In the surreal press conference Joe Biden held Friday (Biden’s Incoherent Abortion Remarks Include ‘Ron Burgundy’ Moment) on the subject of the federal government’s response to the Supreme Court decision in Dobbs vs. Jackson Women’s Health Organization (Full Opinion: Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization), the resident of the White House laid out a parade of horribles that he insisted would proceed from the fact that about half of the states would outlaw the ability of women to kill their kids at will.

But in the meantime, I’m signing this important executive order.  I’m asking the Justice Department that, much like they did in the Civil Rights era, to do something — do everything in their power to protect these women seeking to invoke their right:

In states where clinics are still open, to protect them from intimidation.

To protect the right of women to travel from a state that prohibits seeking the medical attention that she needs to a state to provide that care.

To protect a woman’s right to the FDA-approved — Federal Drug Administration-approved medication that’s been available for over 20 years.

The executive order provides safeguards to access care.  A patient comes into the emergency room in any state in the union.  She’s expressing and experiencing a life-threatening miscarriage, but the doctor is going to be so concerned about being criminalized for treating her, they delay treatment to call the hospital lawyer who is concerned the hospital will be penalized if a doctor provides the lifesaving care.  It’s outrageous.  I don’t care what your position is.  It’s outrageous, and it’s dangerous.

That’s why this executive order directs the Department of Health and Human Services — HHS — to ensure all patients, including pregnant women and girls experience pregnant — experiencing pregnancy loss get emergency care they need under federal law, and that doctors have clear guidance on their own responsibilities and protections no matter what the state — no matter what state they’re in.

The executive order protects access to contraception — that I’m about to sign.

Justice Thomas himself said that under the reasoning of this decision — this is what Justice Thomas said in his concurring opinion — that the Court “should reconsider the constitutional right to contraception — to use contraception even among married couples.

What century are they in?  There used to be a case called — Connecticut v. Griswold [Griswold v. Connecticut], which was declared unconstitutional in the late ‘60s.  It said a married couple in the privacy of their bedroom could not decide to use contraception.

Right now, in all 50 states and the District of Columbia, the Affordable Care Act guarantees insurance coverage for women’s health services, including — including free birth control.  The executive order directs HHS to identify ways to expand access to reproductive health services, like IUDs, birth control pills, emergency contraception.

And equally important, this executive order protects patient privacy and access to information, which looking at the press assembled before me, probably know more about it than I do.  I’m not a tech guy.  I’m learning.

But right now, when you use a search engine or the app on your phone, companies collect your data, they sell it to other companies, and they even share it with law enforcement.  There’s an increasing concern that extremist governors and others will try to get that data off of your phone, which is out there in the ether, to find what you’re seeking, where you’re going, and what you’re doing with regard to your healthcare.

Talk about no privacy — no privacy in the Constitution.  There’s no privacy, period.

This executive order asks the FTC to crack down on data brokers that sell private information to extreme groups or, in my view, sell private information to anybody.

It provides private health information — it protects private health information in states with extreme laws.

And the executive order strengthens coordination at a federal level.  It establishes a task force, led by the White House Department — and the Department of Human Services, focused specifically on using every federal tool available to protect access to reproductive healthcare.

You know, let me close with this: The Court and its allies are committed to moving America backward with fewer rights, less autonomy, and politicians invading the most personal of decisions.  Remember the reasoning of this decision has an impact much beyond Roe and the right to privacy generally.

Marriage equality, contraception, and so much more is at risk.  This decision affects everyone — unrelated to choice — beyond choice.  We cannot allow an out-of-control Supreme Court, working in conjunction with the extremist elements of the Republican Party, to take away freedoms and our personal autonomy.

The choice we face as a nation is between the mainstream and the extreme, between moving forward and moving backwards, between allowing politicians to enter the most personal parts of our lives and protecting the right to privacy — yes, yes — embedded in our Constitution.

This is a choice.  This is a moment — the moment — the moment to restore the rights that have been taken away from us and the moment to protect our nation from an extremist agenda that is antithetical to everything we believe as Americans.

Now, I’m going to sign this executive order.

The executive order is “Protecting Access to Reproductive Health Care Services.”

Tuesday, the White House’s Geheime Staatspolizei, I’m sorry, I mean Justice Department, announced it was getting with the program. The leftwing extremist Vanita Gupta announced she was forming a “reproductive rights task force” to ensure the slaughter of innocents continues unabated. (Read about Gupta’s past here.) The complete DOJ press release is at the bottom of the post.

