Sen. Tammy Duckworth just wants to bring her kid to work. Soon, the Illinois Democrat will become the first sitting U.S. senator to give birth while in office. But after Duckworth makes history, Senate rules won’t allow her to bring her newborn onto the floor of the upper chamber. Duckworth vows to change that and, in a moment that contradicts traditional political coalitions, the pro-life lobby is quickly lining up behind her.
“We absolutely support that,” said National Right to Life spokeswoman Tatiana Bergum in a response that would be repeated by prominent national abortion opponents.
“Policies ought to reflect our life-affirming values, so reasonable accommodations should always be made for new mothers — including those who are also senators,” March for Life President Jeanne Mancini told me, before adding she hopes that Duckworth will be applauded and will “inspire more expectant mothers to do the same.”
This support isn’t new. The anti-abortion movement has been very sensitive to criticism, often unfair, that it only cares about the mother and the baby before birth. In addition to creating pregnancy help centers that provide new mothers with the necessities of life — diapers, child care, and job training, for example — pro-lifers have tried to make their movement a larger national pro-family effort, supporting things like pregnancy tax credits, paid maternity leave, and childcare assistance.
Catherine Glenn Foster, president of Americans United for Life, says certain accommodations are necessary “in order to promote true equality for women in the workplace.”
“No woman should be pressured to choose between her child and her employment,” Foster said in a statement. “Workplaces should do whatever they can to support women, so they are empowered to be successful in all aspects of their lives.”
While these groups want to empower Duckworth on the Senate floor, they couldn’t be more opposed to her on the abortion issue. Throughout her entire career, the Illinois Democrat has been a favorite of the abortion rights organizations.
EMILY’s List, a national organization dedicated to electing pro-abortion female legislators, has backed her from the beginning. And Duckworth hasn’t earned anything less than a 100 percent rating from the likes National Abortion and Reproductive Rights Action League and the Planned Parenthood Action Fund.
Right now, though, it’s the pro-life groups ready to help Duckworth bring down the patriarchy. During a Thursday interview with CNN, Duckworth described reading the Senate rules like “living in the 19th century instead of the 21st.”
“My leadership of the Democratic Party have been very supportive,” Duckworth continued. “We’re going to request a rules change, so that during the first year of the child’s life, whether you’re a woman or a man, whether you’re breastfeeding or not, or you’ve adopted or something, you should be able to bring that child on to the floor and continue to do your job.”
With their pro-life allies behind Duckworth, Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-K.Y., and company might just be amenable.
