Hillary Clinton Warns Hobby Lobby Ruling 'A Really Bad Slippery Slope'

State Department Photo(WASHINGTON) — Hillary Clinton slammed the Supreme Court’s decision on Hobby Lobby on Monday, describing it as “deeply disturbing” and a “really bad slippery slope” that should incite a “real outcry” from the American public.

“I obviously disagree,” Clinton said when asked during a live Facebook chat at the Aspen Ideas Festival Monday afternoon about the Supreme Court’s decision to enable some private companies to opt out of the federal health law’s contraception coverage requirements. “I disagree with the reasoning as well as the conclusion.”

Earlier Monday, the Supreme Court handed down its decision in Burwell v. Hobby Lobby, ruling that for-profit businesses can opt out of the Obamacare provision requiring them to provide contraceptives in their health plans if it conflicts with their sincerely held religious beliefs.

“Just think about this for a minute,” Clinton continued. “It’s the first time that our court has said that a closely held corporation has the rights of a person when it comes to religious freedom. Which means that the…corporation’s employers can impose their religious beliefs on their employees. And of course denying women the right to contraception as part of their health care plan is exactly that. I find it deeply disturbing that we are going in that direction.”

Clinton is publicly pro-choice and has focused her foreign policies on promoting the rights of women and girls. She went on to describe how in countries “prone to extremism,” women are often denied certain rights — specifically over their bodies – and cautioned against creating similar laws in the United States.

“We’re always going to argue about abortion. It’s a hard choice. And it’s controversial. And that’s why I’m pro-choice, because I want people to be able to make their own choices,” Clinton said to audience applause.

Clinton went on to describe the decision as “very troubling” and warned that the precedent it sets could lead to a “slippery slope.”

“I think there should be a real outcry about this kind of decision. And there will be many more now. Look, I mean, many more companies will claim religious belief and some will be sincere and others maybe not,” Clinton said.

For instance, she explained, some people don’t believe in blood transfusions for religious purposes.

“So does that mean if you’re in need of a blood transfusion your insurance policy doesn’t have to cover it?” Clinton went on, “This is a really bad slippery slope.”


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