CNN's Soledad O'Brien told her critics on Monday to "stop tweeting [1]"
her and that the particular debate over Obama's past was over. Then on
Tuesday she hosted birth control activist Sandra Fluke and simply rolled
out the red carpet for her guest to knock her own conservative critics.
Fluke slammed her critics for spewing "misinformation" and silencing
women "regarding their own health care." CNN host Soledad O'Brien
pointed viewers to Fluke's CNN.com op-ed [2] and teed her guest up with easy questions like "How have the last couple of weeks been?"
O'Brien followed up by asking what her "highs" and "lows" had been recently, and gave her a chance to rail against the "stinging commentary" she's received from critics. O'Brien also read a Washington Times op-ed attacking Fluke's argument, and teed her up to respond.
The CNN host also twice referred viewers to Fluke's CNN.com op-ed, which hits "opponents of reproductive health access" for smears and trying "to silence women's voices regarding their own health care."
[Video below.]
Panel member Will Cain of TheBlaze.com was not so easy on Fluke,
pressuring her to admit that the debate was over the employer's right to
determine health care benefits. "[N]o one is attempting to ban
contraception or limit access and make it illegal for women to have
this," Cain stated.
A transcript of the segment, which aired on March 13 on Starting Point at 8:36 a.m. EDT, is as follows:
[8:36]
SOLEDAD O'BRIEN: We move on to talk about the controversy over birth
control. The woman who became, really, the center of that controversy is
speaking out today. Sandra Fluke famously was called a slut by Rush
Limbaugh after she testified before Congress. She was speaking about
President Obama's policy which would require church-affiliated
universities and hospitals to provide free contraception to women.
This morning she's written a piece for CNN.com. And she says the goal
is to refocus the debate. Sandra Fluke joins us live. Nice to see you.
Thanks for talking with us this morning. I'm going to start by reading a
little bit of your op-ed that everybody can take a look at if they just
go to CNN.com. You write this, "Because we spoke so loudly, opponents
of reproductive health access demonized and smeared me and others on the
public airwaves. These smears are obvious attempts to distract from
meaningful policy discussions and to silence women's voices regarding
their own health care." You literally have been the person who's been at
the center of that storm. How have the last couple of weeks been?
SANDRA FLUKE: They've been difficult to say the least, but I'm doing Okay.
O'BRIEN: Okay, what's been the highs and what's been the lows?
FLUKE: Well, it's been very gratifying to receive the support of so
many Americans who have contacted me to say that they support me, but
more importantly that they support this policy and believe that women
need this affordable access to contraception, to an aspect of their
basic health care.
O'BRIEN: That's the good news. And I know in your op-ed you write a lot
about sort of the stinging commentary – not just by Rush Limbaugh but
by others as well.
FLUKE: Yes. And I think one of the other low points in this process has
been the misinformation that's being put out to the public about this
debate. And that's one of the main reasons that I wanted to submit the
op-ed, because I wanted people to understand that this is neither
government subsidized contraception nor is contraception as incredibly
cheap as some people have shared.
O'BRIEN: Okay, so in the Washington Times today there's a guy named Dr.
Milton Wolf. He's a columnist, he's also a radiologist. And he writes
this about you. "So Ms. Fluke gets a free lunch. Well, not quite.
Somebody's got to pay the increased taxes, higher insurance premiums,
and – mark my words – increased contraception costs. So the government
simply transfers those bills to someone else like the janitors at
Georgetown law, for example, who humbly clean up after spoiled kids. I
bet those janitors buy their own birth control at Wal-Mart without
whining. But Ms. Fluke is entitled and I'm sure she's worth it."
When you read something like that, what's your response to that?
FLUKE: Wow. For starters, the staff at Georgetown actually already have
coverage of contraception on their insurance, and the students are
merely asking for the same. But I was actually speaking out about
students and about low income women across the country who need access
to this care. It's unfortunate that some folks have made it so much
about me and my access, because that was not what my testimony was
about. And I would encourage people to take a look at that testimony.
CAIN: Hey Sandra, this is Will Cain. I actually appreciate your desire
to move this debate towards a more substantive position. I want to take
you up on that opportunity. The conversation is about access, and you
used this word several times, access. But I hope you and I can agree on
one term of this debate here. And that is, no one is attempting to ban
contraception or limit access and make it illegal for women to have
this. The debate is about who should be providing it, who should be
paying for it. Should employers determine what is involved in their
compensation, determined in their health care benefits, or should the
government make certain requirements of employers? Can we agree that is
what this debate is about?
FLUKE: Well not exactly. I think there are multiple ways to limit
access. Certainly making something illegal would be the most extreme
form, but not covering it as a health care benefit the way other types
of health care benefits are covered is another way to limit access. And
that's what many women across the country are currently experiencing
when they, even if they have insurance, co-pays can be as high as $50 a
month, which is significant for a woman not making a lot of money.
CAIN: But Sandra, couldn't that same logic be applied to so many other
things that health care doesn't cover, such as gym memberships? Exercise
is important to health, but that's not covered by health care
insurance. Couldn't that logic you're using, saying access is denied
because it's not being offered to you for some reduced price, apply to
so many things?
FLUKE: I think that that's not a fair comparison and most women would
tell you that's not a fair comparison. There are many types of
preventive health care services that are covered on contraception,
things like blood pressure medication, for example. And women are merely
asking that their health be taken just as seriously.
O'BRIEN: Sandra Fluke joining us this morning. Thanks for joining us.
We appreciate it. And we encourage everybody to take a look at your
op-ed, which is at CNN.com this morning.
FLUKE: Thank you.
O'BRIEN: And you know, it's so funny, I would add to that, isn't gym
membership – isn't part of her argument if gym membership were covered
for other employees? Right, it's covered for other people at Georgetown.
Her point was that the janitors actually get their contraception
covered. So the gym membership, I think, is a flawed analogy.
CAIN: I think It focuses on the right question. Should employers
determine the benefits or should the government be mandating what
employers provide?
O'BRIEN: And employers determine the benefits for some people and not others.
(Crosstalk)
CAIN: You can pay more than me, Soledad. The employers determine that
as well, but I don't have a big problem with it right now, yet.
O'BRIEN: (Laughing) That's a whole other conversation.