MICHEL MARTIN, HOST:
Final night time was an excellent night time for supporters of abortion rights.
LEILA FADEL, HOST:
Yeah. In a handful of states holding elections, abortion entry gave the impression to be a profitable situation greater than a yr after the U.S. Supreme Courtroom overturned Roe v. Wade.
MARTIN: NPR’s Sarah McCammon is with us now for a take a look at the outcomes. Good morning, Sarah.
SARAH MCCAMMON, BYLINE: Hey. Good morning, Michel.
MARTIN: So let’s begin with the massive one, Ohio. I imply, we’re calling it the massive one as a result of there was a poll initiative that folks on all sides of the difficulty have been maintaining a tally of. What occurred?
MCCAMMON: Effectively, Ohioans voted to place protections for reproductive rights, together with abortion, of their state structure after an extended struggle that lasted many months. And Ohio is now the seventh state for the reason that Dobbs v. Jackson Ladies’s Well being choice final yr from the Supreme Courtroom that is voted to help abortion rights in a method or one other by way of a poll initiative. So we have seen this in state after state. And it reveals that voters, even in purple states, can use the poll field to push again in opposition to abortion restrictions they suppose have gone too far.
I talked to Kelly Corridor with The Equity Mission final night time. That is a bunch that advocates for using poll measures to advance progressive insurance policies.
KELLY HALL: Ohio is the primary state that I actually suppose we might put in that purple column that has stated, we are able to go on offense and we are able to win, and that’s an inspiring instance that shines a lightweight on the trail for different purple states.
MCCAMMON: So once more, what we noticed there was a purple state with a Republican governor and Republican legislature passing abortion protections. And this implies a state regulation banning most abortions after six weeks in Ohio will not be capable to take impact.
MARTIN: So let’s go to Virginia now. It is typically seen as a bellwether state or as a purple state. What…
MCCAMMON: Proper.
MARTIN: Speak concerning the situation there. What was at stake, and what occurred?
MCCAMMON: Yeah. Abortion wasn’t immediately on the poll in Virginia the best way that it was in Ohio, however the situation was actually central to the marketing campaign. Your entire legislature was up for reelection in Virginia’s off-year election. Democrats held on to manage of the state Senate, they usually flipped the state Home, which had been managed by Republicans. Now, that was vital, Michel, for abortion rights supporters as a result of the Republican governor, Glenn Youngkin, has supported a proposal to ban most abortions after 15 weeks. As it’s proper now, Virginia is the one state within the South that has not restricted abortion for the reason that overturning of Roe v. Wade, and it appears more likely to keep that approach, at the very least for now.
MARTIN: So what different races have you ever been watching?
MCCAMMON: You recognize, one other vital one was Kentucky’s governor’s race – one other purple state, however with a Democratic governor. The Democratic incumbent, Andy Beshear, gained reelection after dealing with a problem from the state’s Republican legal professional basic, Daniel Cameron. Cameron had defended Kentucky’s close to whole abortion ban, and Beshear’s marketing campaign launched an emotional advert by which a younger lady talked about her expertise being a sufferer of rape by a member of the family and identified that Kentucky’s abortion regulation would not comprise rape or incest exceptions. So once more, we now have a purple state right here, as we talked about. Final yr, voters rejected an effort to amend Kentucky’s structure in a approach that will have been unfavorable to abortion rights. And people voters this yr have reelected their Democratic governor.
MARTIN: So, Sarah, earlier than we allow you to go, what different takeaways do you see from these outcomes? Something which may supply clues about what to anticipate subsequent yr?
MCCAMMON: Effectively, all indications are that voters are nonetheless being motivated by the abortion rights situation. That is an excellent signal for Democrats. The Democratic Congressional Marketing campaign Committee launched a press release celebrating the victory in Ohio and waiting for subsequent yr, warning that many Republicans nonetheless wish to move a nationwide abortion ban if they’ll. And so count on extra of this subsequent yr. Additionally count on extra poll initiatives in states like Arizona and Florida, probably.
