Missouri bill would require father's permission for a woman to get an abortion [View all]

[AngryDem001]

Source: Kansas City Star

JEFFERSON CITY, Mo.

A bill filed this month would require pregnant women to get permission from the father before having an abortion except in cases of incest and what the Missouri Republican who sponsored the legislation called "legitimate rape."

If passed, state Rep. Rick Brattin's bill would require women to obtain notarized written permission from the father to terminate a pregnancy. The mandate would be waived for rape and incest. An identical bill by the Harrisonville lawmaker died in committee last session.

"Just like any rape, you have to report it, and you have to prove it," Brattin told Mother Jones in a statement that drew criticism from state Democrats. "So you couldn't just go and say, 'Oh yeah, I was raped,' and get an abortion. It has to be a legitimate rape."

Brattin's comments led to comparisons to former Republican U.S. Rep. Todd Akin, who said in 2012 that women's bodies have ways of not becoming pregnant from what he called "legitimate rape."



Read more: http://www.kansascity.com/news/government-politics/article4576564.html