As we all know, the fewer choices available to women about their health, the better. John Kasich, current GOP candidate, in his term as Ohio's governor, has heroically been able to shut down 8 out of 16 surgical abortion providers in his state, an accomplishment so great that only Texas has been able to beat his record. Although he has stated that he is pro-life except in cases of rape or incest, he's well on his way to make sure that no matter what the circumstance is, women, especially poor women, will have no other option but to carry through with pregnancy.
By grand order of the universe, every single woman of reproductive age is impenetrable to all negative socio-economic forces and is, therefore able and willing to maintain a diet high in vitamins and nutrients, devoid of alcohol or drugs, to fulfill her purpose in life and give birth to a healthy child. Since all children are born perfect and cost-effective, raising a child and being able to sufficiently provide for that child's health and wellness is the easiest part. And all the gifts they'll get at the baby shower! Pregnant women truly have it all.
Despite these facts, Kasich has opposed bills restricting abortions before. House Bill 69, which included a segment outlawing abortions if a fetal heartbeat can be detected (something that can occur as early as six weeks into pregnancy) was opposed by Kasich, for his preference over more incremental infringements on the Supreme-Court-supported woman's right to choose that have a lower probability of getting shut down in the courts.
Michigan, Ohio's neighbor, is one of two states in America where rates of abortions have gone up. Although some might say that because now that women in Ohio have decreased access to abortions, they have stopped needed abortions altogether, the 86% increase in out-of-state patients for abortions in Michigan, likely hailing from Kasich's fair kingdom, tells us another story. But what exactly is the state of Ohio doing that is rendering them inadequate in providing for the needs of their citizens?
By mandating that all women intending to pursue abortion must see or hear their fetus's heartbeat 24 hours before the procedure, it's clear that Kasich's pro-life stance even goes so far as to protect women from the lives they could be living if they weren't subject to emotionally manipulative and medically unnecessary ultrasounds.
His ban on transfer agreements between abortion centers and public hospitals especially highlights his commitment to women's health and safety.
Abortion centers must have a partner hospital that they transfer their patients to if there are complications in the abortion procedure. The subsequent scramble for a new partner hospital after longstanding agreements involving public hospitals was suddenly voided has proven so difficult that five abortion clinics have had to close their doors already. Despite the fact that if an ambulance were called, hospitals would be federally mandated to see an emergency patient, rendering this legislation null, now those empty lots that once held abortion centers can be converted to something more needed, like an Applebees.
This implication that, on paper, the state has the right to turn away women if they need medical attention really highlights the I-don't-care-about-women's-lives portion of Kasich's pro-life position. That being said, Kasich, viewed as a moderate by some, has done his best this presidential race to express his aggressive pro-life stance and accomplishments in this field with such assertions as "I am pro-life" and "[Conservatives] focus too much on [abortion]". His failure to present himself and his views accurately highlight his fearless leadership and should inspire us all. Let us rise to the king of deception; All hail Kasich.
