Missouri Sen. Josh Hawley (R) was caught on a recording pressing drastic changes to divorce laws, according to a new report.
The recording was acquired by Rolling Stone and shared in a new report Friday detailing Hawley's views on no-fault divorce, the law that loosened the standards for dissolving a marriage.
“You know, a lot of people have proposed changes to that,” Hawley reportedly said. “My view has always been: It’s a state issue … And states should, you know, do what they want and what they think works best. I think the main thing is it’s got to be something that’s good for women and for families.”
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Divorce laws began to change in 1969, when California legalized no-fault divorce. Up until that point, a spouse had to prove that they had been abused, abandoned, treated cruelly or that their partner had cheated. Forty years later, all 50 states allowed for no-fault divorce.
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Hawley has been a proponent of eliminating no-fault divorce since the early days of his work as an associate professor at the Missouri School of Law. Writing for National Affairs in 2012, Hawley penned a 4,500-word essay about the new conservative era of the judicial system where he didn't mention the words "abuse" or "domestic violence" once while talking about no-fault divorce.
The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) explains that eliminating no-fault divorce is extremely dangerous for abuse survivors.
"The fear of legal battles and the potential for further abuse may make victims more likely to stay in dangerous situations, putting their physical and emotional well-being at risk," advocacy manager Samantha Chapman wrote in 2023. "Because of this, victims may be less likely to report instances of domestic violence if they believe they will be forced to prove fault to obtain a divorce. If victims know that reporting abuse may trigger a lengthy and contentious divorce process, they may be less likely to come forward or seek help, perpetuating cycles of abuse."
Writing for Ms. Magazine in 2023, a divorce coach and attorney called the suggestion downright "scary."
In May, Hawley spoke out in support of Kansas City Chiefs kicker Harrison Butker, who said that women shouldn't seek a career and should prioritize homemaking and motherhood.
“I just thought that his calls for folks to stand up and be bold was great," said Hawley at the time.
“We need a different generation of kids that are willing to say no that’s not right, there is such a thing as right and wrong, I’m not going to go in for all of this lefty garbage," he explained to Spectrum Local News.
Rolling Stone noted a group of Missouri tradeswomen wrote an open letter slamming Hawley for supporting Butker.
They argued he “has taken this obsession with controlling how women live to elected office,” including the detail that Hawley voted against the Pregnant Workers Fairness Act, “attacked no-fault divorce laws … [and] led the charge to take away the freedom to choose how we build our families and what we do with our bodies.”
In Texas, the 2022 GOP platform called to end no-fault divorce, writing, “We urge the Legislature to rescind unilateral no-fault divorce laws, to support covenant marriage, and to pass legislation extending the period of time in which a divorce may occur to six months after the date of filing for divorce.”
Louisiana Republicans looked to a similar idea in 2023.
The Nebraska GOP has a position claiming no-fault divorce should only be an option if the couple doesn't have children. Oklahoma Republican state Sen. Dusty Deevers also introduced a bill earlier this year that would ban no-fault divorce.
