Republican Congressman Matt Rosendale, who has been representing Montana’s 2nd Congressional District (population 553,536) since 2021, announced that he was going to challenge Democratic Montana Senator Jon Tester this year. But when former President Donald Trump endorsed GOP candidate Tim Sheehy instead, Rosendale stopped his campaign and opted not to run for re-election for his House seat.
IVF destroys more life than Planned Parenthood annually! https://t.co/1nP3Mmgys1
— Matt Rosendale (@RepRosendale) June 27, 2024
With four months left in his term, Rosendale continues to push his conservative views, at times going against the GOP majority, which has largely not condemned the procedure.
Today, the Catholic congressman wrote on social media: “IVF destroys more life than Planned Parenthood annually!” and has placed posters outside of his office, including one which reads: “If you believe that life begins at conception as I do, there is no difference between an abortion and the destruction of an IVF embryo.” (Rosendale cited a March 2024 article published by Catholic News Agency.)
[NOTE: Since the Alabama Supreme Court issued a February ruling essentially outlawing IVF, Republicans have struggled to form a unified front on the procedure, with many conservatives like Sen. Josh Hawley (R-MO) saying “As a pro-life guy, I think that IVF is pro-life,” while others take Rosendale’s stricter view. Senate Republicans later voted against a bill that would have guaranteed nationwide access to IVF, saying the bill was unnecessary, but most Republicans have, so far, expressed support for IVF, which is broadly popular with citizens.]
Rosendale’s posters reflect his efforts in the House. Earlier this week, he proposed an amendment to a defense spending bill to block its funds from being spent on IVF.
Note: Tim Sheehy won the GOP Montana primary in a landslide (he won close to 74% of the votes) and will face Tester (who won 97% of the Democratic primary votes) in the general election in November.