12/29/2023 0 Comments Tom perez money pro life groupsIn addition, PACs controlled by Pelosi and Maryland Rep. In January, the DCCC added Ashford to its “Red to Blue” list of candidates, a gesture viewed by many as carrying the weight of official party support, which will also give him special access to party political resources. Ashford also served on Hillary Clinton’s Nebraska Leadership Council. Meanwhile, establishment Democratic organizations, including the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee, have rallied behind Ashford, who previously served one term in Congress before losing in 2016 to the current incumbent, Rep. The only pro-choice group that has endorsed Eastman is #VoteProChoice, a small organization founded in 2016 by activist Heidi Sieck. Federal Election Commission records show no political action committees for national abortion rights groups donating to Eastman’s campaign or spending money on their own to boost her chances in the May 15 primary. Other pro-choice organizations, including UltraViolet Action, EMILY’s List, and the Planned Parenthood Action Fund, did not respond to repeated requests for comment about the Nebraska primary between Eastman and Ashford. He backed bills to ban abortions after 20 weeks, require a doctor to perform an ultrasound on women seeking an abortion, require physicians to obtain a form notifying them of parental consent for minors seeking an abortion, and require that women seeking an abortion undergo a risk screening for any potential “demographic” or “emotional” factors that may complicate an abortion procedure.īut the major pro-choice advocacy groups have ignored her pleas for support.Īn official from NARAL Pro-Choice America told The Intercept that the organization is not engaging in the primary race. As a state legislator, Ashford voted for some of the same legislation that landed Mello on the business end of the choice groups. On May 24, long before the dust had settled, Kara Eastman launched her pro-choice bid for Congress.Įastman had even better reasons to suspect that abortion rights groups would rally to her side: Her opponent for the Democratic nomination, Brad Ashford, is a former Republican with a long history of supporting abortion restrictions. On May 9, 2017, Mello lost his election by 6 points. Mello, the man in the middle, put out his own statement, saying that he was not, in fact, opposed to abortion rights and would do nothing as mayor to restrict access. Perez, after feeling heat, flipped, issuing a statement that insisted Democrats must only support pro-choice candidates. If Democrats wanted an outspoken pro-choice candidate, the place to have that fight was in the primary, not the general. (Writer and Texas Democratic congressional candidate Laura Moser weighed in to lambast Luján for the stance, a position she believes later came back to haunt her.) Sanders and DNC Chair Tom Perez countered that Mello was the only Democrat in the race, so he needed support in the general election. Ben Ray Luján, D-N.M., who chairs the House Democratic campaign arm, took the opposite position. It kicked off a heated conversation within the party, as some top Democrats argued that there was no place for anti-choice candidates in the party, while House Democratic leader Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., and Rep. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt., and Democratic National Committee leaders on Mello’s behalf was “offensive morally & counterproductive strategically.” NARAL Pro-Choice America President Ilyse Hogue slammed the party, arguing that Democrats were rejecting women’s rights by “embracing” an “anti-choice candidate,” and claiming on Twitter that an endorsement rally sponsored by Sen. Just weeks before Eastman launched her bid, major pro-choice groups made headlines by denouncing Democrats for supporting the Omaha mayoral run of Heath Mello, a former Nebraska legislator, citing his anti-choice voting record. She even features her support for abortion rights in a campaign commercial. When Kara Eastman, a community activist, decided to run for Nebraska’s 2nd Congressional District, a swing seat surrounding metro Omaha, she was confident that pro-choice groups would leap to embrace her candidacy.Įastman has campaigned on populist ideas like “Medicare for All,” tuition-free public university education, higher taxes on the wealthy, increasing the minimum wage and, notable for a Nebraska Democrat, unfettered access to reproductive health options.
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