Perhaps it was the recentĀ surveyĀ that showed St. Petersburg state RepresentativeĀ Darryl RousonĀ leadingĀ Ed NarainĀ in theĀ SenateĀ District 19 race that has fired him up. In any case, Narain is firing back hard on his Democratic challenger, along with some help from his friend, CongresswomanĀ Kathy Castor.
NarainĀ and Castor took issue on Wednesday with a statement that Rouson hadĀ releasedĀ regarding the U.S. Supreme Court’s 5-3 ruling on MondayĀ that overturned a Texas law restricting women’s health and reproductive rights.
Rouson praised the decision, writing that, “we must continue to fight restrictions on women’s healthcare,” said Rouson in the statement, which Narain said wasĀ essentially hypocritical, considering Rouson’s support for pro-life bills in recent years in the Legislature. Specifically,Ā Narain cited three specific votes on abortion in the Florida Legislature that Rouson voted on this past year, in 2015 and 2012.
Narain says that Rouson voted in support of HB-1411 in the past session. That’s the bill sponsored by Lakeland RepublicanĀ Kelli StargellĀ thatĀ prohibited state funding for routine care at abortion clinics, and placed requirements for physicians similar to a Texas law currently under review by the U.S. Supreme Court.
The Florida Times-UnionĀ reported that Rouson was one of only 6 House Democrats to cross party lines to vote for the measure.
According toĀ VoteSmart.org,Ā RousonĀ did supportĀ HB 633 in 2015. That bill added a 24-hour waiting period and a requirement that a patient make an extra trip to the physician in order to listen to state-mandated information prior to obtaining an abortion.
The website also supports Narain’s statement that RousonĀ supported Riverview RepublicanĀ Rachel Burgin’sĀ 2012 bill that dictated that no woman can have an abortion in Florida after 20 weeksĀ Ā unless the doctor informs the motherĀ about how the fetus will suffer pain.
“Rep. Rouson’s anti-choice and anti-women’s health record is very troubling,” said Castor. “Yesterday’s (Monday’s) U. S. Supreme Court decision is an important reminder that we must support candidates who support women and that is one reason I support Rep.Ā EdĀ NarainĀ for the State Senate from Tampa Bay.”
“On three different occasions, when Darryl Rouson could have stood up for women’s health, he voted against protecting women when he had the chance,” addedĀ Narain. “We need principled leaders who will stand up for what’s right and for progressive values. As a father and husband, I won’t stand by while ‘say-anything’ politicians like Darryl Rouson side with the Republicans and try to tell women what they can do with their own health care. “
Rouson fired back in kind.
“When you are last in the polls, it is disappointing that you resort to personal attacks,” the St. Pete based lawmaker said in a statement. “People are tired of this kind of politics. As an experienced legislator who has been elected five times by the people, I stand on an eight-year record of achievement. People deserve a debate on the issuesānot self-serving twisting of the facts.”
Regarding his votes on the abortion bills, Rouson maintained recently in theĀ Tampa Bay TimesĀ that heĀ accidentally hit the wrong voting button on his desk – on all three occasions.
“On HB1411, I was fulfilling a professional responsibility and not on the Floor,” he said on Wednesday. “The record shows my “No” vote upon return against the bill (VoteSmart.orgĀ says he didn’t vote on the bill). On HB 633 and HB 277, the record reflects my “No” vote and to state otherwise is to mislead the voters.”
Narain, Rouson, Betty Reed andĀ Augie RibeiroĀ are all competing for the Democratic nomination for SD 19 on Aug. 30. The winner will face Tampa RepublicanĀ John HoumanĀ in November.
