Opinion
Listen up, ladies: please, for the greater good of the U.S. economy, choose against having an abortion to instead birth your little bundle of joy into this wonderful, capitalistic world. At least, that’s how Wisconsin Republican Rep. Scott Allen sees your pregnancy—a means to mass production.
On Thursday, the Wisconsin state Assembly approved a bill that would block most abortions from being covered by state health insurance, except in instances of rape, incest, or if the pregnancy threatens the mother’s life.
Democrats were unable to pass two bill amendments that would have clarified that the bill didn’t block the coverage of contraception and would have cut the mandate that the rape or incest victim has to report the crimes to law enforcement. But Allen thought the bill didn’t go far enough.
However, it was during his argument when Allen fell off the rails—he asserted that Democrats were “ironically” getting in the way of economic growth because they allowed women to forgo bolstering the labor force when they elect to have an abortion, instead of going through with the abortion and giving birth to another mean, labor-producing machine.
OK, Allen didn’t say it in those words, but despite his analytical language his message was loud and clear.
“Labor force shortages are tied to population declines. Labor force shortages are a limiting factor in economic growth, and limited economic growth poses a problem when government tries to pay for public services and infrastructure,” Allen said. “In spite of this Mr. Speaker, ironically, the Democrats continue their effort to support the abortion industry.”
Because women are choosing to have abortions—or, because Democrats were allowing women to choose to have abortions—Allen argued the labor force has declined as a result. Therefore, funding abortion with health insurance plans for state employees was in the worst interest of the government.
Abortion arguments aside, Allen’s objectification of women as labor-producers is nothing short of disgraceful. His push for “America first” effectively dehumanizes women as people and argues that the government should, as literally as possible, be in charge of a woman’s right to have an abortion for the benefits her pregnancy will bring the economy. To Allen, women are not humans capable of independent thought, nor even laborers of their own—just laborer-producing machines.
Watch his full bid for the government to control a woman’s reproductive rights below:
WOW. WI Rep. Scott Allen thinks women should be forced to procreate for the sake of the labor market.
— Reproductive Freedom for All (@reproforall) November 3, 2017
Women are PEOPLE, not incubators. 😡 pic.twitter.com/I189JGSoqp
H/T ThinkProgress