Choice

Cross-posted from The Huffington Post

In 1973, two really interesting things happened. On January 22, the landmark Supreme Court decision Roe v. Wade ruled that a woman's right to an abortion was protected under Constitutional privacy laws. And on March 18, I was born.

Forty years ago today, the Supreme Court issued its ruling on Roe v. Wade, protecting a woman's right to make decisions about her own body. Today, seven in ten Americans believe that ruling should stand. Ensuring women can decide when and how they start a family was pivotal in every success and milestone women have achieved over the last 40 years - and all the successes they're still achieving today.

It’s a big day in presidential politics. Republican presidential nominee Mitt Romney has chosen Wisconsin Congressman Paul Ryan as his running mate. The Vice President pick says a lot about a nominee’s legislative priorities, and with Ryan joining Romney on the ticket, we think there are a few things you should know.

In case you’ve been living in an alternate universe over the past week, here’s some groundbreaking news that you might have missed:

Vagina.

Okay, maybe not as earth shattering as you thought. But it’s all the rage … and, quite frankly, outrage. And while we ordinarily wouldn’t give so much attention to a human being’s actual biology, the story behind ‘the word’ deserves some attention.

Our Candidates

Readers of this blog are all-too-familiar with the GOP leadership’s assault on women’s rights and our access to healthcare. But beyond the press conferences and hearings and TV appearances all attempting to limit woman’s access to reproductive care, one DC council member is attempting to reduce abortions through increased access to contraception. David Catania introduced a bill on Tuesday that would end the long-running law requiring a doctor's authorization to obtain birth control pills and instead allow women to purchase them directly from a pharmacist.

New York Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand is racking up even more endorsements for her 2010 election. Gillibrand, who was appointed in January to be the state's freshman senator after Hillary Clinton was named secretary of state, was endorsed by Planned Parenthood yesterday.

From their letter of endorsement:

The past week has been unfortunate for women's rights and reproductive health. On Friday night the super strict abortion law passed by the Virginia Legislature took effect. The new regulations mean that the 22 clinics that perform abortions now must comply with building codes that may require medical facilities to be rebuilt, renovated, or moved. It’s a thinly-veiled attempt by anti-choice activists to shut down clinics that don’t have the funds to meet these new regulations.