The Next, Pro-Choice Cabinet?
http://www.truthout.org/111208WA
Now that election excitement has died down, the attention of the
politically obsessed has turned to speculation about who might be
tapped to fill key leadership positions in President-Elect Barack
Obama's Cabinet. For the sexual and reproductive health community,
the
past eight years has made it clear that we have to worry about much
more than just who fills the secretary position at the Health and
Human Services.
First, it's important to remember exactly how bad the Bush years
were for the sexual and reproductive health community. Tommy
Thompson,
secretary of Health and Human Services during Bush's first term,
advocated including "unborn children" in the state health insurance
program. After Thompson departed, Bush appointed anti-choice Michael
Leavitt to replace him; Leavitt recently proposed regulations that
would "protect" doctors and nurses from providing abortion services
and prescribing hormonal contraception. Let's not forget that Bush
also temporarily appointed Susan Orr, of anti-birth control Family
Research Council fame, to head up administering the nation's family
planning program and before her Eric Keroack, someone with a history
of opposing birth control, to be Deputy Assistant Secretary of
Population Affairs at the Department of Health and Human Services.
Keroack resigned a few months later after Medicaid filed a lawsuit
against him. Andrew von Eschenbach, Bush's pick for commissioner of
the Food and Drug Administration, opposed the over-the-sale approval
of emergency contraception.
Bush's shredding of women's health and rights extended beyond
HHS.
He signed the federal Partial-Birth Abortion Ban into law and
appointed two judges that voted to uphold the legislation as
constitutional. His attorney general, John Ashcroft subpoenaed
thousands of women's medical records in its pursuit of upholding the
ban. But Bush's influence over sexual and reproductive health wasn't
just restricted to domestic policy. In addition to his war on birth
control and other forms of contraception at home, Bush instituted a
policy that prevented clinics abroad to discuss abortion with their
patients or even accept pro-choice funding. This later became known
as
the Global Gag Rule.
Given Bush's record, the Obama administration needs not only to
undo eight years of damage in addition to taking bold strides on
women's health issues.
The Next Cabinet
Although we're just days from Obama's election, many are already
speculating about who might fill the president-elect's positions on
the highest levels. A few who have been suggested for the Health and
Human Services secretary position: former South Dakota Sen. Tom
Daschle, National Democratic Committee Chairman Howard Dean, and
Kansas Gov. Kathleen Sebelius. This is potentially an important
cabinet position if Obama is able to pass some kind of health care
reform package, as the HHS secretary would be responsible for
overseeing its implementation. All speculated candidates are pro-
choice; Daschle and Sebelius have both been leaders in the health
care
reform movement.
Daschle is clearly the favored choice, since he has made several
policy proposals during his position as a senior fellow at the Center
for American Progress. In a book released this year called Critical:
What We Can Do About the Health-Care Crisis, Daschle proposed a
Federal Health Board, an independent body for overseeing health care
regulation, similar to how the Federal Reserve is situated to oversee
economic regulation.
Implementing policy that affects women isn't just confined to the
Department of Health and Human Services. Since the secretary of state
is also responsible for implementing many foreign aid packages that
affect women's health, the position becomes vital to the advancement
of sexual and reproductive health. Two of those Obama is said to be
considering are Sen. Richard G. Lugar and Sen. Chuck Hagel. Both are
Republicans that have earned a zero percent rating from NARAL Pro-
Choice America. Democrats that Obama is likely considering are Sen.
John Kerry and New Mexico Gov. Bill Richardson, who both ran on pro-
choice platforms during their presidential campaigns. Kerry seems to
be a leading candidate to fill the position.
Those considered for attorney general are former Clinton Attorney
General Eric Holder, Rep. Artur Davis, a socially conservative and
anti-choice Southern Democrat, and Gov. Janet Napolitano, who has
been
congratulated by NARAL for protecting access to birth control in
Arizona.
Beth Fredrick, executive vice president for the International
Women's Health Coalition, noted that while politicos speculate about
individuals that might fill important positions, it is important to
think about these various departments as working together.
"[Discussions about who might fill cabinet positions] have been
stratified between international and domestic appointments,"
Frederick
said. "Department of State is seen as one category of important
appointments for the international side and the Department of Health
and the Department of Justice are seen as important for the domestic
issues. Ideally we'd like to see candidates in both departments have
the same kind of qualifications, similarly we'd like to see it cut
across health and human rights."
But it's not just departments that should think about working
together. Frederick notes that there is an "opportunity between
synergy for cabinet appointments and other appointments like World
Bank and officials at the United Nations." Much of the work of State
Department is tied to the work of international non-governmental
organizations like the IMF and the World Bank, as well as an
internationalist community like the United Nations.
Frederick also notes that in a shrinking budget, she fears that
funding for programs affecting women might be cut, and heads of
programs or departments will be forced to make difficult choices
about
how to spend that money. She'd like to see reproductive and sexual
health prioritized as these economic strains push more Americans onto
government programs. "We need to invest our money wisely," she said.
One way to do that is to ensure women have access to birth control
and
other preventative services.
What is important is to remember how much damage appointees - and
not just cabinet members, but also lower level officials that might
be
called upon to administer specific programs - can do if they don't
have respect for women's health and sexuality. They can also do
incredible good if they can manage the departments well. Obama's
choices will resonate with women around the world for years to come.
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