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Opinion

November Can’t Come Soon Enough

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At Tuesday’s meeting, the soon-to-be-replaced majority on the Manatee County Commission demonstrated yet again why voters are sick of their schtick and kicking incumbents to the curb.

Jason Bearden—who, unfortunately, has two more years before voters can exercise their deep buyer’s remorse and send him packing—made a motion for the board to “weigh in” on Amendment 4, which would enshrine a woman’s right to access an abortion up until the point of viability in the state constitution.

Bearden’s resolution, which was adopted by the board, read as follows:

WHEREAS, the Board of County Commissioners of Manatee County, Florida, (Board) has been made aware of Amendment 4, a proposed amendment to the Florida Constitution that is scheduled to appear on the November 5, 2024, ballot; and

WHEREAS, Amendment 4, titled “Amendment to Limit Government Interference with Abortion”, would amend the Florida Constitution by creating a new section to Article 1, which includes the text: “Limiting government interference with abortion.—Except as provided in Article X, Section 22, no law shall prohibit, penalize, delay, or restrict abortion before viability or when necessary to protect the patient’s health, as determined by the patient’s healthcare provider.”; and

WHEREAS, the Board believes that the passage of Amendment 4 would be detrimental to the health, safety, and welfare of the citizens of Manatee County and the State of Florida.

NOW, THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED by the Board of County Commissioners of Manatee County, Florida, that the Board hereby expresses its opposition to Amendment 4.

Unsurprisingly, it was snuck onto the agenda the night before the meeting and after the window for submitting public comment had closed. Nevertheless, people showed up and called in largely to express deep opposition to their local government spending time and attention on a matter that was not under their purview.

Outgoing Commissioner Kevin Van Ostenbridge countered that because they were “community leaders,” it certainly was their role to express their position to the community. Isn’t that cute? The little fellow still thinks he’s a community leader and not a one-term loser who had his seat bought for him by his developer sugar daddy before losing in a historic landslide. I'm serious. No candidate in Manatee County history (and likely the history of any county in the United States) has ever spent so much money to get beaten so badly in a political race as Van Ostenbridge did this August. He is the last person anyone is looking to for anything.

The commissioners took turns slinging misinformation about the current late-term emergency abortion access in the six-week ban (which requires not one but two doctors' signatures) and the factually inaccurate free-for-all that would supposedly allow women to get abortions anytime up to the birth of the child. Bearden also lied in telling the public that Amendment 4 would remove the state's requirement for parental notification whenever the procedure is performed on a minor. 

In reality, despite right-wing talking points, abortions are almost never performed beyond viability, and in the extremely rare circumstances when they are, it is to save the life of the mother or prevent her from having to birth a stillborn or unviable fetus.

Commissioner Amanda Ballard said this is not something that should be done by amendment and that the appropriate way for voters to address their dismay would be to petition Tallahassee to roll back the current law. Seriously? As if women haven't been kicking and screaming for years as our male-dominated legislature kept rolling back their rights little by little. They hear the Jason Beardens, Mike Rahns, and Kevin Van Ostenbridges of the world mansplaining to them every day why their opinions on the matter are wrong. They know it's no use trying to reason with them.

Meanwhile, Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis is using taxpayer money to spread the same kind of misinformation and got laughed out of court when the state threatened to punish television stations for running an ad supporting Amendment 4.

"To keep it simple for the State of Florida: it's the First Amendment, stupid," wrote U.S. District Judge Mark E. Walker in an October 17 opinion.

As Alice Newlon of the Manatee County League of Women Voters told board members during public comment:

  • Texas’ similar abortion restriction saw maternal mortality rise by 56%, compared with 11% nationwide.
  • More than half the women getting abortions are near or below the poverty line.
  • Idaho lost 22% of its practicing obstetricians and 55% of its high-risk obstetricians after its abortion restrictions took effect. At the same time, 19 percent of the counties in Florida are already maternity care deserts, meaning areas without access to birthing facilities or maternity care providers.
  • In 2023, 10% fewer medical school graduates applied to OB-GYN residency programs at schools in states with total or near total bans. 
  • Amendment 4 changes nothing about the current law that requires both parental notification and approval of an abortion. There is no taxpayer funding in Amendment 4. 

