I have little patience for men who will never become pregnant making proclamations about women's rights when they do. I might be a little more sympathetic to their arguments of protecting the unborn life if they ever raised a finger to help the child once he/she is out of the womb.
Rick Perry is one such conservative Republican. He's made no secret of the fact that he'd like to outlaw abortion forever. But perhaps luckily for the women of Texas, there's a moderating influence right next to Perry: his wife, Anita:
Texas First Lady Anita Perry told an interviewer on Saturday that she believes it is “a woman’s right” to have full control of her reproductive health. When asked at the Texas Tribune Festival if she believed abortion should be a personal choice, Perry said, “I mean, I think that yeah, that could be a woman’s right. Just like it’s a man’s right if he wants to have some kind of procedure.”
That's not going to change much on its own--Laura Bush also publicly supported Roe v. Wade--but maybe she can keep him to strictly talking big about banning abortion instead of actually doing it. But don't count on it. Men like Perry rarely listen to the experience of women and never think it should supersede their own counsel.
