D. Earl Stephens
December 11, 2023
Photo by Tiziano Brignoli on Unsplash
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There is a battle underway in Texas right now that I believe has significant repercussions for the future of the United States of America, and who leads this country in the future.
Kate Cox, a 31-year-old mother of two who lives in the Dallas area, is heartbreakingly finding out what it means to live in a state with one of the toughest abortion bans in this crazy country.
Cox is pregnant, and her fetus has been diagnosed with a condition called, trisomy 18, which is nearly always fatal for the fetus, and is always very dangerous for the mother. Cox, who is now 20 weeks pregnant, had been suffering with severe pain and discharge during her pregnancy before getting this terrible diagnosis.
As strict as the Texas laws are about preventing abortions, there are rare exceptions, and Cox was granted one of these by Judge Maya Guerra Gamble of the Travis County District Court. Gamble ruled that the procedure was “necessary to protect Cox from a potentially dangerous birth, and to preserve her future fertility.”
Only hours later, Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton, who is a known monster, sent a threatening letter to the hospital where Cox’s doctor practices, saying in part that “the Temporary Restraining Order will not insulate you or anyone else …”
In other words, the Texas danger, Paxton, was bravely coming after the mother and her doctor. He brought his sickening rage in front of the Texas Supreme Court, which late Friday overturned the lower court’s ruling.
Paxton, you might remember, is the guy who was investigated for bribery this year and is known as one of the most corrupt public officials in Texas, which is really quite a feat. He was within inches of being thrown out of office, before Republicans reconsidered the whole thing and decided they needed more guys like him around to ensure they were some of the most odious political bodies on the planet, including the Taliban.
As I type this, the Texas Supreme Court, which is made up of nine fanatic Republican justices has continued its stay on the court-approved abortion and Cox has reportedly fled Texas to an unidentified state where she will have the abortion.
“Her health is on the line. She’s been in and out of the emergency room and she couldn’t wait any longer,” said Nancy Northup, president and CEO of the Center for Reproductive Rights, which was representing Cox.
As this horrendous ruling starts getting national attention, we are seeing reporting that one of these justices is a lowlife named John Devine.
Devine is a religious zealot, who has been arrested 37 times for blocking abortion clinics, and has been involved in a never-ending fight to keep the Ten Commandments displayed in his Houston courtroom.
But this is the absolutely chilling part:
Devine’s wife, Nubia, was involved in a high-risk pregnancy herself, while carrying her seventh child. Doctors said the pregnancy was likely to end in the deaths of both mother and child. The Devines went ahead with it anyway. Nubia Devine survived the birth. Their daughter lived only for an hour after she was born.
Nubia Devine is a self-described “religious freedom activist” and is also very active in Texas politics.
They have both proven themselves to be dangerous as hell.
It is hard to believe this radical, rightwing Texas Supreme Court will ultimately rule in favor of Cox, but whether they do or don’t, this story should be screamed from the rooftops of every household in the United State of America, and for damn sure by those who control the deep pockets inside the Democratic National Committee.
The repulsive actions of these Texas Republicans is a political gift for Democrats.
I admittedly feel a bit gross putting it that way, given a woman’s life, and her reproductive right are on the line, but I believe highlighting horrible stories like this one might preserve the rights of countless other women, including my daughters, in the future.
I did something I rarely do anymore, and posted about this gross injustice on Facebook Friday. Predictably, the response I got was muted, because most of my “friends” there would rather not get bogged down by politics. I get it. It’s all too much these days, and we all need an escape to keep our sanity. (That’s me preaching, but as always, not practicing.)
I did get one interesting response on my post via a direct message from a longtime real friend, who I believe is a Republican. She told me that what I posted was “fake news.”
If you want to really get my blood boiling, mention the term “fake news.” It literally gets me to hate-sweating. “Fake news” was traitor Trump’s go-to belch when reacting to completely true things in the run-up to the nightmarish 2016 election. The term was used so much it unfortunately got some acceptance in American parlance.
If I never hear those two words again in five lifetimes, it will be too soon.
When I replied to my friend that it was, in fact, very, very “real” news, and attached several stories about it, she said, “Dang.”
She really didn’t know. And she really didn’t like it.
I am going to guess she gets most of her news out of the Fox sewer system, and doesn't bother with anything that comes at her with two sides on it.
How many other people out there aren’t aware of this gross injustice in Texas? Millions? Tens of millions?
Probably.
So far, we know one thing for sure surrounding this abortion issue: It is motivating voters to take action and protect their rights like nothing I can remember before it.
We have seen this in blue states, purple states and red states. It is a political winner for Democrats and a resounding loser for Republicans.
Here in the Battleground State of Wisconsin, we finally flipped our Supreme Court from red to blue in April when Justice Janet Protasiewicz walloped her conservative foe by 11 points.
Anybody who reads me even infrequently knows that I have been banging away that our Democracy is on the line in 2024. I believe it is the issue of my lifetime, but I am not convinced it is the motivating factor at the polls that I desperately think it should be.
Reproductive rights and healthcare rights are a subset of our Democracy. They are about ensuring women aren’t dragged back to seemingly dystopian times when they didn't even have the vote.
These are sad, powerful stories that need telling. This is what is on the line in 2024, America.
I am sorry beyond words for what you are going through right now, Kate Cox, but I will never forget you for as long as I live. I hope others will feel the same way when they go into the voting booth next year.
D. Earl Stephens is the author of “Toxic Tales: A Caustic Collection of Donald J. Trump’s Very Important Letters” and finished up a 30-year career in journalism as the Managing Editor of Stars and Stripes. Follow @EarlofEnough and on his website.
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