Jamelle Bouie
Texas Governor Rick Perry is speaking to the National Right to Life Convention, and given the events of the last few days, it's no surprise he's commenting on Wendy Davis and her filibuster of harsh anti-abortion restrictions. (You can read Abby Rapoport on Davis's filibuster here.)
In criticizing Davis, Perry had a choice. He could dispute the state senator on the substance of her opposition, or he could attack her motives and her experiences. To no one's shock, Perry-who occupies the far-right of the Republican Party-chose the latter. Jay Root, a reporter for the Texas Tribune, tweets one of Perry's statements:
. @GovernorPerry says @WendyDavisTexas was a "teenage mother herself" and it's unfortunate "she hasn't learned from her own example."
- Jay Root (@byjayroot) June 27, 2013
The full quote is here:
In fact, even the woman who filibustered the Senate the other day was born into difficult circumstances. She was the daughter of as single woman, she was a teenage mother herself. She managed to eventually graduate from Harvard Law School and serve in the Texas senate. It is just unfortunate that she hasn't learned from her own example that every life must be given a chance to realize its full potential and that every life matters.
Perry's argument boils down to this: Wendy Davis should oppose legal abortion because she wasn't aborted herself. Believe what you will about abortion or Davis' filibuster, it's a despicable thing to say, especially coming from a man who could have been the Republican Party's nominee for president.
