On Monday night, Rep. Eric Swalwell (D-CA) tweeted out a particularly fear-mongering ad from his campaign account in which a mother is pulled away from the dinner table and arrested in front of her husband and two children for having had an abortion. "MAGA Republicans want women arrested for having an abortion. This is what that looks like," the tweet claims.
MAGA Republicans want women arrested for having an abortion. This is what that looks like. #LockHerUp pic.twitter.com/YUD0swW8DE
— Eric Swalwell (@ericswalwell) October 18, 2022
There is just so much to unpack with how garbage this ad is, which people definitely took to noticing, as our friends at Twitchy highlighted earlier on Tuesday.
First and foremost, the basis of the ad is not true. No state or federal law, proposed or in effect, aims to arrest women for having an abortion. It is the abortion provider who is targeted in such laws. Alexandra DeSanctis and John McCormack have emphasized that point in recent months writing for National Review Online.
The pro-life movement has long believed that post-abortive women are the second victims of an abortion, which was reaffirmed in May with a letter spearheaded by National Right to Life (NRLC) which had over 70 signatories. The open letter was sent "to the nation’s state legislators urging them to reject legislation and policy initiatives that would impose criminal penalties on women who have abortions."
NRLC's Communications Director and Press Secretary Laura Echevarria also provided Townhall with a statement in light of Swalwell's ad. "Once again, Democrats like Eric Swalwell are engaging in fear mongering. Democrats are rolling out misinformation campaigns and ignoring the truth. The truth is that dozens of national and state pro-life organizations, representing tens of millions of pro-life men, women, and children across the country issued a joint letter in May of this year opposing any measure seeking to criminalize or punish women," she said. "The joint letter recognized that women who have abortions require compassion and support, not criminalization."
Cases where the woman was charged, such as the story making headlines in August with a mother and daughter out of Nebraska, involved charges beyond the chemical abortion that was done beyond the . As Leah highlighted at the time:
The mother is facing felony charges for carrying out an abortion after 20 weeks, doing so as a non-licensed doctor, removing/concealing/abandoning a dead human body, concealing the death of another person, and false reporting, reports CBS14.
The daughter is being charged as an adult with removing/concealing/abandoning a dead human body, concealing the death of another person, and false reporting.
Further, Swalwell is running for re-election in California's 14th Congressional District, having first been elected in 2012. It's a liberal district in a particularly liberal state. This includes and especially pertains to the issue of abortion.
Under the strict confines of Roe v. Wade, the United States was one of just seven nations that allowed for elective abortions past 20-weeks. Now that Roe was overturned in June with the Dobbs v. Jackson case, states can restrict abortion, and they can also leave it alone or expand it.
California is in the latter category, thanks in part to a particularly pro-abortion Gov. Gavin Newsom (D-CA) who is looking to turn the state into an abortion "sanctuary" and "safe haven." Last month, Newsom signed a series of abortion protections into law, including funds for abortion services and the decriminalization of afterbirth abortions.
As part of encouraging residents of other states to come to California for their abortions, Newsom put out billboard ads in other states. Some even included Bible verses, as Sarah and Leah highlighted last month.
California residents will also vote on a ballot initiative in November when it comes to protecting the so-called right to abortion by amending the state constitution.
Thus the ad is even more pointless in Swalwell's district and state, unless he's planning on running for president, again. We all know how well that turned out for him, given his run for the 2020 primary lasted only a few months.
Swalwell's ad, at least, does represent the Democrat's pro-abortion agenda that's become desperate and obsessive, especially while the country is worried about economic issues like record-high inflation.
As Spencer covered earlier, President Joe Biden unveiled his priority for the next Congress, which is to what he and fellow pro-abortion Democrats claim will codify Roe v. Wade into law. In reality, such legislation, the Women's Health Protection Act (WHPA) will expand Roe and invalidate pro-life laws passed at the state level.
Vice President Kamala Harris also has as particular fixation with the issue and has attended numerous pro-abortion events in the past several months.
The Biden administration's pro-abortion obsession has also taken root in other dangerous ways, due to the politicization and even weaponization of the Department of Justice (DOJ).
The DOJ is literally running around the country right now arresting abortion protesters in front of their families. https://t.co/dkncMH1gy1
— Mark Hemingway (@Heminator) October 18, 2022
This has never happened. But this is what it looks like when the Biden DOJ shows up at the home of a pro-life activist and arrests him in front of his screaming children.
— Mary Margaret Olohan (@MaryMargOlohan) October 18, 2022
That has happened multiple times now. https://t.co/IRcM6idJfn
Eric Swalwell literally paid to make an ad about what is actually happening to pro-life activists, but pretended that pro-lifers are the ones who are going to do it to abortion supporters. Incredible gaslighting
— Mary Margaret Olohan (@MaryMargOlohan) October 18, 2022
As many Twitter users pointed out about Swalwell's ad, women are not being arrested for their abortions like in the ad, but rather pro-life activists are, by the DOJ, and through dramatic means. Earlier this month, Mia shared a list of activists and exclusive footage of the arrest of a pro-life leader in front of his children.
"Swalwell" was trending on Twitter earlier on Tuesday, though the social media platform also had "#NoGOPAbortionBans" trending later in the day as well.
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