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* UPDATED x1 * ILGOP slams Pritzker for going around federal gag rule

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* As we discussed yesterday, the governor made yet another announcement on an abortion-related topic…

llinois is preparing to cover federal health care funding that’s being threatened by a new Trump administration rule banning family planning clinics from referring women for abortions.

Gov. JB Pritzker announced Thursday that the Illinois Department of Public Health will use state money to cover the 28 health care providers that currently receive Title X grant money, should the “gag rule” remain in effect through the end of the fiscal year.

* Reuters…

(T)he Illinois Department of Public Health will provide state funding to the 28 local clinics that normally receive Title X money through the agency, making up for an estimated $2.4 million in federal dollars they otherwise stand to lose for the rest of the fiscal year, Pritzker said.

* Illinois Republican Party spokesman Joe Hackler sent out this statement late yesterday afternoon while I was out of the office…

Notwithstanding aggressive obfuscation in the Pritzker administration’s PR surrounding this decision, the truth is really quite clear.

In a state struggling financially, Governor Pritzker would rather turn away federal money funding life saving non-abortion related medical care for women and girls because of his unrivaled zeal for forced taxpayer funding of abortions.

This episode highlights exactly how extreme Illinois is in dealing with abortion. Our state now allows abortion for almost any reason up until the moment of birth and taxpayers who find this unconscionable, must pay for the procedures. Despite this policy being wildly out of step with the public’s views, the Governor is willing to forgo millions of federal money for women’s health and defy a court ruling in order to preserve it.

* I asked the Reproductive Health Act sponsor Rep. Kelly Cassidy (D-Chicago) for a response…

It is disappointing to see an entire political party seek to deny critical health care to women across Illinois. This tired rhetoric is factually wrong and just bad policy. These funds support care for women that protects their health and advances families. My Republican friends in Illinois have not been helped by blindly following Trump policies. They might want to consider that reality in this moment.

*** UPDATE *** Washington Post…

The Trump administration is considering backtracking on an announcement this week that immediately required federally funded family planning centers to follow new rules banning referrals for abortion, amid widespread confusion among clinics about the changes.

A federal health official overseeing the family planning program told more than 200 leaders of reproductive health organizations gathered this week in Washington that she wanted to give them 60 days to comply with the rules and that federal lawyers were reviewing the idea, according to three participants in the closed meeting and others who were told afterward.

Those comments Thursday, by Department of Health and Human Services official Diane Foley at a conference for recipients of the family planning grants, created new turmoil in the administration’s efforts to restrict the program known as Title X, a government program that started in 1970 and pays for reproductive health services for about 4 million poor women and girls annually.

posted by Rich Miller
Friday, Jul 19, 19 @ 9:27 am

Comments

The nice thing about federalism is if Illinois wants to spend state dollars on abortions, they can do it.

Comment by Steve Friday, Jul 19, 19 @ 9:32 am
==because of his unrivaled zeal for forced taxpayer funding of abortions==

Umm last I checked that legislation was signed into law by a republican governor.

Comment by Gruntled University Employee Friday, Jul 19, 19 @ 9:32 am
==allows abortion for almost any reason up until the moment of birth==

This is not true and shouldn’t get a pass just because it’s a partisan statement.

Comment by lakeside Friday, Jul 19, 19 @ 9:35 am
===This episode highlights exactly how extreme Illinois is in dealing with abortion. Our state now allows abortion for almost any reason up until the moment of birth and taxpayers who find this unconscionable, must pay for the procedures.===

“Thanks, Bruce Rauner”

Op. My bad.

“Thanks, Diana Rauner”

#BrandOverParty #TheyOwnedYou #YouPlayedYourself

I’m not forgetting the RaunerS implosion of the ILGOP.

It appears the state Raunerite Party has, but…

Comment by Oswego Willy Friday, Jul 19, 19 @ 9:39 am
This statement makes clear there is no longer room for people who believe women should have access to abortion in the Illinois Republican Party. Which is going to cost them a lot of votes in the suburbs, where they used to do pretty well.

Way to chew off your flank, guys.

Comment by DIstant watcher Friday, Jul 19, 19 @ 9:43 am
===his unrivaled zeal for forced taxpayer funding of abortions.===

And who gave us that? Oh yeah, Republican Gov. Bruce Rauner.

Comment by Nick Name Friday, Jul 19, 19 @ 9:43 am
===This statement makes clear there is no longer room for people who believe women should have access to abortion in the Illinois Republican Party. Which is going to cost them a lot of votes in the suburbs, where they used to do pretty well.===

Political parties can’t survive when “must, only, every and never” are continually found as the ways for people to shun it.

