The Fight is Far from Over
This abortion section in Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker’s speech at the Ohio Dem’s Family Reunion event on July 13 was so spot-on that our staff got texts during it asking if we wrote it for him. We did not. He understands the issue better than any other male elected official we’ve ever heard discuss it.
Take notes, guys. This is how it’s done.
“This is her. This is Kellie. She was key to the ballot initiative!” — Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker talking to New Jersey Sen. Cory Booker with Sen. Sherrod Brown
Last weekend, the Ohio Democratic Party recognized the hard work of everyone who worked on the 2023 Issue 1 abortion rights ballot initiative. They presented the Stephanie Tubbs Jones Award to Kellie Copeland on behalf of the Ohioans United for Reproductive Rights coalition. Abortion Forward Executive Director Kellie Copeland served as the treasurer of the OURR coalition.
Kellie Copeland accepting the Stephanie Tubbs Jones Award, joined by PPAO VP Lauren Blauvelt.
At a reception before the program, Kellie met with Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker, who is a proponent of abortion rights work at the state level. The team at Pritzker’s organization, Think Big America, worked closely with Kellie and the campaign throughout 2023. At the event, Pritzker made a point to introduce her to New Jersey Senator Cory Booker.
Kellie and Gov. Pritzker
Of course, we were thrilled to see our favorite Ohio reproductive rights champion, Congresswoman Emilia Sykes. There’s no better example of a public servant committed to defending her constituents.
Kellie and Rep. Sykes
Maya Angelou: “Believe people when they tell you who they are. They know themselves better than you.”
As Republican candidates try to claim that they don’t really believe in abortion bans heading into the 2024 election cycle, let’s learn this lesson from Ms. Angelou and believe these politicians the first time. We need to see through the sham statements being made today.
First up, former President Trump now wants to pretend his judges on the Supreme Court overturning Roe v. Wade aren’t to blame for 1 in 4 women in the U.S. living in a state where abortion is banned. Don’t forget that he famously said during the 2016 presidential election that “there must be some form of punishment” for the woman if abortion is illegal. When the Dobbs overturned Roe and nearly 50 years of legal precedent, Trump gloated that he was the one that achieved a goal the Republicans had been fighting to achieve for decades. “After 50 years of failure, with nobody coming even close, I was able to kill Roe v. Wade, much to the ‘shock’ of everyone.” He continued by taking credit for the dangerous abortion bans taking effect across the country following the overturning of Roe, “Without me there would be no 6 weeks, 10 weeks, 15 weeks or whatever is finally agreed to. Without me the pro-life movement would have just kept losing.”
Earlier this week, Trump nominated Ohio Senator JD Vance to be his running mate. Vance following in Trumps footsteps has tried to sound more moderate on abortion in the last few weeks, but again that is complete BS. Vance spread lies last year about the Ohio Reproductive Freedom Amendment (Issue 1). In the last few months has voted AGAINST protecting access to birth control and IVF services. He may be running from the truth now, but he can’t outrun his record on abortion.
Bernie Moreno is also part of this club. He is running against strong abortion rights supporter Sen. Sherrod Brown. Time after time, he proves he is completely unfit for the job. Moreno’s views on abortion are completely out of touch with Ohioans, he supports a federal abortion ban which would overrule the will of Ohio voters who overwhelmingly passed the Ohio Reproductive Freedom Amendment last year. You would think someone who is so strong in their beliefs about abortion would want to make sure everyone knew about it. But, last week Moreno staged a photo op saying that he was available to “take tough questions” but as soon as he was asked about abortion he refused to answer.
We see the same pattern in congressional races as well.
Former state representative and state senator Kevin Coughlin is running against abortion rights champion Congresswoman Emilia Sykes in District 13 (Akron area). Last month Coughlin tried to run from his LONG record of voting for bills that restrict abortion access, even co-sponsoring a resolution in the Ohio Senate opposing any federal protections for abortion access. Now, however, he claims that he doesn’t support a federal abortion ban. He is banking on us forgetting about this quote from the primary earlier this year: “I had a strong pro-life record in the legislature for the 14 years I was there. I’ve either co-sponsored or voted for every allowable Roe v Wade state restriction.”
In Northwest Ohio, Derick Merrin is running against incumbent Congresswoman Marcy Kaptur in Ohio’s 9th Congressional District. Merrin is an original co-sponsor of Ohio’s 6-week abortion ban. He was also an original co-sponsor of a TOTAL abortion ban, the famous bill that required embryos from ectopic pregnancies to be re-implanted into the uterus (spoiler alert: that is not actually a thing). The day after the passage of the Ohio Reproductive Freedom Amendment, Merrin doubled down and tweeted, “House Republicans will look at all available avenues to defend the unborn moving forward. We will not give up.”
