Democrats To Hear Birth Control Testimony From Woman Rejected By GOP

Democrats To Hear Birth Control Testimony From Woman Rejected By GOP
Posted: 02/21/12 04:51 PM ET | Updated: 02/21/12 04:56 PM ET

WASHINGTON -- In case it wasn't already apparent how politicized women's health has become on Capitol Hill, House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) announced Tuesday that a Democratic panel will meet this week to hear testimony from just one witness: Sandra Fluke, the woman who House Republicans refused to let testify at their hearing on the birth control rule last week.

Pelosi announced that the House Democratic Steering & Policy Committee will meet Thursday at 10 a.m. to discuss women's health. A senior Democratic aide said it is common practice for party leaders to use that committee to cast a spotlight on overtly political matters.

"We've used the Steering and Policy Committee as a place to highlight what the Republicans ARE NOT doing with their hearings," the aide said in an email. "For example, we held the only hearing on repeal of health reform at the time last year. ... We held a hearing on the risks of default, etc."

Fluke, a 30-year-old Georgetown University law student, made news last week when House Oversight and Government Reform Committee Chairman Darrell Issa (R-Calif.) refused to let her testify at a hearing on contraception and religious liberty. Issa said Democrats had submitted Fluke's name too late for consideration, but Democrats say Issa's real aim was to silence anyone in favor of requiring religiously-affiliated institutions to provide birth control coverage to their employees.

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http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/02/21/democrats-birth-control-hearing_n_1291830.html