It’s become a cliché at this point that the mainstream media will report on the Republican reaction to a controversy more than the controversy itself. The headlines will say ‘Republicans Pounce on [insert issue here].’
Yet, I’ve never seen as much ‘pouncing’ from a political party than I have from Democrats when it comes to the Alabama Supreme Court ruling that embryos used for in vitro fertilization are considered unborn children.
The ruling became national news almost instantly as media pundits and Democrat politicians tried to use the issue to paint Republicans as extremists.
For example, Former U.S. Sen. Doug Jones used this controversy to say things are “crazy” in Alabama, and then argued that this is why we need to “change the direction of this state.”
“Shock, anger, confusion grip Alabama?” Really folks? You get who you vote for. Folks should have learned that by now. But we have some chances to change the direction of this state. Stay tuned for another post later today about how we start. https://t.co/BsY7I6mYX3
— Doug Jones (@DougJones) February 21, 2024
Despite the outcry from Democrats and the media, the IVF issue isn’t really even that much of a controversy. In fact, I haven’t seen this much bipartisan agreement on something in a very long time.
Shortly after the ruling, Republicans in the Legislature said they would work quickly to address it, and then not too long after that State Sen. Tim Melson introduced a bill to protect the IVF clinics. Gov. Kay Ivey, Alabama Attorney General Steve Marshall, both of Alabama’s U.S. Senators, and even President Donald Trump all agreed with Democrats that IVF procedures are a good thing and need to be protected. And this week the Alabama House and Senate have both passed identical bills to do just that. Tell me again why this is so divisive?
One reason why Democrats and the mainstream media are still so focused on this story is that, politically speaking, they smell blood in the water. They need all the help they can get when it comes to reelecting President Joe Biden in November. Because they can’t run on the economy, immigration, foreign policy, or Biden’s charisma — they plan to run on January 6th and abortion.
The second reason for all their “pouncing” is ideological: The Democrats’ ultimate goal is not to protect IVF. Their ultimate goal is to legalize as much abortion as possible.
The IVF controversy is not going to turn Alabama into a pro-abortion state. The majority of Alabamians believe in protecting the lives of the unborn, and that’s not going to change anytime soon.
Governor Ivey put it well in her statement responding to the ruling:
“Following the ruling from the Alabama Supreme Court, I said that in our state, we work to foster a culture of life,” Ivey explained. “This certainly includes some couples hoping and praying to be parents who utilize IVF. My Republican colleague in the Legislature, Senator Tim Melson, along with Senate and House members, are working on a solution to ensure we protect these families and life itself.”
Democrats won’t be happy until abortion is legalized in the state once again. Hopefully, Alabamians won’t fall for their game.
Yaffee is a contributing writer to Yellowhammer News and hosts “The Yaffee Program” weekdays 9-11 a.m. on WVNN. You can follow him on Twitter @Yaffee
