MSNBC's Claire McCaskill: Republicans want 'dogs sniffing women at airports' to stop out-of-state abortions
The former Missouri senator previewed primary elections in her state
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}MSNBC analyst Claire McCaskill attacked Republicans supporting "extreme" bans on abortion while appearing on "Chris Jansing Reports" on Tuesday.
The former Missouri senator rebuked recent efforts from the GOP in certain states enacting abortion bans following the overturning of Roe v. Wade in June. With her state enacting strict abortion laws and several states' primary elections underway, McCaskill suggested that this could be a turning point for voting.
"This is different. And I do think, the phrase keeps being used, but it’s apt, I think the dog caught the car. And now it’s kind of flipped, the motivation, the anger, the disappointment, especially when states like Missouri do such extreme laws. I mean, this is a tough subject. Reasonable people can disagree about parts of the issue of legal abortions," McCaskill said.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Although she claimed "reasonable" people can disagree about abortion, she accused Republicans of wanting to criminalize women and people who help them obtain abortions out of state.
Claire McCaskill became an MSNBC analyst after losing her U.S. Senate seat in Missouri to Josh Hawley. (Getty Images)
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"But most Missourians, most Kansans, most Americans want rape victims to be able to terminate a pregnancy. They don’t want dogs sniffing women at airports to see if they are traveling to have an abortion. They don’t want civil posses out looking to find people who have enabled someone to get a safe and legal abortion and take after them in court. This is the kind of stuff that Republicans are doing now," McCaskill said.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Kansas is holding a referendum on an amendment to the state constitution that would deny the right to an abortion Tuesday.
Further on, McCaskill claimed that the abortion issue could help Democrats not only win in Kansas but hold on to power in the November midterm elections.
Abortion-rights protesters gather outside the Supreme Court in Washington, Friday, June 24, 2022. The Supreme Court has ended constitutional protections for abortion that had been in place nearly 50 years, a decision by its conservative majority to overturn the court's landmark abortion case. (AP Photo/Jose Luis Magana)
"They are going to such an extreme, I think it is really going to help the Democrats not only today but also in November in terms of holding on to power in Washington, D.C. I could be wrong, but when the Catholic Church puts a million dollars, the Catholic Church put a million dollars in this campaign in Kansas, in a state where there are all kinds of needs for the poor, I think that causes a lot of head-scratching," she said.
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McCaskill previously criticized the Texas Heartbeat Act in 2021 that banned abortions after six weeks, when a fetal heartbeat can be detected. While it did not overturn Roe v. Wade at the time, it was considered by some to be "a workaround" since the Supreme Court rejected efforts to stop its implementation.
Former Sen. Claire McCaskill has frequently defended President Joe Biden during his administration. (AP Photo/Jeff Roberson)
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{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}"It shouldn't be a tip of the hat. It should be condemnation. That they are trying to take 50 years of Supreme Court precedent and throw it out by creating a private police that can invade women's life at the most personal, private and difficult moment they ever face," McCaskill commented at the time.
Fox News’ Cortney O’Brien contributed to this report.