The Republican Party of Wyoming has an issue with a bill.
What is the bill aimed to do?
It seeks to implement a minimum age requirement for marriage as the new law
across the state, inside the state legislature, they don't like that.
They have an issue with that.
Wait until you find out what their issue is with setting some sort of minimum age
on marriage.
The bill is sponsored by Representative Dan Zwonitzer, a Republican.
So, note that there's disagreement within the party here,
would raise the state's legal marriage age to 18 years old.
There's an exception card for 16 and
17 year olds provided they receive consent from a parent or guardian.
He says it is audacious for the Republican Party to suggest that as soon as you can
give birth to a child, you should be allowed to get married.
There are 12 and 13 year olds in the country who wind up with pregnancies and
we certainly don't want them to be able to get married, in my opinion.
Well, don't be so
certain because plenty of people think that's the most reasonable thing ever.
The Wyoming Republican Party sent out a mass email last Thursday arguing that
the law raises quote, concerns about constitutional rights and
denies quote, the fundamental purpose of marriage as well as parental rights.
Marriage is the only institutional Wyoming statute designed to keep a child's
father and mother living under the same roof and cooperating in the raising of any
children that they together conceive, that is the natural right of every child.
I think in that sentence, they mean the child that will be raised, but
I would remind them, you're also talking about a child getting married.
So maybe bear in mind both children, anyway, there's some more back and forth.
They really do think, it's effectively,
it's Matt Walsh's political philosophy write large across the state legislature,
if they're old enough for breeding, I guess they can tie the knot.
And he advocates for it.
So what do you think Francesca?
>> I mean, yeah, just child brides.
I don't wanna continue with the, you all, kinda, but
you have to draw the lines the similarities between the so
called terrorists and the backwards religion of Islam and these,
supposed Christians who also believe in child brides, right?
The ISIS in the child brides and putting aside all the islamophobia involved in
that, then you see it happen here in this country.
And so here's what I will say.
I think the Republican Party is right in terms of how their ideology is
lining up here.
And I think this guy Representatives Zwanitzer,
I think he might be off a little bit, because if you do believe that a 13
year old does not have the right to terminate a pregnancy,
then you really can't restrict that 13 year old from marrying,
it doesn't mean you require them to be married.
And we could go back and forth on what age one should be
at before they can fully decide whether they wanna be married.
I say 35.
>> [LAUGH] >> I mean that's between my two marriages.
So that's sort of when I was, yes this is what I wanna do.
But if you're gonna do forced birth, then at least allow a woman,
a child the ability to make the decision whether they wanna
live in a family and raise a family with their partner.
>> So I will say, we were speculating in there a little bit of speculation
about what his position on is on abortion.
So I'm looking it up, and
I'm finding he was rated 0% by the Wyoming family alliance.
I don't know the Wyoming family alliance, but I know generally what groups are like
when their name is something like Wyoming family alliance.
He voted nay on requiring an ultrasound prior to an abortion.
He voted nay on providing information to abortion patients, gee.
I wonder what kind of information.
So I don't know, he appears to be on the other side of that issue.
I don't know for sure, this is based on the research, I didn't initially consider
it super important, but you're right to raised the question.
In any event on this issue we know that he appears to be on
a slightly more reasonable side.
In any event one other thing I wanted to mention though,
cuz obviously this is just one state that's considering this.
There are eight states, including Wyoming,
that do not have a hardline minimum age requirements.
Some of them, you won't be super surprised.
Maybe Mississippi, Oklahoma,
West Virginia, but also California, spicy.
I do also wanna point out that this sort of thing is very important if it
affects you.
It's not that the numbers are so big.
In Wyoming, I think in the last year of reporting,
there were 20 marriages involving someone who is 18 or younger.
So it is not an incredibly rare thing.
Bear that in mind.
Out of the number of marriages that they do per year.
Final point goes to you.
>> Final point is no 13 year old should get married.
[LAUGH] That's all I have to say.
I don't care what their parents say.
And half of this is also creep old dudes who are, well,
if I just pay the mortgage off for their parents, I can buy the child like that.
You know it's creepy older dudes,
we're trying to also skirt maybe statutory rape laws by marrying their victims.
It's all kinds of gross.
>> How many years do you think that Leonardo DiCaprio should have
to wait then?
Anyway, that's gonna be it for, I heard he was dating a 19 year old.
It's just so weird, anyway,
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