Ivanka Trump, who delivered Democratic-sounding rhetoric on the campaign trail, has since adopted what some believe is a “complicit” air about her father’s policies. For instance, the eldest Trump daughter recently celebrated Equal Pay Day after Donald rolled back workplace protections for female employees. On the subject of women’s health, Politico has unveiled a “secret” post-inauguration meeting between Ivanka and Planned Parenthood leaders. The parties hoped to find common ground between the White House and the women’s health services provider, but that didn’t happen.
At issue, of course, is the GOP’s obsession with waging war (from beneath a pro-life mask) on women’s reproductive rights. The easiest way to do so is by tightening purse strings, which works disastrous effects on services like HIV and STD testing and treatment, along with cancer screenings and family planning services for low-income women. Planned Parenthood President Cecile Richards hoped to convince Ivanka that federal funds aren’t used for abortions, so the stripping of funds won’t accomplish a pro-life objective.
Dawn Laguens, the organization’s vice president, says that Richards also zeroed in on other common GOP misconceptions:
“The purpose of the meeting, from Cecile’s point of view, was to make sure that Ivanka fully understood what Planned Parenthood does, how it is funded, and why it would be a terrible idea for Planned Parenthood to be removed from being able to see Medicaid patients. The main thing that Cecile Richards was doing was explaining that the money doesn’t actually go to abortions — we get reimbursed the same way a hospital does. We were clearing up misinformation about how this works.”
Unfortunately, something broke down during the course of the meeting, which “soured” despite Ivanka’s stated objective of wishing “to know more about the facts of Planned Parenthood.” In the months that have followed, the president has threatened to remove the organization’s federal funding, and Mike Pence cast a tie-breaking Senate vote that allowed states to defund at will. And Ivanka has remained silent.
In response, Richards has criticized Ivanka for not questioning “why women are in the cross hairs of basically every single policy we’ve seen in this administration.” Meanwhile, Laguens has called out what she views as hypocrisy. She believes that Ivanka can’t fight for female economic empowerment while ignoring the defunding of a vital organization:
“You don’t get to have it both ways. You don’t get to say, I’m all for economic empowerment, and ignore that 30 percent of wage gains are directly attributable to access to birth control. You don’t get to say women should have great child care when maternity benefits are on the chopping block.”
Ivanka recently made her place in the Trump administration official by signing on as a “special counselor” to the president.
(Via Politico)