This Lawmaker's Implications About Rape & Incest Are Unacceptable

Here we go again: After proposing a restrictive new anti-abortion regulation, an Oklahoma lawmaker implied rape and incest are "the will of God," and that pregnancies resulting from rape or incest are "beauty out of ashes." This time, the legislator in question was state Republican Rep. George Faught, who introduced a bill that would make it a crime for doctors to perform abortions motivated by the presence of (or potential for) fetal abnormalities, with no exceptions allowed for cases of rape or incest.

During a floor debate on Friday, a supporter of the legislation asserted that "abortion offends God, plain and simple," which prompted one of the bill's opponents, Democratic Rep. Cory Williams, to ask Faught if rape is "the will of God." After hesitating uncomfortably for a solid six seconds, Faught replied.

"Well, you know, if you read the Bible, there's actually a couple circumstances where that happened, and the Lord uses all circumstances," Faught said. "I mean, you can go down that path, but it's a reality, unfortunately." After some more back and forth, Faught attempted to clarify.

"Obviously, if [rape or incest] happens in someone's life, it may not be the best thing that's ever happened," Faught said, seemingly unaware of what an appalling understatement that was. "But you're saying that God is not sovereign with every activity that happens in someone's life, and can't use everything and anything in someone's life, and I disagree with that."

After the inevitable controversy surrounding his comments, Fraught released a statement that didn't make things any better.

"Life, no matter how it is conceived, is valuable and something to be protected," the Republicans lawmaker said. "Let me be clear, God never approves of rape or incest. However, even in the worst circumstances, God can bring beauty from ashes."

Unfortunately, the idea that pregnancies resulting from rape or incest are still a gift from God — and therefore, that women shouldn't be allowed to terminate them — is a common trope amongst anti-choice politicians. In 2012, for example, Indiana Republican Senate candidate Richard Mourdock said that "even when life begins in that horrible situation of rape, that it is something that God intended to happen." He was rightly criticized for that, and thankfully, lost that election.

Justice wasn't so swift in Oklahoma, however. Despite the controversy surrounding Fraught's remarks, his bill passed the state House of Representatives, and now heads to the state Senate where it could become one step closer to being law.