Russell Johnson testified against the bill on behalf of Family Policy Institute of Washington, an organization which has already shown itself willing to sacrifice child security on the altar of anti-gay animus.
Keeping with Sen. Swecker's hyperbolic themes of slavery and human trafficking for this bill, Johnson peppered his rather angry, rant-like testimony with phrases like "for the first time since slavery". FPIW has posted a transcript of the testimony on their blog, but they edited out the most interesting part. Johnson wrapped up his testimony with these astonishing words:
Allowing women to be bought and sold on the open market akin to livestock sets a terrible precedent in Washington state.Needless to say, there is nothing in the bill that compels women to be surrogates, and nothing that allows them to enter into a surrogacy contract without their fully informed, vetted and verified consent. To claim otherwise shows utter ignorance of the bill text or a willingness to believe or at least say anything derogatory about infertile couples. It is difficult to find such ignorance credible coming from Johnson, FPIW's former Director of Government Affairs.
Further, FPIW's executive director Joseph Backholm is a bar-certified attorney payed almost $100,000 in salary and benefits by FPIW, according to the most recent IRS documents available. It is difficult to find such ignorance credible in Backholm.
What are these men hiding behind their feigned ignorance? Anti-gay animus? Disgust at a woman's right to form contracts? Neither is a rational basis upon which to oppose the bill.
Related:
* Gays are incestuous and the Catholic Church is a women's rights group
* Senator Dan Swecker: Gays want to enslave your womb and sell people!
* "Family" group sacrifices child security on the altar of anti-gay animus