28 Mar 2012 9:38 am
9 Lies Republicans Tell About Women's BodiesRep. Darrell Issa (R-Calif.) apologized Tuesday to Rep. Carolyn Maloney (D-N.Y.) for accusing her of lying about the gender breakdown of a contraception hearing panel. But plenty of real lies remain in the debate over women's health. Some are promoted by Republican lawmakers as they push legislation that limits reproductive rights. Others come from GOP presidential candidates and their surrogates. 1. Birth Control Causes Prostate CancerNew Hampshire state Rep. Jeanine Notter [R]asked a male representative, "As a man, would it interest you to know that Dr. Brownstein just published an article that links the pill to prostate cancer?"The study described in the newsletter of Dr. David Brownstein, a physician and holistic practitioner in Michigan, suggests men may ingest estrogen through environmental contamination, not in utero from mothers taking birth control.2. Abortion Causes Breast CancerThe New Hampshire House recently passed a bill that would require doctors to tell women seeking abortions that the procedure can cause breast cancer. The bill was sponsored by Rep. Jeanine Notter (see lie number 1). 3. Birth Control Is A Sex PillRush Limbaugh showed he has no understanding of how birth control pills work when he attacked Sandra Fluke, a Georgetown law student barred from testifying as a Democratic witness at a congressional hearing about the Obama administration's contraception policy. 4. Abortion Industry Is 'Selling Abortions'Arizona state Rep. Terri Proud [R], "For too long, Planned Parenthood and the abortion industry have placed selling abortions above the health and safety of women." Proud wants to require women seeking an abortion to watch the procedure being performed first.5. Women Can't Get Pregnant From RapeIdaho state Sen. Chuck Winder [R] suggested that women seeking abortions may lie about rape. Some anti-abortion activists actually believe that rape cannot result in pregnancy.Buzzfeed dug up a series of bizarre statements Republicans have made about pregnancy, rape, juices not flowing and more. 6. Prenatal Testing Leads To AbortionRick Santorum made prenatal testing a campaign issue last month when he declared the tests are designed to "cull the ranks of the disabled in our society" by encouraging abortions. 7. HPV Vaccine Causes RetardationBack when Rick Perry was campaigning for president, his rivals attacked him for signing an executive order mandating the human papillomavirus vaccine for young girls, and misinformation quickly spread. Michele Bachmann insinuated that the vaccine causes mental retardation, while Santorum spoke out against "having little girls inoculated at the force and compulsion of the government."8. Plan B Causes AbortionsThe debate over the Obama administration's contraception policy has yielded some puzzling claims about birth control and Plan B, the so-called morning-after pill. House Speaker John Boehner (R-Ohio) addressed the House in February, urging his colleagues to reverse Obama's mandate for health insurance coverage of 'abortion-inducing drugs' and Michele Bachmann called Plan B an abortion pill.9. Your Fetus Is Just FineThe Arizona Senate passed a bill this month to protect doctors from "wrongful birth" lawsuits -- effectively allowing them to withhold information that may lead a patient to get an abortion.