Michele Bachmann argued last night that the Obama administration could institute a one-child policy under the Affordable Care Act. Appearing on Glenn Beck’s online television show Real News From The Blaze, Bachmann launched into a long monologue on why she thinks the health care reform law could negatively impact women and explained that “the federal government will only pay for one baby to be born in the hospital per family.”

When anchor Amy Holmes pressed her on that point, she quickly backed away from singling out the Obama administration, and instead talked of a generic “health care dictator” who may institute such policies:

BACHMANN: Women have a lot to lose under Obamacare If you want to go into specifics, what the government gives, the government can take away. It certainly isn’t beyond the pale to think, in light of Kathleen Sebelius, the Health and Human Services Secretary — she said that it’s important that we have contraceptives because that prevents pregnancy, and pregnancy is more expensive to the federal government. Going with that logic, according to our own Health and Human Services Secretary, it isn’t far-fetched to think that the President of the United States could say ‘we need to save health care expenses — the federal government will only pay for one baby to be born in the hospital per family, or two babies to be born per family.’ That could happen. We think it couldn’t?”

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Conservative lawmakers in Texas worked to chip away at Planned Parenthood’s funding, creating a “tiered priority system” that ensured Planned Parenthood clinics would be the last to receive any Title X funding. But when faced with renewing the Women’s Health Program, which funds preventive care for low-income women using federal and state money, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services officials warned Texas that their plan to zero out Planned Parenthood violated the Social Security Act. And if Texas blacklisted Planned Parenthood, then HHS would cut off almost $40 million in Medicaid funds for Texas.

But Texas Health Commissioner Tom Suehs did just that, finalizing the push to defund Planned Parenthood. Last month, he signed a rule that “formally bans Planned Parenthood clinics and other ‘affiliates of abortion providers’” from receiving funds from the joint state-federal Women’s Health Program (WHP) — losing $9 from the federal government for every $1 Texas put into the program.

Now, about 130,000 Texas women will lose their access to preventive health care, and women in the state rallied against the rule, which goes into effect on March 14, to voice their anger:

“I just got fed up,” [Marcia] Ball said. “I suspected there were many people like me, including Christians and people of all ages, who think it’s a mistake to defund low-income women’s basic health care. All this defunding for political gain is hurting hundreds of thousands of low-income women.”

The rally drew progressive political activists, local musicians, state representatives and women’s health clinic employees. Passing cars honked in support as protesters held up signs with slogans such as “Don’t Mess with Texas Women” and “I’m a Christian and I Believe in Science, Birth Control, and Tolerance.”

“I’ve been protesting [for women’s rights] since the ’60s and ’70s, when I was at UT,” said Anita Quintanilla. “I thought by the ‘80s, we wouldn’t have to be protesting for women’s rights. I have a 21-year-old daughter, and I hoped she wouldn’t have to worry about women’s rights. I’m fighting for her.” [...]

State Rep. Elliott Naishtat, D-Austin, was among those who helped Ball with the rally.

“This will definitely send a signal to members of the Legislature and Congress that it’s going to be hard to pass these cuts and policy changes in the future without facing opposition from women and their friends,” Naishtat said.

A spokeswoman for Texas Gov. Rick Perry (R) laid the blame at the feet of the Obama administration. “Although federal law allows the states to set the criteria for qualified providers in Medicaid programs, now the Obama Administration is holding the WHP hostage because Texas state law does not fit its pro-abortion agenda,” the spokeswoman said. Other conservatives have suggested that if Planned Parenthood really cared about women’s health, then it would leave WHP so the program could continue providing health care through other providers.

But it’s the poor women of Texas, at risk of losing their access to affordable health care, who really will suffer without this program. “Texas Republicans never miss an opportunity to throw the most vulnerable Texans under the bus so that they can pick a fight with the federal government,” said Rebecca Acuña, a spokeswoman for the Texas Democratic Party.

Last month, the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agency released new health and safety standards for transgender detainees in immigration detention, ensuring that those individuals are placed in facilities by the gender with which they identify and that they have access to hormone therapy and other necessary medical care. Transgender health specialists praised the new rules for moving in the right direction to “protect our community,” but anti-gay conservatives are now speaking out against the changes and characterizing the regulations as “bad, radical social policy” that are a “trial balloon” for Obamacare.

