'Sorry political attempt': Republican senator blasts Schumer over 'show vote'

With Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) preparing to call a vote on a bill to protect the right to in vitro fertilization nationwide, Sen. Markwayne Mullin (R-OK) posted a statement on X in which he expressed support for the right to IVF — but blasted Schumer for trying to put it to a vote.

"Senate Republicans stand united in our support for nationwide access to IVF treatments," wrote Mullin. "My wife Christie and I struggled for years to start a family, so this is personal. Thankfully, IVF is widely available in all 50 states."

"Chuck Schumer’s show vote today was nothing but a sorry political attempt to rattle the American people weeks ahead of an election, and we won’t stand for it," he continued. "Supporting couples who are using IVF or other fertility treatments is not – and should not be – controversial. Republicans have always been the party of life, and Christie and I believe every child is a blessing from the Lord."

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IVF is legal in every state, but its status was called into question when the Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade, as some states' anti-abortion laws could be interpreted as making IVF impossible. The procedure requires the creation of far more embryos than will be used, and the rest are discarded as medical waste.

Far-right judges in Alabama concluded in March that frozen embryos were children, thrusting IVF access across the state into legal limbo.

Alabama Republicans, facing nationwide backlash, including from some conservatives who support the procedure as pro-family, swiftly passed legislation to reverse that decision, and Trump, sensing the issue is a liability for Republicans, even suggested he'd make IVF free for all Americans — but outlawing IVF on fetal personhood grounds remains something states could legally do in the absence of federal guidelines, and some of the most extreme anti-abortion activists want states to do so.

Mullin recently found himself facing controversy for a number of other reasons, including challenging the president of the Teamsters union to a fight during a Senate hearing.