The reason the Democrats want this issue to be out of the hands
of the voters is quite obvious, because the modern Democrat
party is wildly out of step with the American people.
>> Yes, that is Senator Ted Cruz again parroting the line that Republicans
are now parroting, which is Democrats stand for abortion at age one of a child?
I don't know, alive of abortion, tight.
So there he is, and that was at a Senate Judiciary hearing on abortion access in
the wake of the many dozens of bans that have gone into effect across this country.
And, as we await the ruling from the Supreme Court around mifepristone,
abortion pills which are widely used and very safe.
But again and a radical judge appointed by Trump has overturned their FDA approval.
So, we're waiting on that.
But of course Ted Cruz is getting one in here to regurgitate that line,
and we'll go into why he's completely wrong.
But immediately, just a few moments later, one of his own constituents
decided to check him on who exactly is out of step with the American people.
This is Amanda Zurawski, who talked about her own story in this speech.
Take a look.
>> I wanted to address my senators, Cruz and Cornyn, neither of whom, regrettably,
are in the room right now.
But I would like for them to know that what happened to me,
I think most people in this room would agree, was horrific.
But it's a direct result of the policies that they support.
>> So that's Amanda there.
I wanna just roll right into what she talks about because
she herself had an at-risk pregnancy, and this is what she went through.
>> I nearly died on their watch.
And furthermore, as a result of what happened to me,
I may have been robbed of the opportunity to have children in the future.
And it's because of the policies that they support.
What happened to me was horrible but I am one of many.
And quite frankly, I'm lucky.
I'm lucky that I have a husband that could take me to the hospital,
I don't have other children that I had to worry about finding health care for,
I have a job that was understanding, that allowed me to grieve for
three days as I waited to almost die.
What about all of the women that don't have those same opportunities?
That don't have access to health care, that don't have health insurance,
that don't have a partner.
What about them?
>> Exactly, and we'll talk more about the state of those women in Texas.
But Zurawski is suing Texas, actually, for
withholding an abortion as her pregnancy complications became dire.
She said she'd been told that her baby would not survive but
doctors said they couldn't offer more care because fetal cardiac activity
could still be detected, according to her suit.
Zurawski eventually developed sepsis, and doctors induced labor.
She gave birth and the baby died.
And she, as you see there, she lived.
But only barely.
And as she talks about and refers to, she potentially could have lost the ability
to have kids again by losing her actual uterus.
Something happening to her, preventing her from being able to have kids.
Just as a reminder, Texas has a six-week abortion ban.
And Senators Cruz and Cornyn, who were both on the Judiciary Committee,
who were both there in the room when that hearing started,
nowhere to be found when she actually testified.
Cenk, just thoughts on this.
I'm glad she's suing.
I'm just happy, this is what we need to do in this country.
Our only recourse is suing these a-holes to death.
I'm sorry, the only way you get Fox News to admit any kind of wrongdoing, did they?
Not really, but it's the only way you get them to do something.
It's the only way we're gonna move forward on this.
But I wanted to get your thoughts.
>> Yeah, by the way, that's partly why they're so
hell bent on strangling the court system.
Cuz it's the only place where you have just a tiny bit of a shot at justice.
Cuz our politicians are never going to do about anything about anything other than
pass more regressive laws.
Taking away rights from women,
taking away rights from LGBTQ individuals, that's all Republicans ever do.
When's the last time they pass a bill that helped someone?
That actually affirmatively helped a United States citizen?
Never, other than, of course,
the incredibly rich who got giant trillions of dollars in tax cuts.
But anyways, now this is such an important story.
Look, the reason why the doctors didn't do anything is because the fetus
still had a pulse that I don't know if at that point medically it's a heartbeat,
or if it's the earlier pulse that's not actually a heart at all, right?
This is about four and a half months into her pregnancy.
And so they're like, well, look, we can be prosecuted.
This is the state of Texas, this could ruin our lives if we do this operation.
But the water broke, there is a 0% chance she's going to deliver that baby.
She's four months pregnant.
I'm not exaggerating, it's not hyperbole.
There is a 0% chance that that baby can be born alive, okay?
And by the way, there is a near 100% chance that she's going
to get an infection once the water breaks.
>> Yeah.
>> They almost let her die.
Look, you can blame the doctors, but the doctors are like,
I didn't pass the goddamn law.
I hate the goddamn law, right?
But the law will ruin my life if I do this, so what do you want me to do?
And the woman's like, I'm about to goddamn it,
I'm about to die, and I want to have other kids.
And the Republicans go, we don't care about you, we don't care about you at all.
We just wanna possess your body and
force you to do things that make no sense at all.
Because that way we have power over you, we have dominion over you.
This is super sick.
>> I totally agree with you but it makes me so
mad at healthcare providers in general.
Also who are only looking out for themselves, and
often are associated with larger hospitals.
Smaller clinics have been forced to be shut down,
clinics that actually work on women's health.
Those are the ones who listen to patients, and aren't necessarily crazy worried.
They are worried, but they aren't as worried about the backlash.