MARTIN: That’s NPR’s Sarah McCammon. Sarah, thanks.
MCCAMMON: Thanks.
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MARTIN: Staying with politics, 2024 Republican presidential hopefuls will face off in a 3rd debate tonight in Miami.
FADEL: Now, it’s going to be the smallest slate of candidates to take the stage but. The Republican Nationwide Committee says solely a handful of candidates certified.
MARTIN: Right here to inform us extra about what to anticipate from tonight’s debate is NPR’s Ashley Lopez in Miami. Good morning, Ashley.
ASHLEY LOPEZ, BYLINE: Good morning.
MARTIN: First, let’s discuss who did qualify to take part in tonight’s debate. Who’re we going to see?
LOPEZ: Certain. So solely 5 candidates have certified this time round because of stricter qualifying guidelines from the Republican Nationwide Committee. So former South Carolina Governor Nikki Haley, Florida Governor Ron DeSantis, businessman Vivek Ramaswamy, South Carolina Senator Tim Scott and former New Jersey Governor Chris Christie might be onstage tonight. North Dakota Governor Doug Burgum, who was within the first two debates, didn’t qualify this time round. And former Arkansas Governor Asa Hutchinson, who appeared within the first debate, hasn’t certified for these final two. And, in fact, we cannot be seeing former Vice President Mike Pence onstage tonight as a result of he not too long ago dropped out of the 2024 presidential race.
MARTIN: And the front-runner, former President Donald Trump – I hear he is bought a spot close by, so getting there should not be an issue. However I take it he isn’t going to make it.
LOPEZ: No. No, he isn’t. Donald Trump has not certified for any of the Republican debates thus far. Though, yeah, he’s polling within the lead and has large fundraising numbers, he has not met all of the qualifying requirements, particularly one which requires every candidate to pledge that they’ll help whoever wins the nomination. Trump has flat-out refused to signal that pledge. He has additionally stated that he would not wish to elevate his opponents by being onstage with them.
However similar to the previous couple of debates, he is planning some form of counterprogramming, if you’ll. He is holding a rally comparatively shut by in Hialeah. Hialeah is a predominantly Cuban American a part of city, which is a subset of voters Trump has executed very well with. In 2020, Trump outperformed expectations particularly amongst Latino voters in South Florida. So this is a crucial base of supporters that he’s anticipated to carry out tonight. And as you talked about, it is shut by for him.
MARTIN: So of the people who find themselves on the stage – who’re going to be on the stage, Nikki Haley…
LOPEZ: Yeah.
MARTIN: …Former South Carolina governor, former U.N. ambassador, truly, you understand, appointed by Trump – she’s been getting plenty of buzz within the media. To begin with, why is that? And the way large of a deal is that this debate for her?
LOPEZ: Effectively, Haley’s positively the candidate to observe tonight, proper? She has been steadily gaining help within the polls. Importantly, she’s been doing very well in matchups with President Biden in swing states. And, you understand, what’s executed it’s plenty of her momentum began with sturdy debate efficiency. Usually, you will notice in crowded primaries that candidates will get plenty of momentum with one thing like an excellent debate efficiency after which simply form of flame out. However Haley has been a little bit of an anomaly in that she has been constantly gaining floor on this race.
Proper now, I feel she is maybe the lead different to Trump among the many slate of candidates which are left. And there have been excessive expectations that Florida Governor Ron DeSantis would in all probability fill that function, however his marketing campaign has had plenty of pitfalls, and he is had some fairly lackluster performances in the previous couple of debates. For that cause, I truly absolutely count on that Haley will set her sights on Ron DeSantis. The truth is, her marketing campaign has already launched an advert taking goal at him.
MARTIN: So what will we count on the candidates to speak about tonight? What do you suppose goes to be the main target?
LOPEZ: Effectively, you understand, that is the primary debate since Israel was attacked, proper? And I am certain what is going on within the Center East, in addition to how President Biden is dealing with the disaster, will come up. Whereas there are factions of the Democratic Celebration which were break up on how one can take care of Israel because it continues to bomb Gaza and the humanitarian disaster there, Republicans have been fairly uniform of their response, and that is a kind of points the place there is not plenty of infighting within the Republican Celebration, which supplies them a chance to set a distinction between themselves and the Democrats and never essentially a distinction between one another.
