CNN's Gergen: GOP Candidates Sound Like 'Four White Guys' Telling Women 'We're Going to Control Your Lives'
CNN political analyst David Gergen gave some harsh criticism of the Republican presidential candidates' discussion of contraception at Wednesday night's GOP debate. Gergen thought the debate over contraception could be quite hurtful to the candidates' chances come the November election.
"For a lot of women it sounds like four white guys who are out there telling them, 'Here’s how we’re going to control your lives'," Gergen maintained in his post-debate analysis.
The post-debate panel was discussing the issue of contraception which has vaulted into the forefront of the Republican presidential debate thanks to President Obama's HHS birth control mandate. Conservative CNN contributor Erick Erickson threw water on the notion that it would still be an issue hurtful to Republicans come November.
CNN chief political analyst Gloria Borger disagreed. "I think these are issues that are really important to women, and women don't forget these things," she stated.
[Video below.]
A transcript of the segment, which aired on Anderson Cooper 360 on February 22 at 10:20 p.m. EST, is as follows:
DAVID GERGEN, CNN senior political analyst: There’s been a gender gap now for some years as you well know, and that’s because many women have moved into a position of thinking, as Donna [Brazile] is arguing, that this is about their reproductive rights. And I thought when this argument first started about the Church that the Republicans were in a very strong position, because it did look like the Obama administration was forcing the Catholic Church into taking positions that were really contrary to their beliefs.
But then it has now sort of morphed out of that. Once Obama found his compromise, it’s morphed out of that. It’s part of a more general conversation about contraception, and even tonight about culture when Rick Santorum got into what’s happening to families. And for a lot of women it sounds like four white guys who are up there telling them, “Here’s how we’re going to control your lives.”
