Peter Schorsch
Minutes after the Florida House approved a Senate amendment to a contentious abortion-restrictions bill, U.S> Rep. Alan Grayson let loose with a Twitter post quoting the television show VEEP.
“If men got pregnant, you could get an abortion at an ATM,” read the post, quoting the show’s lead character, Selena Meyer, played by Julia Louis-Dreyfus.
The tweet immediately drew fire from the center-right group Better Florida Alliance.
“Abortion is no laughing matter. Given Grayson’s past treatment of pregnant women comes as no surprise that his understanding of health policy comes from a sitcom,” said BFA spokesman Brian Burgess. “The reality in Florida is that there are far more safety regulations governing Alan Grayson’s routine colonoscopy than there are protecting women at abortion clinics. Women facing difficult choices should expect the same level of safety as everyone else.”
The reference to Grayson’s “past treatment of pregnant women” stems from recently uncovered testimony in an old employment lawsuit over the alleged wrongful termination of a pregnant woman by one of Grayson’s clients. During the protracted legal battle, Grayson subpoenaed records from the plaintiff’s gynecologist, as well as credit card receipts, looking for evidence of the date on which she started buying maternity clothes.
“Alan Grayson holds himself out to be a champion of women’s rights, but his record is pathetic, and his half-hearted attempt at humor today is just another example that he doesn’t deserve to be in Congress, and certainly not in the U.S. Senate,” Burgess added.
In recent months, the Better Florida Alliance has also attacked U.S. Rep. Patrick Murphy who is Grayson’s rival in the Democratic primary for U.S. Senate. The group blasted Murphy for his opposition to the use of military force against ISIS, a claim that Murphy immediately denounced as un
