The Republican disaster on IVF is just beginning

No sooner did a major Alabama hospital pause IVF treatments after a state Supreme Court ruling declared frozen embryos are people than a Republican presidential candidate signaled her alignment with the decision.

"Embryos, to me, are babies," former U.N. Ambassador Nikki Haley told NBC News. "When you talk about an embryo, you are talking about, to me, that’s a life. And so I do see where that’s coming from when they talk about that.”

In a subsequent interview, Haley quickly denied endorsing the Alabama decision.

"I didn’t say that I agreed with the Alabama ruling," Haley told CNN. “I do think that if you look in the definition, an embryo is considered an unborn baby. And so, yes, I believe from my stance that that is. The difference is — and this is what I say about abortion as well — we need to treat these issues with the utmost respect,” she added.

That's a lot of backpedaling, and for good reason. The ruling—which immediately set off alarm bells among reproductive freedom advocates—is already seeping into the 2024 political environment. 

"When Republicans fought to overturn Roe v. Wade, we knew they wouldn’t stop there. No matter what lies they peddle to voters, we know that the only way to protect our reproductive rights is to vote them out," Christina Reynolds, senior vice president of communications at EMILY’s List, told Daily Kos following the ruling. 

The National Infertility Association said the ruling would have "profound implications" nationally and "may make it impossible to offer services like IVF.”

Frankly, regardless of how poorly Republicans have played their hand on abortion since the 2022 Supreme Court ruling overturning Roe, they continually find more ways to snatch defeat from the jaws of that supposed victory.