Hillary Clinton blasts Supreme Court's “deeply disturbing” Hobby Lobby decision

The former secretary of state and likely 2016 presidential candidate warns of a "slippery slope"

Published July 1, 2014 3:31PM (EDT)

Former Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton  (AP Photo/Lenny Ignelzi)
Former Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton (AP Photo/Lenny Ignelzi)

Speaking during something called a "Facebook Live" event at the Atlantic's annual (and terrible) Aspen Ideas Festival in Colorado, former secretary of state and likely future presidential candidate Hillary Clinton described the Supreme Court's recent and controversial Hobby Lobby ruling as "troubling" and "deeply disturbing."

"I find it deeply disturbing that we are going in that direction," Clinton said, in reference to the court's holding that certain corporations had religious rights that could allow them to refuse to provide their employees with birth control.

“It is very troubling that a sales clerk at Hobby Lobby who needs contraception, which is pretty expensive, is not going to get that service through her employer’s healthcare plan because her employer doesn’t think she should be using contraception," Clinton continued.

The former first lady and iconic feminist went on to echo a concern put forward by Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg in her dissent, worrying that the ruling would lead to a "slippery slope" situation in which corporations begin to challenge many other laws they don't like on religious liberty grounds.

"Many more companies will claim religious beliefs" as a result of the ruling, Clinton predicted. "Some will be sincere, others maybe not. We’re going to see this one insurable service cut out for many women.”


By Elias Isquith

Elias Isquith is a former Salon staff writer.

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