The Weaponization Of Dishonesty

When honesty and integrity count for nothing and only power matters

Yesterday saw arguments in front of the Supreme Court that may well lay the groundwork for the end, or at least the undermining, of Roe v. Wade, which has kept abortion legal since 1973. When you get right down to it, though, this argument isn’t about abortion. Not really. What it’s ultimately about is power- who has it, who gets to wield it, and who’s left to suffer under the yoke of it. And only in the last case is the answer “women.”

As Ari Melber said, because of the stunning dishonesty of Sen. Mitch McConnell (R-KY), Donald Trump was able to nominate THREE Supreme Court justices during his four-year term. Before he was elected, he made it very clear that he would only appoint judges committed to overturning Roe v. Wade. Yet all three justices hemmed and hawed at their confirmation hearings, saying all the right things about precedent and settled law. Yet, despite the flowery words and sentiments, NONE of them provided indications as to how they would rule on a case that would overturn Roe.

The court probably won’t announce a decision until June, but I suspect we’ll definitively learn that all three Trump nominees were lying during their confirmation hearings. Of course, you can do that when you know the fix is in, and your nomination will be approved regardless of what you say.

One of the problems in this debate is that it’s being decided by a cohort of Conservatives who are overwhelmingly male. So if it seems odd that something about female reproduction is being decided by those WHO CAN NEVER GET PREGNANT…well, you’re not wrong.

The Mississippi case currently in front of the Supreme Court is a perfect example of this Republican hypocrisy. The overwhelming majority of legislators who voted for Mississippi’s abortion ban are male. And they see nothing untoward about that.

Of course, when you live in a moral and ideological universe that holds women to be second-class citizens and the property of men, you can do this sort of thing without it making a dent in your conscience. When you believe that we cannot trust women to make such monumental decisions and that the idea of granting women agency is inappropriate, you must be a Republican legislator.

And it’s not as if Mississippi is the only red state in which men are taking the burden of decision-making off the shoulders of their women.

In Alabama, every legislator who voted for their state’s abortion ban was male.

Don’t women have enough to worry about taking care of hearth and home? Wouldn’t it be easier for them if they knew what they could and couldn’t do before they had to agonize over a decision?

And let’s not forget Texas, where “barefoot and pregnant” is more than just a concept. Women may belong in Austin- but certainly NOT in the Texas Legislature, which can take care of Texas’ women just fine, thank you very much.

The worst part of this example isn’t just that Texas is a desert for women’s rights. The Lone Star State has also created a template for obliterating legal abortion that other states are poised to follow if the Supreme Court greenlights the Mississippi case.

The worst part is that women have participated in their subjugation by voting for Republicans who’ve made their intentions clear. For example, Donald Trump explicitly stated his criteria for Supreme Court justices on numerous occasions. And red state legislatures owe their Republican majorities in large part to women voters.

As Melber says, the numbers are overwhelming, and they clearly show who is making decisions for whom. The bottom line is that women are not making their own decisions regarding their reproductive functions. By voting for Republicans, they’ve effectively agreed to make their baby-making machinery property of the state. They’ve ceded control over their bodies to Conservative White Christian men who can never get pregnant and have no concept of the issues women face.

Why? Because women in red states have ceded control over their agency to Penis-Americans whose agenda has nothing to do with the rights of the distaff half of the population. Women have been lied to for years, yet they continue to vote for Republicans wholly committed to maintaining the subjugation of those unfortunate enough to be born without a penis.

Republicans have told women precisely what they were going to do, and women voted for them. Then Republicans went ahead and did what they’d promised to do. Quelle surprise, non??

The ONLY people who are going to be able to set things right are women. Given that they make up half the population, their votes matter. If they’d stop voting for those committed to their subjugation, there’s a pretty good chance that circumstances would be different- even in red states. That’s what happens when people organize and vote.

There are three Trump-nominated Supreme Court justices who almost certainly participate in the dismantling of Roe v. Wade. And it will serve to cement the truth that the Supreme Court is not a judicial body but rather a political organ in fancy robes. Moreover, they’ll confirm Justice Sonia Sotomayor’s fear that the court’s reading of the Constitution is now a purely political act.

So much for impartial justice, eh?

Even if they don’t strike it entirely, there’s an excellent chance that a woman’s right to an abortion will be curtailed, perhaps severely. That should anger those who believe women are the only people who should be considered qualified to make those decisions. And it should be cause for revolt against those men who insist that THEY should be the ones making decisions regarding female reproductive rights.

For most Americans, the calculus is pretty simple: If you can’t have a baby, you shouldn’t be deciding whether or not a woman should have an abortion. Most Americans DO support the right to abortion. Even more support Hillary Clinton’s assertion that abortion should be safe, legal, and RARE. We should all be working toward a world in which abortion is a rarity. To outlaw it altogether, even in the case of rape and incest, only demonstrates that women are, in the eyes of the state, merely vessels and that it’s the role of men to “protect” them.

As much as I hate to move the conversation in this direction, the Mississippi case before the Supreme Court represents another Conservative effort to turn America into Gilead. The absolutist (and distressingly corrupt) Christian republic from Margaret Atwood’s The Handmaid’s Tale is supposed to be a fictional tale of a dystopian nightmare come to life. Sadly, to say that America’s heading in this direction is no longer hyperbole; it’s becoming increasingly accurate. One only needs to examine what’s happening in red states around the country to understand that “Gilead” is no longer a fictional or theoretical construct.

America deserves better. American women deserve better, but they need to wake up and stop willingly participating in their subjugation. Being half the voting population, women could put a stop to this madness if they chose to. Unfortunately, the sad reality is that far too many seem to be just fine with what the status quo is evolving into.

How long before America BECOMES Gilead? In some respects, we’re already there. And that should frighten every American who believes in personal freedom and the rights currently guaranteed to them. Because rights, once they disappear, are exceedingly difficult to reclaim and restore.

Margaret Atwood may have been a prophet.

Thank you for taking the time to read this. If you enjoyed it, I hope you’ll take a few seconds and join the party via a paid subscription. While you’re at it, why not forward this to a few like-minded friends who might also enjoy it!! You can also donate via Venmo (@Jack-Cluth).