Ever since Bush was appointed President, he has undermined and assaulted the rights of women. Hold your breath, this is serious.

Within a month of his inauguration, Bush resurrected the “global gag rule.” This executive decision bars federal funding for international family planning groups that support abortion rights. In 2003 Bush expanded the global gag rule to prohibit even foreign organizations — under their own laws — from receiving any U.S. assistance if they perform, counsel, refer or advocate safe abortions. So now, reproductive-health providers, notwithstanding the laws of their own countries, must comply with the Bush administration’s anti-abortion policies.

But what of the women of the Middle East? Hasn’t President Bush’s war made tremendous inroads toward liberating the women from fundamentalist regimes? Nope.

In 2001 the U.S. State Department refused to give aid to or through women-led organizations. Instead, they give them through U.S.-based non-government offices, which often start with unnecessary or even inadequate training for the women

But really, the Bush administration’s offhanded treatment of women in places like Afghanistan was occurring long before. The Bush administration was courting the Taliban, inviting them to Texas, giving them millions of dollars, right up until Sept. 11 because of a possible oil pipeline through Afghanistan. It’s very clear that women were not a priority until Sept. 11, and are only an accidental addition now.

Things haven’t fared much better at home, either. In his first budget submitted to Congress, Bush tried to eliminate contraceptive coverage for federal employees, although he supports coverage for Viagra. Bush’s Secretary of Health and Human Services designated “unborn children” as eligible for Children’s Health Insurance Program while refusing to provide health coverage to pregnant women.

Although stating that the Convention to Eliminate All Forms of Discrimination Against Women was “generally desirable and should be approved,” the Bush administration changed course and attempted to block it in Congress.

Bush urged and signed a law making what is known a “partial-birth abortion” illegal. This ban erodes on a women’s right to choose and undermines her reproductive rights.

Bush slammed the door shut on the White House Office for Women’s Initiatives and Outreach, which worked with women’s advocacy groups on public policy. His 2004 budget eliminated funding for the Women’s Educational Equity Act to promote equity for girls and women in education.

Bush actively opposes the Hate Crimes Prevention Act. The bill, which is to protect all Americans from hate violence, would especially benefit the LGBT communities.

And then there’s the Unborn Victims of Violence Act, which is a concerted effort of weakening Roe v. Wade. It is a back door effort to confer greater rights to the fetus, thereby opening the door to an eventual ban on abortion.

Bush has nominated women to high cabinet and administrative positions. That’s got to count for something, right? Well let’s just look at the women he nominated. In November 2001 Bush named Patricia Funderbunk Ware to head the Paternal Advisory Council on HIV/AIDS. Ware is an ardent abstinence-only supporter.

September 2002: Bush named Dr. Freda McKissic Bush to head the Center for Disease Control and Prevention’s Advisory Council on HIV and STD prevention. Not only is Dr. Bush the director of an abstinence-only program, she is also a member of an anti-condom research group.

Bush’s nominations to our federal courts are also quite disturbing. Priscilla Owen has created barriers for women and teens to have access to safe and legal abortions. Charles Pickering has supported a constitutional amendment outlawing abortions and voted against family planning.

President Bush has appointed other men who have worked to undermine women’s rights and privileges. In December 2002 David Hager was appointed to the FDA’s Reproductive Health Drugs Advisory Committee. As a physician, Hagar has preferred not to prescribe contraceptives to unmarried women, advocated against the morning after pill and advised that prayer and reading the Bible would relieve PMS symptoms.

Rod Paige, the Secretary of Education and the Commission on Opportunity in Athletics, had approved proposals that would create enough exceptions to undermine significantly the women’s equality in education, as supported by Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972.

But don’t worry, there is an alternative: John Kerry. Kerry is a staunch supporter of women’s rights. In the Senate he is an ardent supporter of a woman’s right to choose. Kerry cosponsored and voted for the Violence Against Women Act. He has also worked to expand the rights of women in the workplace by passing the Family and Medical Leave Act which helps working parents balance work and family.

Catherine Hunt is a graduate student in textiles and clothing from Des Moines. She is a member of the ISU Democrats.