The Democrat-controlled U.S. Senate is expected to defeat a symbolic Republican-backed measure today that would exempt Catholic institutions from a White House mandate requiring birth control coverage. The right-wing talk show host Rush Limbaugh made headlines on Wednesday after calling a student reproductive rights activist “a slut” for campaigning in favor of contraception coverage for women. Limbaugh made the comment during a rant on his radio broadcast.

Rush Limbaugh: “What does it say about the college co-ed Susan Fluke [sic] who goes before a congressional committee and essentially says that she must be paid to have sex? What does that make her? It makes her a slut, right? Makes her a prostitute. She wants to be paid to have sex. She’s having so much sex, she can’t afford the contraception. She wants you and me and the taxpayers to pay her to have sex.”

The student, Sandra Fluke, is a third-year law student and a member of the group Georgetown Law Students for Reproductive Justice. She was barred from testimony at an all-male panel on contraception on Capitol Hill last month. The day after her testimony was blocked, Fluke appeared on Democracy Now!

Sandra Fluke: “I strongly believe that our government has to legislate for reality, not ideology. So, if we don’t provide contraception coverage and healthcare, that’s not going to stop anyone from having sex, whether they should or should not be. And we really have to take care of women’s healthcare and not worry about policing their moral choices.”