WASHINGTON ― Sen. Katie Britt (R-Ala.) will give the Republican Party’s response to President Joe Biden’s State of the Union address next week.
“The Republican Party is the party of hardworking parents and families, and I’m looking forward to putting this critical perspective front and center,” Britt, who at 42 is the youngest Republican woman ever to serve in the Senate, said in a statement Thursday.
“There is no doubt that President Biden’s failed presidency has made America weaker and more vulnerable at every turn. At this decisive moment in our country’s history, it’s time for the next generation to step up and preserve the American Dream for our children and our grandchildren,” the senator added.
Britt is a GOP rising star who was elected in 2022 after Alabama Sen. Richard Shelby, her former boss, retired. Her selection to speak following Biden’s March 7 address to Congress will provide a generational contrast between a fresh young face and the 81-year-old president, even though Britt is supporting 77-year-old Donald Trump in the 2024 GOP presidential race.
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The Alabama Republican may also address the controversy surrounding a court ruling that has effectively halted in vitro fertilization in her state. Democrats have hammered Republicans over the court decision, warning that they want to eliminate reproductive rights across the country, and Biden is almost certain to mention it in his address.
Britt has recently stressed her support for the continued use of IVF and other fertility treatments, calling them pro-family and pro-life.
“Defending life and ensuring continued access to IVF services for loving parents are not mutually exclusive,” Britt said in a statement last week. “Ultimately, IVF helps create life and grow families, and it deserves the protection of the law.”
The Alabama court ruling granted embryos the same legal rights as children under the state’s wrongful death statute, putting IVF providers in legal jeopardy. Already, at least three of the state’s fertility treatment facilities have paused some IVF programs.
Alabama’s state House and Senate voted Thursday to approve measures designed to shield in vitro fertilization providers from lawsuits and criminal prosecutions. The measures still need to be reconciled between the two chambers before the legislation can then be signed into law by the state’s governor.
Republicans have yet to identify a way to protect access to IVF despite their statements in support of the treatment. On Wednesday, Sen. Cindy Hyde-Smith (R-Miss.) blocked passage of a bill seeking to codify rights to IVF nationwide.
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