They're more focused on the human rights aspect of this.
The reason I say that is cuz look at what happened in this case,
the baby had a very low chance of surviving.
In fact, would not survive.
It doesn't matter if you have a heartbeat,
you need a bunch of other stuff to be around.
Look, talk to Dick Cheney.
That dude does not have a heartbeat anymore.
And he's like, look, I'm living.
You know what I'm saying?
Heartbeat is not a sign that you can survive outside of the womb.
Although I'm sure if you put Dick Cheney in a womb, it wouldn't help.
That's a separate point.
What did they do?
They induced labor, Cenk.
They didn't give her an abortion, they induced labor so
she would actually deliver the baby.
They could have done that before she was in sepsis.
But no, they're too afraid to do that.
So I totally hear you.
They're afraid, I get it.
They don't wanna lose their medical license, but
I feel like we're in end times?
We're in very dire times for women.
We're gonna need people to be courageous and do things that yeah,
it might cost them, but you also might save a life.
>> Yeah, and look, that's a great point, Francesca.
Because oftentimes it's not the doctor making the decision,
it's the hospital making the decision.
It's the executive making the decision.
And do they care about, my God, Dr. Bob, we care so much about you?
Maybe a little bit, right?
But do they care about being sued?
Yes, a lot.
And so, they're worried they're gonna lose money if they do that life saving
operation, cuz of the laws that Texas has passed.
And no one f's with the profit motive.
So, that's definitely part of this story as well.
But the most important thing is don't pass barbaric laws that
cause great danger to the life of women.
Look, in politics, unfortunately, optics matters too.
So, I wish that people listened to everyone, no matter what they look like,
what their perspective was, what their background was, etc.
But we don't live in that world, which sucks.
But she looks like, I'm keeping it real with you guys,
like a standard white lady that all of America can relate to.
They should have her tell that story to everyone nonstop
to save other people's lives.
There's something about humans that if the person telling
the story doesn't look like them, they dismiss it, right?
And for a lot of women in this country,
they're gonna hear that story coming from her and go, wow, that is brutal.
If somebody did that to me, I would be horrified.
And she might not be able to have kids, what part of this is pro life?
So, you got to get the word out.
Absolutely.
>> That's so important.
Very quickly, she understands her privilege and she says, I had health care.
Let's remember Texas has the highest uninsured rate in the country when it
comes to health care, this was back in 2022.
You can bet this was late September, it's still looked that case.
In 2021, one in four women of childbearing age, so
almost 25%, in Texas was uninsured.
And then let's skip down to graphic 6.
What about women who were pregnant or are pregnant, had kids?
Most Texas women whose pregnancies were covered by public insurance suffered
a lack of coverage during the first year after delivery.
A very critical year, of course, not just for them, but for their families.
If they're nursing, I should know.
So, Texas doesn't care about women.
It doesn't care about children, it doesn't care about pregnant women,
it just cares about, again, controlling women's bodies, and pretending to care
about the unborn, until of course, the time that they're actually born.
And lastly, Ted Cruz is wrong.
We just have to end this segment by saying Ted Cruz is wrong.
The Democrats are not out of step with the majority of American people.
In fact, 62% of Americans say abortion should be legal in all or most cases,
and they disapprove of the Supreme Court's decision to overturn Roe v Wade.
Six in ten.
Nearly six in ten disapprove of that ruling.
So we shall see how they come down on things like mifepristone.
Again, one of the safest ways to have an abortion.
We're watching it crumble before our very eyes.
And I think you're right, Cenk.
She should be on every single news channel,
every single program talking about the exact same thing.
And it only is a matter of time before this happens to someone Republicans love,
their family member, and maybe they'll change their tune.
I don't know.
>> By the way, the country is even more pro choice than it realizes.
Cuz when they ask about mifepristone,
which is the most common way of getting an abortion in this day and
age, the polling is like over 80% saying that it should be legal.
Well, that means you're pro choice.
The other day a Republican on air was like, well,
I don't believe in having an abortion.
But of course people should be allowed to have choice.
That's why I'm pro life.
I'm like, no, you're not.
You're pro choice.
You just don't even understand the concept.
No, if you think other people should be allowed to get an abortion,
then you're pro choice.
So, it's super frustrating talking to people who don't understand these issues.
Anyways, the overwhelming majority of the American people,
either way, are on the side of pro choice.
Look, if you're doubting us, that it's about having control over
women's bodies and you think, well, golly gee,
I know some people who have real religious objections to this cuz God said it.
Did he?
I'll say for the millionth time, go find your Bible, read Numbers 511 through 31.
The Bible is 100% in favor of abortion.
God orders you to do an abortion if you think your wife has cheated on you.
So, they're lying about every single part of it.
>> And in this case, it's when Republicans cheat on their wives they do abortions.
It's fun how things shift.
>> Yeah, there was a convenient misreading of that text.
Exactly.
All right, but definitely God is in favor of abortion.
Look it up.
Don't ask me, ask God.
Go look in your own Bible.