9 hours ago
Michigan GOP Lawmaker When Asked If He Supports Women's Bodily Autonomy: 'I Don't'
Michigan Rep. Karl Bohnak (R-Deerton) has finally said what so many members of the GOP are too scared to say outright: they don't support women's bodily autonomy.
Bohnak recently held an office hours event at a public library to take questions from his constituents. In audio obtained by the Heartland Signal, one Marquette resident mentioned how their community is now 'a healthcare desert' after the only Planned Parenthood clinic in the Upper Peninsula closed in April, and asked Bohnak whether he supported 'reproductive freedom.' While the Republican lawmaker said he supports 'reproductive clinics' that provide contraceptives or pre-cancer screenings, he wouldn't support a clinic that offers abortion care.
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'If you're talking about abortion, I'm not going to support an abortion clinic,' Bohnak said.
The resident responded: 'So you don't support a woman's autonomy over her own body?'
'I don't,' Bohnak answered, making sure there was no room left for confusion.
If there's anything that 2025 has taught me about the GOP, it's that they never know when to shut up. This confession is practically my Signalgate.
Bohnak, who The Independent previously described as QAnon adjacent, was elected to the Michigan House of Representatives in November, turning the U.P. entirely red by upsetting incumbent Democrat Jenn Hill. Before becoming a politician, Bohnak, who's skeptical of climate change, worked as a meteorologist. But he got fired in 2021 over his refusal to take the covid vaccine, claiming it violated the Nuremberg Code of 1947.
During his campaign, Bohnak was repeatedly asked if he would vote to restrict abortion access, but—like every single GOP candidate in 2024—he refused to comment. If only he'd taken the same advice this time around.
The U.P. is largely rural and isn't physically connected to the state's Lower Peninsula; instead, it branches off of northeast Wisconsin, which is currently fighting its own battle with abortion legislation. As the Marquette resident mentioned, Bohnak's district is now considered a reproductive healthcare desert, with the closest Planned Parenthood five hours south in the L.P.—though many clinics in the L.P. now offer travel accommodations for U.P. patients.
In 2022, Michiganians did vote to enshrine abortion rights in the state constitution—though needless hurdles to access remain. And, this week, on the anniversary of the Dobbs decision that overturned Roe v. Wade, the Michigan Department of Licensing and Regulatory Affairs reminded hospitals of their duty 'to continue providing adequate and appropriate reproductive care to patients.'
The Michigan Department of Licensing and Regulatory Affairs should probably send a reminder to all of Michigan's lawmakers, too. They can start with Bohnak.
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