Christian Rep. Lauren Boebert: Rape victims don’t need abortion but a 'Glock 19 when it happened’
After recently causing a stir with her public rejection of mask mandates, Christian Congresswoman Lauren Boebert of Colorado went viral again this week when she declared that instead of abortion, rape victims need "love," "support" and "a Glock 19 when it happened."
"Baby killing advocates have been spewing lies and half-truths [about abortion]," the 34-year-old conservative said in a speech on the floor of the U.S. House of Representatives this week.
"Lie No. 1: abortion is good for women. That's some CNN fake news right there. Women who have an abortion have an 81% increase in risk for mental health problems. Every abortion leaves one dead and one wounded," the first-term representative said in the speech that went viral on Wednesday and drew criticism from progressive commentators.
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"Lie No. 2: rape victims need abortions. Wrong, they need love. They need support. They need safety and healing. They needed a Glock 19 [pistol] when it happened."
She went on to argue that lie No. 3 is the often-repeated statistic that "abortion makes up only 3% of Planned Parenthood services."
In defending bans on abortion once a heartbeat can be detected that have passed in conservative-run states, Boebert added that she is proud that "there will be children enrolling in elementary schools laughing and smiling because someone took a stand for the voiceless."
Boebert's speech came days before the Democrat-controlled House voted 218-211 on Friday morning, mainly along party lines, to approve the Women's Health Protection Act, also known as H.R. 3755.
The bill seeks to protect access to abortion nationwide by stopping laws and regulations like Texas' controversial Senate Bill 2 barring most pregnancies in the state as early as six weeks of gestation. The bill would also block Texas' more recently passed bill Senate Bill 4, which prohibits a person "from providing an abortion‑inducing drug to a pregnant woman without satisfying the applicable informed consent requirements for abortions."
Boebert argued in a recent op-ed co-written by Students for Life of America President Kristan Hawkins that H.R. 3755 would "obliterate almost every state-implemented restriction on abortion." The House bill, which is not expected to pass the Senate, comes as dozens of pro-life bills have been enacted into law at the state level across the country in 2021.
"Widely supported policies such as mandatory waiting periods and ultrasounds, counseling requirements, informed consent laws, late-term abortion limits, and even basic health and safety standards would be invalidated," they argued.
"Although the Women's Health Protection Act claims abortion access is essential to women's participation in 'the social and economic life of the Nation,' we know that women do not need to kill their pre-born children to function equally within society. Multitasking women are capable of all that life has to offer, including pursuing educational goals and professional development alongside child-rearing."
Boerbert and Hawkins also contend that the Women's Health Protection Act is "deceptively named" because it "ignores women's needs for opportunity, education, and access to advancement, selling us short by falsely asserting that all we need is more abortion."
"Women deserve better, and the next generation deserves our support and protection," they continued.
