Planned Parenthood Federation of America President Cecile Richards says the Trump administration has already done more to set back the nation’s largest abortion provider than any other in the last half-century.
“This White House has been worse for women than any administration in my lifetime,” Ms. Richards said in an interview with PEOPLE.
Mr. Trump and Republicans in Congress have promised to divest Planned Parenthood’s more than $500-million annual taxpayer allowance to women’s health clinics that do not perform abortions.
The president hopes to add to a pro-life record that already includes the reinstatement of the Mexico City Policy, which bans U.S. aid for the performance and promotion of abortion overseas; the repeal of an Obama-era regulation that prohibits states from considering whether clinics perform abortions in the allocation of Title X dollars, which are earmarked for family planning services; and the appointment of pro-life Justice Neil Gorsuch to the U.S. Supreme Court.
Ms. Richards campaigned for Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton and said she shed a few tears on election night.
She said the pro-choice cause will continue to face an uphill battle “until we have more people in office who can get pregnant.”
“It is very frustrating to talk to members of Congress who will never need maternity benefits, never have to deal with an unintended pregnancy or think about whether they can afford birth control,” she said. “That’s a problem.”
• Bradford Richardson can be reached at brichardson@washingtontimes.com.
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