New Planned Parenthood Votes TV Ad Highlights How Ken Cuccinelli’s Dangerous Agenda Would Hurt Rape Survivors
For Immediate Release: Oct. 22, 2013
New Planned Parenthood Votes TV Ad Highlights How Ken Cuccinelli’s Dangerous Agenda Would Hurt Rape Survivors
You can watch the ad “Wrong” here.
WASHINGTON, DC — Today, Planned Parenthood Votes released a new TV ad drawing attention to the impact that Virginia gubernatorial candidate Ken Cuccinelli’s extreme and dangerous positions on emergency contraception and abortion would have on rape survivors in the Commonwealth. The ad highlights that he would force a survivor of rape or incest to carry a pregnancy caused by her attacker and opposes emergency contraception. Emergency contraception is a safe and effective form of birth control that works by preventing pregnancy and has been used for more than 40 years.
In the ad, the narrator highlights that “three hundred thousand women report being raped in America every year,” and “Ken Cuccinelli would put his extreme policies ahead of their needs. He'd force a survivor of rape or incest in Virginia to carry a pregnancy caused by her attacker — He even opposes the emergency contraception they need to prevent pregnancy.” The ad ends with “Ken Cuccinelli: wrong for women. Wrong for Virginia.”
It is the second TV ad from Planned Parenthood Votes in this election and is part of the “Keep Ken Out” campaign, launched in February.
You can watch “Wrong” here.
“Ken Cuccinelli is one of the most extreme candidates running for office in decades. He wants to ban safe and legal abortion, even in the cases of rape, incest or to protect the health of the woman. He opposes the emergency contraception that can prevent pregnancy in the first place, and he wants to make birth control less affordable and accessible to women. Ken Cuccinelli’s extreme and dangerous views would take women back decades. That’s why the more women learn about his positions, the more they want to keep him out of the governor’s mansion,” said Cecile Richards, president of Planned Parenthood Votes.
The 30-second TV ad is part of the group’s ongoing work to educate and inform Virginia voters about Ken Cuccinelli’s extreme record and positions on women’s health. It is part of a million dollar TV and radio buy in Norfolk and Richmond. You can watch Planned Parenthood Votes’ first TV ad “Own Decisions” here and listen to a radio ad here. Planned Parenthood Action Fund has also sent out a series of mail pieces to over 155,000 households in Virginia. Alongside Planned Parenthood Virginia PAC, the groups have already knocked over 43,000 doors and plan to knock thousands more in the weeks leading up to the election.
“Ken Cuccinelli’s statements that he won’t and hasn’t interfered in a woman’s personal health care decisions would be laughable if it wasn’t so insulting to Virginia women. As polling continues to show that he’s losing with women, it’s clear he’ll say anything to get elected – even if it’s in direct contradiction to his record. We’re not fooled by Ken Cuccinelli’s desperate attempts to muddy the waters around his extreme anti-women’s health record. Women know that politicians have no business inserting themselves into these deeply personal decisions. That’s why we’re working double time to make sure voters know the truth about his record when they head to the polls in November,” said Cianti Stewart-Reid, executive director of Planned Parenthood Virginia PAC.
BACKGROUND:
KEN CUCCINELLI IS AGAINST ABORTION, EVEN IN CASES OF RAPE, INCEST, OR TO PROTECT THE HEALTH OF THE WOMAN. He touted himself as the “most aggressive pro-life leader” in the State Senate and bullied the Virginia board of health into passing medically unnecessary, targeted restrictions of abortion providers (TRAP), saying the goal of these and all abortion restrictions is to “make abortion disappear in America.” Cuccinelli’s views are out of touch with the majority of Virginians who want to keep abortion safe and legal and think doctors and medical experts — not elected officials — should make medical decisions and set health regulations.
- According to 2012 election night exit polls, 63 percent of voters believe abortion should remain legal in at least some or all cases. According to an October 2012 Gallup poll of voters in 12 swing states (including Virginia), 39 percent of women cited abortion as the most important election issue for women. Women who cited abortion preferred Obama by a 3-1 margin.
- A report from the Virginia Coalition to Protect Women’s Health shows that Virginia’s targeted restrictions of abortion providers are deeply unpopular with Virginians.
KEN CUCCINELLI WANTS TO MAKE BIRTH CONTROL AND EMERGENCY CONTRACEPTION LESS AFFORDABLE AND ACCESSIBLE FOR VIRGINIA WOMEN. He is a leading advocate for extreme and dangerous so-called “personhood” efforts which, if enacted, could interfere in personal, private medical decisions relating to birth control, and as a state senator, Cuccinelli voted against a measure that would have specified that contraception does not constitute abortion. He is also a leading opponent of the Affordable Care Act and has said opponents of the birth control benefit should be “willing to go to jail” to fight the law. Virginians agree that access to health care and affordable birth control is both an economic and a health issue.
- According to a report from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, in 2006–2010, 5.8 million sexually active women aged 15–44 (or 11 percent of sexually active women aged 15–44) had used emergency contraception, compared with 4.2 percent of women in 2002 and less than 1 percent in 1995. In 2006–2010, of women who had ever used emergency contraception, 59 percent had used it once, 24 percent had used it twice, and 17 percent had used it three or more times.
- There are a number of reasons women use emergency contraception: they weren't using any birth control when they had sex; they forgot to take their birth control method; their partner's condom broke or slipped off; their partner didn't pull out in time; or they were forced to have unprotected vaginal sex.
- Already, an estimated 765,000 women in Virginia are benefiting from the women’s preventive services provision that covers things like birth control (including emergency contraception) and cancer screenings without a copay.
- Seven in ten Americans (70 percent) believe that health insurance companies should be required to cover the full cost of birth control, just as they do for other preventive services.
- More than a third of female voters have struggled to afford prescription birth control at some point in their lives, and as a result, used birth control inconsistently.
- Availability of the pill is responsible for a third of women’s wage increases relative to men.
SCRIPT:
CECILE RICHARDS: Planned Parenthood Votes is responsible for the content of this advertising and Planned Parenthood Votes paid for this ad.
NARRATOR: Three hundred thousand women report being raped in America every year. But Ken Cuccinelli would put his extreme policies ahead of their needs.
He'd force a survivor of rape or incest in Virginia to carry a pregnancy caused by her attacker -
He even opposes the emergency contraception they need to prevent pregnancy.
Ken Cuccinelli: wrong for women. Wrong for Virginia.
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Paid for by Planned Parenthood Votes and Planned Parenthood Virginia PAC in support of Terry McAuliffe. Authorized by Terry McAuliffe candidate for Governor.