Congressional Republicans are reportedly trying to insert anti-abortion language into government funding legislation as the shutdown continues, with the GOP and President Donald Trump digging in against a clean extension of Affordable Care Act tax credits as insurance premiums surge.
Sen. Ron Wyden (D-Ore.), the top Democrat on the Senate Finance Committee, sounded the alarm on Saturday about what he characterized as the latest Republican sneak attack on reproductive rights.
Wyden said Saturday—which marked day 39 of the shutdown—that “Republicans are spinning a tale that the government is funding abortion.”
“It’s not,” Wyden continued. “What Republicans are talking about putting on the table amounts to nothing short of a backdoor national abortion ban. Under this plan, Republicans could weaponize federal funding for any organization that does anything related to women’s reproductive healthcare. They could also weaponize the tax code by revoking non-profit status for these organizations.”
“The possibilities are endless, but the results are the same: a complete and total restriction on abortion, courtesy of Republicans,” the senator added. “Trump said he’d leave abortion care up to the states. Well, this latest scheme makes it crystal clear: A de facto nationwide abortion ban has been his plan all along.”
Do you know how illegal it is to steal federal funds? It’s super extra illegal, control of funding is where most actual federal power lies. The federal government has surprisingly little direct authority over the States, so I find it difficult to believe this, especially since the 8 States announced it was coming out of their own budget
I’m pretty sure this is all just bullshit to muddy the waters. I think any truth in this was coordinated with the States, I don’t think they’d reach into the bucket and pull out more than was provisioned to their state
And as far as Louisiana paying it? Not only are they one of the most corrupt states, they’re extremely reliant on aid programs. I find it very easy to believe they had money laying around that they repurposed to avoid a massive problem