Tag Archives: Jeff Sessions

Call Senate Judiciary Committee Members To Tell Them To Vote Against Anti-Women’s Rights, Anti-Civil Rights Jeff Sessions’ Confirmation

Ladies, SuzyKnew! has been trying to tell you since the U.S.election season began that we’ve got to stay woke during these coming days, weeks – and yes, years.  If we don’t, our reproductive health rights – along with our civil rights – will be snatched away from right up under us. Trump and the U.S. Congress are moving fast and furious to block our access to reproductive healthcare and our basic civil and human rights we have been taking for granted (and trying to move forward) all these years.

Jeffery Beauregard Sessions, III  (Yas, ladies, that’a confederate name. This man was named after his Daddy who was named after his Daddy who was named after the confederate president and leader Jefferson Davis. So, you know what we’re dealing with…) will be up for confirmation for Attorney General by the Senate Judiciary Committee this coming Tuesday and Wednesday, January 10 – 11. In his time as senator, this man has voted against every bill advancing reproductive health and abortion care not to mention bills that would protect minorities and women against employment discrimination or voting to prevent family planning providers access to funding to combat Zika. This man is such bad news, 1,140 faculty members of prominent law schools came out opposing his nomination, and last week NAACP members in Alabama were arrested after conducting a sit-in in his Mobile office to get the man’s nomination withdrawn.

Sessions is known to associate with anti-immigration extremists, favor a registry for Muslims, and oppose gay marriage.  There are so many red flags around Sessions, it’s impossible to capture them all here.  Thirty years ago, Sessions was denied an appointment as a federal judge because he was felt to be too racist even for conservatives during the Reagan era. But, now it looks like he stands a good chance of getting confirmed.

But, if you, your friends and others take 2 minutes and call Senators on the Senate Judiciary Committee as well as your congressional representatives, we can block Jeff’s confirmation a la Michael Moore’s rapid response.

Click here: for the members of the Senate Judiciary Committee, here for Senators’ telephone numbers.

You can say something as simple as “I am calling to urge you to vote against Jeff Sessions’ confirmation because of his decades long record of opposing women’s reproductive health rights and civil rights of minorities, immigrants and the gay community.”  If you’re talking to a congressman who represents your area, you can add at the end, “as my representative, if you don’t vote against Sessions’ confirmation, I will mobilize my community to unseat you.”

 

Jeff Sessions’ photo courtesy of TownHall.com

 

Should You Get An IUD Or Another Long-Acting Birth Control Method Before Trump Takes Office?

A lot of social media sites are urging women to get an IUD, which can cost upwards of $800 without insurance, or another long-acting method like contraceptive implants, before Trump takes office in January. Birth control is free under Obamacare (a.k.a. the Affordable Care Act – ACA) and does not require a co-payment. But, during his campaign, Trump promised to get rid of Obamacare. Now, several weeks before he takes office, Trump is beginning to say he may keep some of the more “popular” provisions of Obamacare (and what… call it “Trumpcare” or something…?)

It’s not an understatement to say women are straight up scared.  Gynecologists, Planned Parenthood and other health clinics around the country report a massive increase in calls, emails, and texts asking for birth control – especially the long-acting, reversible kind, before Trumpism spreads across our land. Women want birth control that can outlast a Trump presidency.(SuzyKnew! has to stop here and say: What a shameful way to start a presidency by making so many Americans terrified!)

Others, such as the NY Times, say not to worry. Trump can’t reverse everything the first day he walks into office. They say it will take months – maybe years – to unravel everything. Selecting a contraceptive method – especially a long-term one – shouldn’t be done hastily, and an IUD, depending on the type, can last from 3 – 10 years.

Courtesy of RHrealitycheck.org
Courtesy of RHrealitycheck.org

Just over 11% of U.S. women using birth control chose IUDs. But, the highly-effective method is becoming more popular – and affordable with ACA. However, there can be side effects when you go from one type of birth control like the pill, the most popular method among U.S. women, to another method like the IUD, implant or injectable. Different contraceptive methods affect your body and menses differently. Of course, you could have your IUD removed if things weren’t working for you. But, do some “googling” and know what to expect before making a change to an IUD or implant, and of course check in with your healthcare provider.

impant_1_family_planning_nsw

It is clear the most vulnerable part of the ACA is the requirement that health insurers cover contraception for all women without a co-payment. Kaiser Family Foundation claims before Obamacare, 28 states covered contraception and 85% of employer plans covered contraception.

But, what about co-payments? And, 28 out of 50 states isn’t that great of a ratio. Plus, the devil is in the details

And, ladies, ladies, ladies…

Do you trust this man not do something crazy?  And fast? It took him just over a week after becoming president-elect to appoint alt-right, white nationalist Steve Bannon as his chief strategist and select Jeff Sessions as his nominee for Attorney General. Just sayin’…

SuzyKnew! just wants to make sure you have the info. It’s up to  to you to decide what to do next.

Your thoughts, ladies…?