Gavin Newsom slams GOP for giving rapists more rights than families who want IVF

California Gov. Gavin Newson (D) did not mince words during a recent interview in which he blasted Republicans for elevating the rights of rapists over folks who desperately want to build families.

Newsom accused the party of family values of granting more rights to rapists than to families, referring to the fact that GOP-led states continue to enact strict abortion laws that prevent people from obtaining an abortion even when they have become pregnant from rape.

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“What about family freedom?” Newsom asked CNN’s Jake Tapper. “What about the right of people that wanna start a family? And think about this, Jake, you know this, everybody knows this, you saw the stats, 65,000 births due to rapes since [Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization], in 14 states. Apparently, what the Republican party is saying — is the rapists have more rights to bring those babies to birth, than families that are trying desperately to have the privilege you and I have had as fathers and parents. It is a disgrace, and it’s a political problem for them, but it’s a moral issue.”

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Newsom was referring to a study released in January that found approximately 65,000 pregnancies due to rape had occurred in the 14 states with abortion bans. The Hill notes that the study acknowledged a conflict of interest with two researchers who work in the pro-choice space.

In the same interview, Newsom called the Alabama Supreme Court’s recent ruling that frozen embryos created through IVF have the same legal rights as children “disgusting.”

“The American people have had it,” he said. “This extremism manifested… on the issue that impacts one out of every six people that in their lifetime have fertility issues… And you talk about freedom? Spare me, the Republican party and this freedom gospel?”

Newsom also attacked states for attempting to enact travel bans that punish residents for seeking abortions in states where it’s legal to do so.

He recently released an ad specifically targeting a proposal in Tennessee that would charge adults with felony “abortion trafficking” if they helped a minor obtain one in another state without parental permission.

The ad, called “Hostage,” shows a crying young woman handcuffed to a hospital bed after having been raped.

“Trump Republicans want to criminalize young women who travel to receive the reproductive care they need,” states the voiceover. “Don’t let them hold Tennessee women hostage.”

It then directs viewers to a website where they can sign a petition to tell legislators to vote against the Tennessee proposal and others like it.

“Three states – Tennessee, Oklahoma, and Alabama – are considering bills that ban minors from traveling out of state to get an abortion without parental consent — no matter if it’s a case of incest or if there is abuse in the family,” the website states.

“These are states that basically want to imprison women and young girls. It’s a backdoor nationwide abortion ban, denying women the opportunity to go to a freedom state. Taking away the right to travel that’s guaranteed by the 4th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution.”

“These guys are not just restricting the rights, self-determination to bear a child for a young woman,” Newsom said during an appearance on NBC’s Meet the Press. “But they’re also determining their fate as it relates to their future in life by saying they can’t even travel. That’s how serious this moment is. And we need to be even more aggressive, I would argue. And that’s what this ad represents.”