Sen. Steve Daines (R-Mont.) attracted ridicule this week after he compared women and fetuses to sea turtles, eagles and their eggs as he argued against a bill proposed by Democrats that would guarantee the right to abortion under federal law.
According to Daines’ analogy, which was delivered on the Senate floor complete with a visual aid, the legislation would give fetuses fewer protections than turtle and eagle eggs.
“If you were to take or destroy the eggs of a sea turtle, now I said the eggs. Not the hatchlings, that’s also a [unintelligible], the criminal penalties are severe. Up to $100,000 fine and a year in prison. Now why?” Daines said. “Why do we have laws in place that protect the eggs of a sea turtle or the eggs of eagles? Because when you destroy an egg, you’re killing a preborn baby sea turtle or a preborn baby eagle.”
