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No Rob Portman, Denouncing Donald Trump is not “Extraordinary”

For Immediate Release: Oct. 14, 2016


Columbus, OH –– In today’s U.S. Senate debate, Rob Portman congratulated himself for no longer supporting Donald Trump, saying that he took the “extraordinary step” of not supporting Trump. But the only thing extraordinary thing is just how long it took Portman to denounce Donald Trump in the first place --- though given Portman’s own history of legislating attacks against women’s health and rights, it’s also not surprising.

 

Watch here

 

Transcript:  “I took the extraordinary step of saying that i could not support my nominee, republican nominee, for President of the United States. It's not an easy decision for me…”

Quote from Erica Sackin, Planned Parenthood Votes:

“The only thing ‘extraordinary’ about Portman is his horrific record of attacking women’s health and rights. For over a year, Donald Trump has run a racist, sexist, and xenophobic campaign. Trump has said women should be punished for accessing abortion, he called Mexican immigrants ‘rapists,’ and bragged about sexually assaulting women. Not supporting Donald Trump isn’t ‘extraordinary’ –– it’s common decency. It’s shameful that it took Portman this along to admit that.”

Rob Portman’s history of legislating attacks on women’s health and rights:

  • Rob Portman puts his extreme extreme ideology ahead of what Ohioans want. Sen. Portman has voted to block patients from accessing care at Planned Parenthood health centers seven times, despite Ohioans being opposed.

  • Rob Portman thinks that Planned Parenthood doesn’t provide “legitimate” health care services.But 80,000 people in Ohio rely on Planned Parenthood health centers, and millions more around the country.

  • Rob Portman referred to Roe v. Wade as the “infamous decision” that “denies the most basic rights to the unborn child.”

  • Rob Portman won’t stand up for women’s constitutionally- protected right to health care. Portman voted against The Freedom of Access to Clinic Entrances Act which helps protect health care professionals and health care center staff from violence and harassment from abortion clinic protestors.

  • Rob Portman called the Paycheck Fairness Act — which was first introduced in 1997 and has been reintroduced every session of Congress since then — “an election year approach by Democrats.”

  • Rob Portman voted against equal pay measures multiple times and even questioned whether new equal pay laws are needed.

  • The first piece of legislation Rob Portman introduced after being elected to the Senate included repealing the Affordable Care Act.

  • Rob Portman wants to repeal the Affordable Care Act. Sen. Portman  has votedmultiple times to repeal the ACA. More than 137 million Americans, including more than 55 million women, now have access to preventive services — including contraceptive coverage, breast cancer screenings, and well-woman visits — because of the Affordable Care Act. In Ohio alone, there are over 2 millionwomen who now have preventive services coverage, thanks to the ACA.

  • Rob Portman opposes the birth control benefit and wrote a letter to Attorney General Eric Holder asking the Department of Justice to halt its implementation. This legislation helped 55 million women across the country gain access to no-copay birth control.

  • Rob Portman introduced legislation to restrict minors’ access to abortion by making it a federal crime to transport a minor across state lines for an abortion.

  • Rob Portman voted in favor of an amendment that would have allowed states to deny Medicaid funding for abortions for women who had been raped or were victims of incest. And Portman supported denying privately funded abortion services to victims of rape or incest at overseas military medical facilities.

Planned Parenthood Votes is an independent expenditure political committee registered with the Federal Election Commission.