The Family Research Council’s (FRC) Tony Perkins made that case this afternoon, during an appearance on Fox News’ American Newsroom with Megyn Kelly. Perkins accused the agency of providing free abortions without “restrictions” and funding “cross-dressing”:

PERKINS: As we saw the mandate that just came down on contraception, this will be another mandate that will be included in the Obamacare. Because HHS can write the rules, and they’re going to see how far they can push this. [...]

KELLY: But in defense of the administration, what are they supposed to do? If they have an illegal immigrant in custody and she, she is, she needs an abortion to save her life –

PERKINS: Well, if that’s the case — it’s the terminology here. You never need an abortion to save the life of a mother.

KELLY: Never?

PERKINS: The mother is the primary patient. If you’re working to save the life of the mother and the child dies, that’s not an abortion….You talk about the issue of rape, that’s such a small percentage of pregnancies that are out there. Plus, how do you verify that that, in fact, is the case? That it’s a case of rape? Again, this comes down to government funds being used to advance radical social policy that is masquerading as health care.

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Rather than advancing a social policy (as Perkins himself is doing), the government is paying for services that are deemed medically necessary for the health of the detainee. For instance, abortion is only financed by the government “if the life of the mother would be endangered by carrying a fetus to term, or in the case of rape or incest.” Women who undergo the procedure for any other reason, would have to fund the service themselves. Similarly, “Transgender detainees who were already receiving hormone therapy when taken into ICE custody shall have continued access,” the guidelines state. “All transgender detainees shall have access to mental health care, and other transgender-related health care and medication based on medical need. Treatment shall follow accepted guidelines regarding medically necessary transition-related care.”

The government isn’t interfering in the relationship between the detainee and their doctor, but ensuring that the United States adhere to the accepted standards of treating all with humanity and proper medical care. That’s a cause that any “values” organization should be able to rally behind.

Former Republican Hawaii governor Linda Lingle, who is running for Senate in the state, said this morning that she opposes an amendment pushed by Senate Republicans last week that would allow any employer to drop health insurance coverage for contraception and other health services on moral grounds.

In a statement, Lingle’s campaign manager said she shares the position of her Democratic opponent, opposing the amendment sponsored by Sen. Roy Blunt (R-MO). “Governor Lingle and [Democrat] Mazie Hirono share the same position on the Blunt amendment,” the statement said. “[N]either supports the broadly crafted language of the amendment.”

Nonetheless, Lingle, who is pro-choice, attended a fundraiser for her campaign which featured Blunt last night in DC. Lingle’s campaign defended the decision to travel nearly 5,000 miles to attend the fundraiser, decrying alleged Democratic “personal attack[s]” on Blunt.

Lingle joins Sen. Olympia Snowe (R-ME), who voted against the Blunt amendment, and Sen. Lisa Murkowski (R-AK), who said yesterday that she regrets her vote for the measure, in publicly criticizing the Blunt legislation. It was narrowly defeated on a near party-line vote last week.

Conservative lawmakers around country have introduced legislation that would not only limit women’s access to abortion services, but also severely interfere with their reproductive health decisions. The bills — ranging from requiring women to hear ultrasounds before undergoing an abortion to significantly limiting when physicians can perform the procedures — would significantly expand state government regulations and, in some instances, severely interfere in the woman-doctor relationship.

ThinkProgress has created an interactive map of the most restrictive measures moving through state houses around the country and has broken down the legislation into five categories:

– ULTRASOUND: Requires women to submit to or be offered ultrasounds before undergoing an abortion.

– REFUSAL: Allows health care providers to refuse to perform abortions and other medical procedures they may find morally objectionable.

– PERSONHOOD: Declares that life begins “at the moment of conception” and that zygotes have all the rights of citizens, effectively outlawing all abortions and even some methods of birth control.

– PLANNED PARENTHOOD: Targets and defunds Planned Parenthood by limiting funds to the organization.

– 20 WEEK BAN: Outlaws abortions after 20 weeks gestation and punishes providers with prison sentences and fines for failing to uphold the ban.

Move the mouse over the map for short summaries of the bills, click on each state within the categories to read the legislation. We will update the map in the coming days and weeks, which you’ll be able to find HERE:

Kerry Mitchell, Amanda Peterson Beadle, Jessica Arons, and Fatima Najiy contributed to the creation of this map.