The New Republican Politics of Inhumanity

As the House Republicans settle into leadership, it's evident that they're going to be aggressively pandering to their Tea Party/Social Conservative base. The first evidence of that is an effort to make the definition of rape even more narrow than it is now.

With this legislation, which was introduced last week by Rep. Chris Smith (R-N.J.), Republicans propose that the rape exemption be limited to "forcible rape." This would rule out federal assistance for abortions in many rape cases, including instances of statutory rape, many of which are non-forcible.

For example, if a 13-year-old girl is impregnated by a 24-year-old adult, she would
no longer qualify to have Medicaid pay for an abortion. Rep. Smith's spokesman did not respond to a call and an email requesting comment.

All part of the vision for a poorer, narrower, and more vindictive America that the Republicans are promoting.