McCain shows contempt for women in last presidential debate
by Sonia Ossorio, NOW-NYC President

The last presidential debate finally brought some discussion about issues women live and think about everyday: reproductive freedom and pay equity.

These are two issues—attacked and sidelined by the Bush Administration—that have a new bully in John McCain, who is vying to replace George Bush in the White House. He clearly stated his lack of concern for these issues as well as what appeared to be contempt for what he views as “the pro-abortion movement” and abuse of the “health exemption” for determining abortion rights. 

After criticizing Barack Obama for not supporting anti-abortion bills while an Illinois state senator, McCain said, “He’s [for] health for the mother. You know, that’s been stretched by the pro-abortion movement in America to mean almost anything. That’s the extreme pro-abortion position, quote ‘health.’”

My heart sank for the women watching who have aborted fetuses for the many health reasons that occur during pregnancy—from alarmingly high blood pressure that threatens a stroke to extremely dangerous gestational diabetes.

The way McCain said “health,” smirking with sarcasm, with his hands gesturing quotations was galling. It apparently is in the extreme, in his viewpoint, which suggests women take advantage of the health exemption. Aside from the recent decision in Gonzalez vs. Carhart, the U.S. Supreme Court has always struck down abortion bans that do not contain exemptions for both the health and life of the woman.

McCain made it crystal clear that he would work to end the federal guarantees for abortion that now exist under Roe v. Wade. Asked by moderator Bob Schieffer if he would appoint to the Supreme Court someone who “had a history of being for abortion rights,” McCain replied, “I would consider anyone in their qualifications. I do not believe that someone who has supported Roe v. Wade that would be part of those qualifications. But I certainly would not impose any litmus test.”

Obama said abortion is “a very difficult issue and it is a moral issue and one that I think good people on both sides can disagree on. But what ultimately I believe is that women in consultation with their families, their doctors, their religious advisers are in the best position to make this decision. And I think that the Constitution has a right to privacy in it that shouldn’t be subject to state referendum, any more than our First Amendment rights are subject to state referendum…”

The candidates also spoke to the nation, finally, about current state legislative attempts to restrict legal abortion, and pay inequities as reflected by the recent Supreme Court rebuff to Alabama factory worker Lilly Ledbetter.

It was good to hear Lilly Ledbetter’s name. Obama brought her up. “For years, she had been getting paid less than a man had been paid for doing the exact same job. And when she brought a suit, saying equal pay for equal work, the judges said, well, you know, it’s taken you too long to bring this lawsuit, even though she didn’t know about it until fairly recently.”

Congress has failed so far to overturn the Supreme Court ruling against Lilly Ledbetter. The Supreme Court had said her pay-discrimination claim against Goodyear came too late—decades after she got her first paycheck that was substantially lower than men doing the same job at the same plant. The fact that she only learned about the pay disparity recently made no difference to the justices: her time had expired.

McCain’s response was as sarcastic and dismissive as he was about the issue of women’s health.

“Obviously, that law [in the Senate] waived the statute of limitations,” which critics of the bill to reinforce equity claims have said would open the door for lawsuits based on wrongs that occurred “20 or 30 years [ago]. It was a trial lawyer’s dream.”

McCain’s attitude in talking about these issues in Wednesday night’s debate illustrated his contempt for the everyday struggles of American women. If it wasn’t clear before, it certainly is now. McCain will do nothing to restore the basic rights that have been stripped from women under the Bush Administration. We are proud that National NOW PAC has endorsed Senator Obama for President, and NOW-NYC has worked to educate the public about McCain’s real stances on issues that affect women.