The Quickie: In First 10 Days, Florida Campaign to Protect Abortion Access Raises $2 Million

Welcome to “The Quickie” — Planned Parenthood Action Fund’s daily tipsheet on the top health care & reproductive rights stories of the day. You can read “The Quickie'' online here.

In today’s Quickie: Florida raises $2 million for abortion access ballot measure, Nebraska passes a combined ban on abortion and gender-affirming care, PPAF speaks out against “compromise” abortion bans, and anti-abortion Sen. Tim Scott announces presidential run.

IN FIRST 10 DAYS, FLORIDA CAMPAIGN TO PROTECT ABORTION ACCESS RAISES $2 MILLION: Today, Floridians Protecting Freedom (FPF) — the campaign to amend Florida’s constitution and protect abortion access — announced that the campaign had raised $2 million in the ten days since the effort launched. The campaign has also trained over 2,500 volunteers to collect petitions, with virtual and in-person trainings in high demand.

FPF also announced the appointment of its Campaign Director: Florida Alliance of Planned Parenthood Affiliates Organizing Director Lauren Brenzel will lead the campaign, bringing their experience in abortion advocacy and field organizing to the table. Brenzel will also be joined by Raymer Maguire, a leader in Florida’s Fight for Fifteen, Second Chances, and medical cannabis amendment campaigns, as an operations consultant. In a statement, Brenzel said,

“The enthusiasm for this effort is unprecedented. The funding and volunteer engagement shows how important removing government interference from our private healthcare decisions is for Floridians. After politicians in Tallahassee passed the most extreme six6 week abortion ban in the nation, it’s clear Floridians are ready to have their voices heard.”

NEBRASKA LEGISLATURE PASSES 12-WEEK ABORTION BAN AND GENDER AFFIRMING CARE BAN IN ONE FELL SWOOP: On Friday, the Nebraska legislature passed LB 574, a gender-affirming care ban for trans youth with an amendment banning abortion after 12 weeks of pregnancy. After a successful cloture vote last week allowed the abortion ban to be added as an amendment to the gender-affirming care ban, legislators fast-tracked their plan to decimate health care access in Nebraska. The bill now awaits signature from Gov. Jim Pillen, who has promised to sign it into law.

Statement from Andi Curry Grubb, Executive Director of Planned Parenthood Advocates of Nebraska:

“A ban is a ban, plain and simple. Banning abortion after 12 weeks denies a person the fundamental right to control their own body and health care decisions. The goal of the abortion ban and the gender affirming care ban, as with all bans, is to stop people from accessing essential health care and to take away people’s power over their own bodies, lives, and futures.

Every person deserves the right to control their bodies and their futures. Today’s bans will create a devastating new reality in Nebraska, and I am very sad for the patients and families who will be impacted.”

Read more at Reuters.

THERE ARE NO “COMPROMISES” ON PEOPLE’S REPRODUCTIVE FREEDOM: With the passage of 12-week abortion bans in North Carolina and Nebraska last week, many have been quick to call 12-week bans or 15-week bans “compromises” or “wins” for abortion rights advocates — especially compared to total or near-total bans we have seen enacted in other states. That couldn’t be further from the truth. As PPFA’s Olivia Cappello told the Washington Post:

“At Planned Parenthood our position is that any ban on abortion is going to harm people that could become pregnant. Whether it’s six weeks or 12 weeks, an abortion ban stops people from getting the care they need when they need it and interferes with their freedom to decide what is best for their bodies and their lives and futures.”

For more information, read Planned Parenthood Action Fund’s latest memo on this harmful narrative and why there are no “reasonable compromises” on someone’s reproductive freedom in North Carolina, Nebraska, or anywhere else.

TIM SCOTT IS LATEST OUT-OF-TOUCH SOUTH CAROLINIAN TO RUN FOR PRESIDENT:: Today, Senator Tim Scott (R-SC) announced his candidacy for the Republican nomination for president of the United States. Jenny Lawson, the executive director of Planned Parenthood Votes, issued the following statement:

“It’s been over a month since Tim Scott launched his exploratory committee for president and he still can’t get his answer on abortion straight. He continues to butcher and fumble his way through this primary, refusing to be straightforward with the American people. But we’ve got his number: He wants to ban abortion nationwide and knows that while his extreme position puts him in lock-step with his primary opponents, it’s far from what voters want. South Carolinians and the overwhelming majority of Americans support abortion rights. Tim Scott is going to find out the hard way at the ballot box."