‘It’s good for women’: Republican lawmaker caught admitting he thinks divorce should be harder to get

Missouri Sen. Josh Hawley (R) was caught on camera calling for 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 relaxed the standards for dissolving a marriage.

“You know, a lot of people have proposed changes to this,” Hawley reportedly said. “My view has always been: This is a state issue… And states should, you know, do what they want and what they think is most effective. I think the bottom line is that it’s something that’s good for women and good for families.”

Divorce laws began to change in 1969, when California legalized no-fault divorce. Until then, a spouse had to prove that they had been abused, abandoned, treated cruelly, or cheated on by their partner. Forty years later, all 50 states allowed no-fault divorce.

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Hawley has been a proponent of eliminating no-fault divorce since he began his work as an adjunct professor at Missouri Law School. In a 2012 article for National Affairs, Hawley wrote a 4,500-word essay on the new conservative era of the legal system, in which he did not once mention the words “abuse” or “domestic violence” when discussing no-fault divorce.

The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) says eliminating no-fault divorce is extremely dangerous for abuse survivors.

“Fear of legal battles and the risk of further abuse can cause victims to remain in dangerous situations, putting their physical and emotional well-being at risk,” Samantha Chapman, chief advocacy officer, wrote in 2023. “As a result, victims may be less likely to report domestic violence if they believe they will have to prove fault in order to obtain a divorce. If victims know that reporting abuse can trigger a lengthy and contentious divorce process, they may be less likely to come forward or seek help, perpetuating the cycle of abuse.”

In a 2023 article for Ms. Magazine, a divorce coach and attorney called the suggestion downright “creepy.”

In May, Hawley spoke out in support of Kansas City Chiefs kicker Harrison Butker, who said women should not pursue careers and should prioritize housework and motherhood.

“I just thought his calls for people to stand up and be bold were tremendous,” Hawley said at the time.

“We need a different generation of kids who are willing to say no, this is not right, there is such a thing as right and wrong, I’m not going to accept all this left-wing bullshit,” he told Spectrum Local News.

Rolling Stone noted that a group of Missouri businesswomen wrote an open letter criticizing Hawley for his support of Butker.

They claimed he “carried this obsession with controlling how women live into elected office,” including the detail that Hawley voted against the Pregnant Workers Fairness Act, “attacked no-fault divorce laws… (and) led the charge to eliminate the freedom to choose how we build our families and what we do with our bodies.”

In Texas, the 2022 Republican platform called for an end to no-fault divorce, writing: “We urge the Legislature to repeal unilateral no-fault divorce laws, support covenant marriage, and pass legislation extending the period during which a divorce can occur to six months after the filing date of the divorce petition.”

Louisiana Republicans are considering a similar idea for 2023.

The Nebraska Republican Party has taken the position that no-fault divorce should only be an option if the couple has no children. Oklahoma Republican Sen. Dusty Deevers also introduced a bill earlier this year that would ban no-fault divorce.