This “task force” is responding to a non-existent problem. The bullsh** that Biden and his cronies have slung about states prosecuting women who travel out of state is just false. None of the laws in effect or likely to be passed in the future criminalize travel to another state. Even Texas’ unique use of civil action to enforce its abortion statute does not apply to actions taken out of state. There are no laws that prevent the ability of people “inform and counsel each other about the reproductive care that is available in other states.” This promise is damned ironic in the light of this White House trying to shut down counseling services provided by Crisis Pregnancy Centers (Elizabeth Warren Leads the Bloodlust Brigade in the Democrat Party Targeting Pregnancy Centers on Behalf of Abortion). DOJ claims it will step up enforcement of the grotesque Freedom of Access to Clinic Entrances (FACES) Act. This is the same DOJ that allows pro-aborts to literally block the entrances to the homes of Supreme Court justices. As I’ve said, I am not a lawyer, but in light of Dobbs, it is doubtful that carving out special federal protection for abortion clinics and not for any other business will survive a challenge.

The cretins surrounding Joey SoftServe had decided to weaponize the Dobbs decision on two levels. The most dangerous aspect of this strategy is a conscious effort by the White House to delegitimize the Supreme Court. I think this is setting the predicate for this lawless and anti-American bunch to openly defy Supreme Court rulings over the next two years. In my view, the creation of this “task force” is just an extension of the desperate rearguard action underway by pro-abort judges to hamstring efforts by states to use the Dobbs ruling; see The Fight to End Abortion Is Facing Massive Resistance From Pro-Abort Organizations and Activist Judges. The second part of the strategy is designed to whip up the anger of the pro-aborts in the Democrat–and Republican–parties in advance of the 2022 elections. We can anticipate that the FBI will uncover more “conspiracies,” like those plotting to kidnap Michigan Governor Gretchen Whitmer and overthrow the government (The FBI’s Latest Homegrown Terrorist Plot Is an Obvious Joke, but What Is Going to Happen to the People Involved Is Not), to attack abortuaries and the animals that work in them. The sole purpose of this “task force” is to create headlines to support the Democrats in 2022 and 2024.

Like so many bad things, this one has possibilities. It gives us a solid list of people the next GOP administration (I hope it is that of President Ron DeSantis in 2024) must purge from the federal government.

Justice Department Statement

The Justice Department announced today the establishment of the Reproductive Rights Task Force. The Task Force formalizes an existing working group and efforts by the Department over the last several months to identify ways to protect access to reproductive health care in anticipation of the possibility of the Supreme Court overturning Roe v. Wade and Planned Parenthood v. Casey. Associate Attorney General Vanita Gupta will chair the Task Force, which will consist of representatives from the Department’s Civil Division, Civil Rights Division, U.S. Attorney community, Office of the Solicitor General, Office for Access to Justice, Office of Legal Counsel, Office of Legal Policy, Office of Legislative Affairs, Office of the Associate Attorney General, Office of the Deputy Attorney General and Office of the Attorney General and will be supported by dedicated staff.

“As Attorney General Garland has said, the Supreme Court’s Dobbs decision is a devastating blow to reproductive freedom in the United States,” said Associate Attorney General Gupta. “The Court abandoned 50 years of precedent and took away the constitutional right to abortion, preventing women all over the country from being able to make critical decisions about our bodies, our health, and our futures. The Justice Department is committed to protecting access to reproductive services.”

The Task Force will monitor and evaluate all state and local legislation and enforcement actions that threaten to:

• Infringe on federal legal protections relating to the provision or pursuit of reproductive care;
• Impair women’s ability to seek reproductive care in states where it is legal;
• Impair individuals’ ability to inform and counsel each other about the reproductive care that is available in other states;
• Ban Mifepristone based on disagreement with the FDA’s expert judgment about its safety and efficacy; or
• Impose criminal or civil liability on federal employees who provide reproductive health services in a manner authorized by federal law.

The Task Force will identify such actions and coordinate appropriate federal government responses, including proactive and defensive legal action where appropriate. The Task Force will work with agencies across the federal government to support their work on issues relating to reproductive rights and access to reproductive healthcare.

The Justice Department is working with external stakeholders such as reproductive services providers, advocates and state attorneys general. The Task Force will continue this important effort. It will also work with the Office of Counsel to the President to convene a meeting of private pro bono attorneys, bar associations and public interest organizations in order to encourage lawyers to represent and assist patients, providers and third parties lawfully seeking reproductive health services throughout the country. In order to assist attorneys working to protect access to comprehensive reproductive health services, the Task Force will centralize online legal resources, such as filed Justice Department legal briefs and information about the Freedom of Access to Clinic Entrances Act.

Recognizing that the best way to protect reproductive freedom is through congressional action, the Task Force will also coordinate providing technical assistance to Congress in connection with federal legislation to codify reproductive rights and ensure access to comprehensive reproductive services. It will also coordinate the provision of technical assistance concerning Federal constitutional protections to states seeking to afford legal protection to out-of-state patients and providers who offer legal reproductive healthcare.