Late last week, South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley (R) vetoed nearly half a million dollars that was slated to go toward domestic violence and sexual assault prevention. Haley defended her decision to veto by saying that rape and sexual assault prevention programs “distract from” the Department of Health’s mission, and that sexual assault victims are “only a small portion” of South Carolinians who need help:
Each of these lines attempts to serve a portion of our population for which we extend our sympathy and encouragement, but nevertheless, it is only a small portion of South Carolina’s chronically ill or abused. Overall, these special add-on lines distract from the agency’s broader mission of protecting South Carolina’s public health.
This is especially sad considering that South Carolina’s rape rate has exceeded the national rate every year since 1982 and South Carolina now ranks #7 in the nation for the number of women murdered by men.
I can’t stand Haley. Not only has she vetoed funding for the life saving HPV vaccine for girls and opined that “women don’t care about contraception” on The View, now she’s decided that rape and sexual violence are a mere “distraction” in the public health arena in a state where rape exceeds the national rate. I can’t imagine any woman voting for her.
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[...] assistance meant to help victims of domestic violence and sexual abuse. You can read about that HERE. I really hate to use the word victim because that somehow implies that their aggressors have [...]