MARTIN: That’s NPR’s Ashley Lopez. Ashley, thanks.
LOPEZ: Yeah. Thanks.
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MARTIN: The U.S. has struggled to comprise the unfold of many widespread sexually transmitted infections, and a brand new report drives residence probably the most devastating penalties.
FADEL: The variety of infants born with syphilis is 10 occasions what it was a decade in the past. Congenital syphilis could cause stillbirths and miscarriages, or it will probably result in long-term well being issues for the kid, like deformed bones, blindness, deafness and developmental delays.
MARTIN: NPR’s Will Stone is with us now to speak extra about these numbers from the Facilities for Illness Management and Prevention. Will, good morning.
WILL STONE, BYLINE: Hello, Michel.
MARTIN: This development is de facto troubling. Simply inform us about what is going on on right here.
STONE: Yeah. I imply, the very first thing to know is that sexually transmitted infections normally are on the rise, and that is very true for syphilis. I used to be truly taking a look at CDC knowledge that present instances have simply been climbing for years amongst adults. And on the subject of congenital syphilis, this new report reveals there have been greater than 3,700 instances final yr. About 230 of these resulted in stillbirths.
I referred to as up Dr. Edward Hook. He is an knowledgeable on STIs and a professor on the College of Alabama at Birmingham.
EDWARD HOOK: That is probably the most tragic instance as a result of these are harmless bystanders, however it’s emblematic of a much wider downside concerning our challenges in controlling syphilis.
STONE: Proper now, charges of syphilis are the very best they have been for the reason that ’60s, and the result’s that some instances do not get caught throughout being pregnant as a result of there are additionally large gaps in maternal care on this nation.
MARTIN: Yeah. Speak extra about that, should you would. Can we – like, why weren’t these instances caught earlier than they may do this sort of hurt?
STONE: Yeah. I imply, we now have a number of concepts. It seems about 40% of the instances final yr have been amongst individuals who didn’t have prenatal care. And this displays what I heard from well being officers on the bottom, like Dr. Natasha Bagdasarian. She’s the chief medical govt for the state of Michigan. Congenital syphilis is completely preventable if it is handled throughout being pregnant. And Bagdasarian says they make certain to assessment every case to know why a mom was not handled.
NATASHA BAGDASARIAN: So they could not have an OB-GYN or a midwife. They could be ladies who get their care intermittently in pressing cares or emergency departments, and lots of of them didn’t have syphilis testing executed throughout being pregnant.
STONE: So clearly, testing is one downside, and the CDC is responding to this by encouraging broader screening of sexually energetic ladies and their companions and utilizing speedy assessments and coverings in settings like emergency departments and even prisons and jails. However one other disturbing discovering on this report is that about half of the instances did get picked up. There was a optimistic take a look at, however for no matter cause, there was simply not ample or well timed therapy.
MARTIN: Effectively, that is clearly a giant problem, however what else must be executed?
STONE: Yeah. It is a robust time proper now. STI prevention fell by the wayside throughout the pandemic. Here is David Harvey. He directs the Nationwide Coalition of STD Administrators.
DAVID HARVEY: The numbers are going up yearly, and we now have but to see the willpower exercised by our political leaders to do what it takes to show this case round.
STONE: He says this new report simply underscores the complacency on the federal degree round controlling STIs. For instance, there have been a whole lot of tens of millions of {dollars} for public well being that have been siphoned away earlier this yr throughout debt ceiling negotiations. And on high of all of this, Michel, there’s at present a scarcity of the one antibiotic that is used to deal with syphilis throughout being pregnant. The CDC says it isn’t conscious of anybody who’s pregnant not getting the treatment due to the scarcity, however the provide is not anticipated to be absolutely restored till subsequent yr.
MARTIN: That is NPR’s Will Stone. Will, thanks.
STONE: Thanks.
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