank you very much.
