The GOP's Upskirt Politics
What would you do if a stranger asked your teenage daughter when her last period was? Or if a man approached you in a parking lot, demanded you tell himwhy you had an abortion—and then asked to see yourbloody. . .
What would you do if a stranger asked your teenage daughter when her last period was? Or if a man approached you in a parking lot, demanded you tell himwhy you had an abortion—and then asked to see yourbloody pregnancy tissue?Chances are, you’d call the cops, smack the guy, or both. Out on the street, it’s sexual deviance; in the statehouse, it’s just another Republican policy. If Democrats want a message for the midterms and 2028, that’s it right there. The GOP is the party of Peeping Toms, obsessively watching what women do with our bodies and inventing ever more ways to get a closer look—from Republican AGs fighting court battles just tocatch a peek at women’s abortion records, to a prosecutor so desperate to see inside a miscarriage patient’s toilet that he had itripped off the wall. Over the last four years, I’ve written about lawmakers pushing forstate registries of pregnant women, government-funded crisis pregnancy centerssharingwomen’s period data, and copstapping into 83,000 camerasto search for a single Texas abortion patient. All of this, at the same time conservatives havelaunched a multi-decade planto push young women into early marriage and motherhood—even as teens. In a moment when American families need politicians to make life better and more affordable, Republicans are out there passing the policy equivalent of upskirt pics. And that’s the rub: the GOP doesn’t just want to control women’s bodies—they’re getting off on it. I remember the first time I understood the depth of the party’s sexualized misogyny: it was just abouttwenty years ago, whenPBSasked a South Dakota lawmaker under which circumstances he’d approve of an abortion. Here’s how then-senator Bill Napoli answered:“A real-life description to me would be a rape victim, brutally raped, savaged. The girl was a virgin. She was religious. She planned on saving her virginity until she was married. She was brutalized and raped, sodomized as bad as you can possibly make it, and is impregnated. ”Legislating our bodies was that man’s porn, and you will never convince me otherwise. I’m betting other women who read that quote will come to the same conclusion; after all, we’ve been dealing with men’s lechery long enough to be able to spot it a mile away. That’s why Democrats would do well to start calling Republican policy on women what it actually is:predation. Because the unfortunate truth is that you’d be hard-pressed to find a woman who hasn’t been accosted by a Peeping Tom at some point in her life: from the guy licking his lips at her on the subway, to the creeper following her through the aisles of Target. Women know these men well, and it won’t take much to make the connection for voters. I mean really, whatisthe difference between a landlord who sneaks into your apartment to rifle through your underwear drawer and an attorney general who sues for your abortion records? The state health directorkeeping a spreadsheetof women’s periods isn’t any less creepy than the abusive ex who still tracks your location. And the guy who corners you at a bar isn’t so different from the lawmaker making it easier for clinic harassers to scream in your face—they both get off on making women feel uncomfortable. All of these men believe women’s bodies, privacy, and dignity are theirs to violate. The only real difference?While some will get arrested, others will be elected. For far too long, the GOP’s attacks on women have been chalked up to ignorance rather than animus. It’s somewhat understandable, given theabsurd thingsconservative lawmakers have said about our bodies and biology—from claiming women get “cleaned out” during rape kits to suggesting we have gynecological exams by “swallowing a camera. ”But these aren’t random chuckleheads, they’re powerful and dangerous predators. Once you start understanding every anti-abortion policy as a violation, it all starts to make sense. The laws mandating transvaginal ultrasounds. The pharmacist who gets to shame you while refusing your birth control. The judge demanding a teenager explain her sex life before granting permission for an abortion. Republicans in Congress pushing to test our water for birth control, while state legislators try to force women to bag up and turn in their pregnancy remains. The degradation is very much the point. This goes beyond misogyny or “traditional values. ” We’re talking about a political party that’s built an entire legislative agenda around invading women’s bodies and lives. Democrats should be reminding voters of that every chance they get. Why are Republicans spending their time dictating how women dispose of pregnancy remains instead of making life more affordable? Why are they more interested in what’s in our medical records than what’s in our wallets?Most of all, what kind of person becomes obsessed with young women’s periods, pregnancies, uteruses, and sex lives?Women have spent their whole lives clocking men like this—the ones who stand a little too close, or ask questions that are a little too familiar. We know what it looks like when a man is getting off on our discomfort. Democrats’ strategy should be simple: start calling Republicans what they are. Instead of only focusing on the impact of abortion bans—or getting lost in defensive debates about how many weeks into pregnancy the government should be involved—zero in on the total creeps who pass these laws. Go on offense. Take our side. Don’t let them mask perversion as policy.