Katherine Clark: “Ever since the minutemen gathered in Lexington, America's Armed Forces have been guardians of freedom. Generations of…”

“Ever since the minutemen gathered in Lexington, America's Armed Forces have been guardians of freedom. Generations of heroes have signed up for a singular cause: preserving liberty for all. Regardless of party or politics, the House has come together every year to put our national security and our military families first--until now. This year, the MAGA majority is using our national defense bill to get one step closer to the only thing they really care about, a nationwide abortion ban. Mr. Chair, Americans are already paying the price for Republicans' extremism; Americans like Amanda Zarowski who rushed to the hospital last year after suffering a miscarriage. Amanda needed an abortion procedure to prevent a deadly infection, but her doctor sent her home, banned under Texas law from providing the care she needed. So she waited, mourning her daughter that she had lost, until she went into septic shock, ended up in the ICU for 3 days, and almost lost her life. Now MAGA Republicans are aiming the same dangerous extremism at our troops. They want the same control over the health, body, and lives of America's servicemembers and their families. That is not freedom. That is not patriotism. That is not national security. That is tyranny.”