House Speaker Mike Johnson blocked an effort by a fellow Republican lawmaker that would have allowed women in Congress who just gave birth to vote by proxy—a way to let them recover from birth and bond with their child while also giving a voice to their constituents.
Republican Rep. Anna Paulina Luna of Florida and Democratic Rep. Sara Jacobs of California introduced legislation in January that sought to allow members of the House who give birth to vote remotely for six weeks postpartum.
The bill has 34 co-sponsors, including some right-wing Republican men, such as Rep. James Comer of Kentucky and Tim Burchett of Tennessee.
But Luna said on Wednesday that Johnson told her he will not put her legislation up for a vote.
Writing on X, Luna responded:
I am not pregnant, however, we have women in congress who are being pressured into not having children as they are being told they cannot vote. This is, based on many conversations I have had with female members, and even some young fathers on both sides of the isle [sic].
This is not only anti-family, but is also a slap in the face to the hundreds of thousands of voters who send members to represent them in DC.Female members should not be forced to choose between representing their constituents and having children. Until Congress embraces changes to reflect American's family values, we will not have true representation in Washington DC.