Bearden called this an “extreme amendment” when, in reality, Ron DeSantis and the Republicans in Tallahassee grossly overreached in enacting an extreme abortion law that takes an important medical decision out of the hands of the patient and doctor, restricting our freedom by bringing Big Government into our health care decisions.

People don’t like it. Across the nation, voters of all political stripes are rejecting such laws. If Florida voters do the same, so be it. If they do not, it will have nothing to do with hollow, toothless, virtue-signaling resolutions issued by bottom-rung politicians who are about as popular as canned Spam.

Dennis "Mitch" Maley is an editor and columnist for The Bradenton Times and the host of our weekly podcast. With over two decades of experience as a journalist, he has covered Manatee County government since 2010. He is a graduate of Shippensburg University and later served as a Captain in the U.S. Army. Click here for his bio. His 2016 short story collection, Casting Shadows, was recently reissued and is available here.

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  • tiffanydconklin

    This might be my favorite article yet! Thank you, Mitch, for your clear report and spot-on perspective. Also, kudos to Alice Newlon for being a fabulous advocate - I appreciate both of you greatly!

    Wednesday, October 23, 2024 Report this

  • ruthlawler

    Kevin Van Ostenbridge saying he is a community leader: HA HA HA. The voters clearly have made the determination that he is not! Once again our BOCC has taken on an issue by resolution at a BOCC meeting, which is an insult to the residents of the county as it is NOT within the duties of an Commissioner. It is up to the voters to vote on this issue. I am grateful to all who spoke at the BOCC meeting presenting factual information, particularly Alice Newlon. I highly resent that DeSantis is spending our taxpayer monies to influence voters to vote no on 4. For our Commissioners to waste time, energy and taxpayer $$$ on an issue that is NOT within their authority is simply dispicable. Vote YES on 4. Ruth Lawler

    Wednesday, October 23, 2024 Report this

  • rjckeuka4

    January can't come soon enough! And hopefully Amendment # 4 will get shoved down the throats of our dictator Governor...and hopelessly ignorant Commissioners! We've taken charge in the County. Now we've got to do it in the State...and I mean responsible Republicans as well as Dems!

    Wednesday, October 23, 2024 Report this

  • Cat L

    It’s endlessly frustrating to me that I have to listen to culture war oriented politicians pontificate repeatedly on the subject of Second Amendment, while brazenly ignoring the FIRST. I am not interested in the latest buzz-line that upstream politicians are using for their shared marketing plan. The guidelines we agree to live by are not an a-la carte menu, if you support the constitution, it’s the WHOLE Constitution or you can’t very well give yourself a pat on the back for being a great patriot…

    We separate church and state to give one another respect and safety. A non-doctors opinion on matters of reproduction, who has no relation or association to the pregnant person, has no place.

    Wednesday, October 23, 2024 Report this

  • Debann

    Thanks Mitch another great read...I agree can't wait for November and 2026...Can't come soon enough..

    Wednesday, October 23, 2024 Report this

  • WTF

    I think it is important that the Public know where each Commissioner stands on this issue. Certainly is a hot topic and this clearly point out where they stand on this issue and the voters can vote appropriately. Some voters will vote just because of this issue alone regardless of the job they did Commissioner. It’s a two edge sword, but one they chose. There’s two sides to every story, and unfortunately, the Fatherhood of the issue never comes to light. The choice to have an abortion should be between both the mother and the father, not based on the mother alone as so many times it is.

    My body, my choice… How about, My sperm my child. Let’s have that lively discussion. then again, you’d have to be 2 mature consenting adults to have that and discussion. … For the Record

    Thursday, October 24, 2024 Report this