House Republicans are working hard on a set of resolutions symbolically affirming support for protecting American families’ rights to use in-vitro fertilization, NBC News reports.
It’s a bold step forward for the party whose leaders previously only voiced support for IVF in public statements to reporters and in tweets, demonstrating the urgency with which they intend to symbolically address a potentially major political vulnerability. “As someone who struggled with infertility and personally witnessed the miracle of IVF, I strongly believe that IVF should remain protected and accessible,” said Republican California Congresswoman Michelle Steele who last week introduced a non-binding resolution expressing that strongly-held belief. Symbolically.
Her likely Dem opponent Derek Tran questioned Steel’s sincerity. “Just three weeks ago, she signed on to the Life at Conception bill. This is the second time she’s done that. And now she’s saying that she’s pro-IVF when the Life at Conception bill is anything but. So she still is just spilling out lies in order to get voters,” said Tran, referring to Steel’s vote for a non-symbolic bill that would effectively outlaw IVF kind of like how the Alabama state Supreme Court did last month.
A different symbolic resolution supporting access to IVF is supported by swing-district Republicans like Don Bacon, Jen Kiggans, and Nick LaLota. It’s not clear which one is symbolically stronger.