Action: Defend Planned Parenthood funding
Jan. 5th, 2017 08:45 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
teaotter posting in ![[community profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/community.png){kind=small}
thisfinecrewThe GOP congress is trying to de-fund Planned Parenthood as part of the package for repealing Obamacare. Planned Parenthood provides medical care for 2.6 million people, and shouldn't be defunded without a fight.
Although the Republicans have enough seats in the senate to pass the ACA repeal with no Democratic help, some Republican senators have indicated that they might be willing to fight to keep Planned Parenthood funding separate from that bill.
Sen. Susan Collins of Maine has said that she's "not happy" to hear that Planned Parenthood's funding is being attached to the ACA repeal bill. In 2015, she worked with Sen. Lisa Murkowsi of Alaska and former-Sen. Mark Kirk of Illinois to strip a similar provision from the repeal bill passed that year.
One Republican Congressman -- Rep. Charlie Dent of Pennsylvania -- is apparently also on the fence about tying Planned Parenthood's funding to the ACA repeal bill.
WHAT TO DO
Call your representatives! Especially if one of the people named above represents you -- but calling your rep can help regardless, especially if they're a Republican. Let them know you're out here and willing to kick up a fuss. You can also call your governor; governors can help put pressure on their senators and other members of their party.
Sample script: "Hi, my name is ________, and I'm a constituent of the Senator/Congressman/Congresswoman/Governor. I want to urge Mr./Ms. (name of rep) to save federal funding for Planned Parenthood. Don't allow Planned Parenthood to be defunded as part of the ACA repeal! Planned Parenthood's medical services are too important to me and millions of other Americans."
(If you don't already have your reps contact info, this post has links for finding them.)
Although the Republicans have enough seats in the senate to pass the ACA repeal with no Democratic help, some Republican senators have indicated that they might be willing to fight to keep Planned Parenthood funding separate from that bill.
Sen. Susan Collins of Maine has said that she's "not happy" to hear that Planned Parenthood's funding is being attached to the ACA repeal bill. In 2015, she worked with Sen. Lisa Murkowsi of Alaska and former-Sen. Mark Kirk of Illinois to strip a similar provision from the repeal bill passed that year.
One Republican Congressman -- Rep. Charlie Dent of Pennsylvania -- is apparently also on the fence about tying Planned Parenthood's funding to the ACA repeal bill.
WHAT TO DO
Call your representatives! Especially if one of the people named above represents you -- but calling your rep can help regardless, especially if they're a Republican. Let them know you're out here and willing to kick up a fuss. You can also call your governor; governors can help put pressure on their senators and other members of their party.
Sample script: "Hi, my name is ________, and I'm a constituent of the Senator/Congressman/Congresswoman/Governor. I want to urge Mr./Ms. (name of rep) to save federal funding for Planned Parenthood. Don't allow Planned Parenthood to be defunded as part of the ACA repeal! Planned Parenthood's medical services are too important to me and millions of other Americans."
(If you don't already have your reps contact info, this post has links for finding them.)
no subject
Date: 2017-01-06 05:06 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2017-01-06 05:29 am (UTC)I've come to the conclusion that, when a rep floats an opinion to the press, they're checking to see if their constituents respond. And I figure they're not the only ones checking which way the wind is blowing. So I'm looking for those actions specifically as a sign that we should push on those issues.
no subject
Date: 2017-01-08 04:45 am (UTC)