Abortion rights supporter Congressman Greg Landsman is running for re-election against Orlando Sonza. In 2022, Sonza said that he both supported overturning Roe and would support a state and federal ban on abortion. Like all of his other Republican buddies, he is now trying to run from the truth and pretend that is not what he believes.
Ohioans are smart, we won’t be fooled by these candidates pretending they don’t want to ban abortion. We know the danger these candidates pose to abortion access. A federal abortion ban would override the overwhelming vote to pass our Ohio Reproductive Freedom Amendment. We cannot allow that to happen.
In a new op-ed in the Columbus Dispatch, Abortion Forward Executive Director Kellie Copeland called out Donald Trump for four specific lies on abortion in the first 2024 Presidential Debate.
First, Trump claimed to support exceptions in abortion bans for rape and incest. Copeland countered:
When a politician tells us what his policy position is, then his actions in office need to match it. Did Trump ever push for these exceptions as president? No. Did Trump ever ask Congress for a bill to write these exceptions into federal law? No. Republicans controlled the US House and Senate while Trump was president, but these exceptions he claims to believe in were never sent to his desk, and he never asked for them to be proposed. His actions don’t back up his words.
Second, Trump claimed that ending Roe and sending the decision on abortion to the states was universally supported. Copeland said:
Roe was never perfect. There were a lot of Americans who suffered under inadequate abortion policies under Roe. But what an overwhelming majority of Americans did, and still do, want is for a uniform federal law to protect everyone’s right and ability to access abortion care. The state-by-state patchwork of varying abortion laws is a terrible outcome of Trump’s meddling.
Third, Trump claimed “the Supreme Court just approved the abortion pill.” They did not. Copeland corrected:
The case he references was rejected 9-0 because it was improperly filed, which is wholly different than nine members of the US Supreme Court writing an opinion supporting access to abortion medication. The abortion pill he’s talking about is Mifepristone, which is safe, effective, and has been approved by the FDA for decades.
Finally, Trump pointed to Ohio — the bastard pointed to us?!?! — as an example of a state taking action to justify his position. Copeland responded:
Trump referred to Ohio’s Issue 1 ballot initiative campaign as having “an end result that was a little bit more liberal than you would have thought.” In fact, it was not more liberal than we expected. Polling results always showed Ohioans, and Americans in general, want to keep government out of their personal, private medical decisions, including choices about abortion.
In fact, 19 Ohio counties that went for Trump in 2020 actually supported the abortion rights ballot initiative that he opposed. No one wants what Trump and the Republican Party have been pushing, which is why they’re starting to change their tune, but the new song they’re singing isn’t popular with their base, so expect conflict in the weeks ahead.
Ohioans made history when we resoundingly voted for the Ohio Reproductive Freedom Amendment to our state constitution. This was a critical step towards ensuring that all Ohioans can access abortion care without stigma, financial burden, or political interference.
The journey to making abortion truly accessible across Ohio has only just begun. Over 30 restrictions will remain on the books until they are repealed in the courts or through legislative action. Until then, patients and clinics are facing regulations that only apply to abortion clinics: bureaucratic red tape, waiting periods, and mandatory biased counseling. We’ve got to get rid of those laws. Until we do so, getting an abortion in Ohio will remain needlessly difficult.
Unfortunately, Ohio’s anti-abortion politicians still have a lot of power. 57% of Ohio voters want lawmakers to make it easier for people to get an abortion and access reproductive healthcare in our state. But many politicians still don’t care… not yet anyway. We need your help to mobilize voters across Ohio to once again take action.
Abortion Forward Access Allies: A Path to Sustained Impact
You can ensure we have the resources we need for this fight by becoming a member of Abortion Forward Access Allies, our most dedicated supporters who commit to making a monthly donation to make abortion access for everyone not just a promise, but a reality.
Access Allies provide crucial, ongoing support that empowers Abortion Forward to organize and mobilize voters. They make it possible to pressure their legislators to pass redistricting reform and support federal candidates who will fight a national abortion ban. Access Allies will ensure Ohioans know that whoever we elect to the Supreme Court of Ohio this November will ultimately rule on the anti-abortion laws still on the books.
The Call to Action
Together we passed the Ohio Reproductive Freedom Amendment. Now, it is up to us to ensure that it doesn’t become simply a piece of paper. When you join the Abortion Forward Access Allies, you become a partner in taking the power to make reproductive health care decisions away from politicians, and put it back with each individual—where it belongs.
