By Ray Hagar Nevada Newsmakers
Wednesday, September 28, 2022
For more Nevada Newsmakers, click here.
In 1990, Nevada voters approved women's right to an abortion up to 24 weeks into pregnancy, with a general-election vote of 63.5 percent, records show.
U.S. Sen. Jacky Rosen, however, warned Tuesday on Nevada Newsmakers that Nevada's law will become a moot point if a federal abortion bill proposed by Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., becomes law.
"If this nationwide bill of Sen. Graham goes in, it would overrule, supersede the will of the Nevada voters," Rosen told host Sam Shad.
Rosen, the only member of Nevada's federal delegation who is not up for re-election this year, warned voters to look past what Republicans are saying about abortion during the campaign season.
"Let's be clear, Sen. Graham, the extreme MAGA Republicans, they are doing what they said they were going to do. They want to implement a nationwide abortion ban. And you can see candidates or other legislators around the country, during the election, trying to walk back things they have said during their primaries. Adam Laxalt called (the reversal) of Roe v Wade an historic win, I believe it is what he said."
Laxalt said it is "a falsehood that I would support a federal ban on abortion as a U.S. senator," in an opinion piece published by the Reno Gazette Journal in early August.
Yet at a June 6 pancake breakfast with pastors and faith leaders in Reno, Laxalt called the 1973 Roe v. Wade decision “a joke” and said it’s “sad” that Nevada is not anti-abortion, according to the Nevada Independent.
Rosen warned that some in the GOP are changing their stances to appeal to a general-election electorate.
"I think we have to take them at their word: Watch what they (Republicans) said in the past, not what they are trying to say now," she said. "They know it is unpopular, particularly unpopular in Nevada. And they all will vote with Sen. Graham on this."
Graham's bill, which would bar abortions after 15 weeks of pregnancy, would allow for exceptions to the abortion ban for rape, incest, or to protect the physical health of the mother, according to reports.
Graham has made it clear this is a federal issue, not a states' rights issue.
"This is not a states' rights issue. This is a human rights issue," Graham said on Fox. "I don't care what California does on most things. I care here. I am not going to sit on the sidelines in Washington, D.C., and tell the pro-life community, 'Washington is closed for business.'"
Rosen predicts "women will die" if Graham's bill becomes law.
"So we have to look at what the Republicans, typically the MAGA Republicans are doing," she said. "This is rigid and it is harmful, these nationwide abortion bans. Women will die. Women will go to an emergency room with a complication during pregnancy and who will they call? A lawmaker or lawyer to decide if the doctor can give care right there in the emergency room? And so we have to stop these extreme bans."
Ukraine situation
Democrats are divided in their opinions on shipping long range missiles to Ukraine to help in their fight against an invading Russian army, according to reports. The Biden administration is opposed to sending long range missiles to Ukraine, fearing they would be used on targets within Russia, possibly provoking a stronger response.
Rosen, a member of the Senate Armed Services Committee, said the question is tied to NATO's Article 5, which states all NATO nations would come to the defense of a NATO partner under attack. Ukraine is not a NATO partner country. However, some fear Russia may attack a nearby NATO nation like Poland or Lithuania if Western nations increase the weaponry and technology given to Ukraine.
"I think we have to see if they (long range missile systems) will put any Article 5 issues at risk," Rosen said. "That would mean NATO going in and declaring war. Would it push that Article 5? Would it push it for Putin?
"We have to look at the global situation," Rosen continued. "This is why we work with our allies and partners to determine the kind of help that we can give Ukraine so they can fight the battle and they can win. And so I think we will leave those recommendations (for long-range missiles) to the military experts, along with our allies and partners, working with the State Department, to help them provide the help they need to win but is not going to escalate the situation."
Rosen also pushed back on the notion that because the U.S. is providing so much aid to Ukraine, we are already at war with Russia.
"I would not say we are in a war with Russia at this point," she said. "We are working with our NATO partners and allies. We are trying to be sure that Vladimir Putin gets the message that we won't tolerate this kind of brutality, this unprovoked invasion, and won't give him any idea that he can continue his march into Europe or anyplace else he decides to go. So I think we need to hold the line, hold him there and let him know – unequivocally – that the world will not stand for his brutality.
"So maybe it is not so much a war with Vladimir Putin as it is a warning – that we won't tolerate this and we'll hold the line right here, right now, with military help, with humanitarian help, with financial sanctions, (with) every single way we can to isolate Putin on the world stage and let him know the world will not tolerate this behavior."
When asked what would happen if Putin gets desperate or backed into a corner, Rosen said:
"I think Vladimir Putin is smart. He understands the line that maybe he should not cross that would provoke, not just Article 5, but provide countries all around the world to come out against him."
Abraham Accords
Rosen praised the Abraham Accords, which was one of the Trump administration's top foreign policy victories, helping normalize relations and establishing full diplomatic relations among Israel, the United Arab Emirates and Bahrain in 2020.
Rosen, one of the co-founders of the Abraham Accords caucus in the U.S. Senate, said the Israeli-Arab agreement's influence extends beyond the Middle East.
"It is not just the region that benefits from this," she said. "I would say the whole world benefits from stability in the Middle East. As you know, there are so many issues there."
Rosen plans a trip to the Middle East to check on how the Accords are working.
"We are hoping to lead a Senate delegation to the Abraham Accords countries early next year to talk about our cultural ties and strengthen our military and economic ties with those countries."
Rosen would also like to broaden the Accords to include other nations.
"We're going to continue to move forward," she said. "We have good, strong bipartisan support with that and I look forward to working on it."