Conceding “suburban women” by dividing the thought on this issue will be something, when looking back, the party may regret as it devolves to a regional actor in state governing.

Comment by Oswego Willy Friday, Jul 19, 19 @ 9:46 am
===Our state now allows abortion for almost any reason up until the moment of birth===

I really, really hate this lie. In any delivery room, the only thing happening at “the moment of birth” is delivering the baby. That’s it. When the mother’s water breaks, when she’s in contractions and the contractions are getting closer, when the baby starts traveling down the birth canal, when the doc decides an episiotomy may be necessary, nobody, but nobody, is thinking, “Hey, I know, let’s kill this kid.”

Democrats and pro-choicers would do very well to roundly and loudly denounce “up to the moment of birth” for the lie it is, every time any Republican repeats it.

Comment by Nick Name Friday, Jul 19, 19 @ 9:49 am
Is anyone surprised by any of this? The gag rule was a prime opportunity for Pritzker to stand up to Trump in a relatively safe way. The policy doesn’t change the state’s abortion policy (as many have pointed out, taxpayer funded abortions were already a thing). And then the right complains about a policy started under the last governor who they pretend wasn’t one of them.

This was an easy win for Pritzker and the IL GOP have no choice politically but to come out with a strong but disingenuous denouncement.

Good day for Jeanne Ives though, if there were an election next week.

Comment by OutOfState Friday, Jul 19, 19 @ 9:49 am
For years, I was staunchly pro-life because the thought of abortion horrified me. When my wife was pregnant, we wouldn’t even take the test to check for Down syndrome because that was our baby, regardless of ability/disability.

Then I realized I can’t judge anyone’s situation. For example, I’m sure there are many pro-life women who have had to abort late in their term for a life-or-death situation.

I think the GOP would be surprised at how many women in their party have needed services. They’d be wise to tread lightly on this.

Comment by Proud Papa Bear Friday, Jul 19, 19 @ 9:59 am
==unrivaled zeal==

Unbridled, sure. But I’m sure JB has his share of rivals on this matter.

Comment by City Zen Friday, Jul 19, 19 @ 10:03 am
=Despite this policy being wildly out of step with the public’s views==
Talk about being out of step with the public’s views!

Comment by West Town TB Friday, Jul 19, 19 @ 10:06 am
A July 10 ABC News poll found that support for legal abortion matched a 24-year high.

What’s really interesting is that 41% of Republican respondents said abortion should be legal in most cases, 11% said legal in all cases.

Also of relevance, for those commenters posting about suburban (white) women:

“But in another political group of interest, college-educated white women are more apt to support legal abortion (72%) than college-educated white men and whites of either gender who lack a college degree (all with support in the mid- to high 50s).”

Lot of interesting findings for those who, unlike the IL GOP, have a taste for facts:

https://abcnews.go.com/Politics/support-legal-abortion-matches-24-year-high-poll/story?id=64221457

Comment by Moe Berg Friday, Jul 19, 19 @ 10:06 am
The Illinois GOP needs to rethink their positions. Free Soil for Free Men. Was great in its time. But no longer.

The anti abortion believers have lost the argument. They are an ever decreasing minority.

Comment by Last Bull Moose Friday, Jul 19, 19 @ 10:15 am
==The anti abortion believers have lost the argument. They are an ever decreasing minority.==

Except on SCOTUS

Comment by Hamlet's Ghost Friday, Jul 19, 19 @ 10:19 am
==Despite this policy being wildly out of step with the public’s views==

…or, in this case, the view of a 24-year-old childless white guy.

Comment by Jocko Friday, Jul 19, 19 @ 10:19 am
Money quote for Democrats who passed the most progressive abortion law in the nation.

Poll: Majority Want To Keep Abortion Legal, But They Also Want Restrictions

Three-quarters of Americans say they want to keep in place the landmark Supreme Court ruling, Roe v. Wade, that made abortion legal in the United States, but a strong majority would like to see restrictions on abortion rights, according to a new NPR/PBS NewsHour/Marist Poll.

What it speaks to is the fact that the debate is dominated by the extreme positions on both sides,” said Barbara Carvalho, director of the Marist Poll, which conducted the survey. “People do see the issue as very complicated, very complex. Their positions don’t fall along one side or the other. … The debate is about the extremes, and that’s not where the public is.”

https://www.npr.org/2019/06/07/730183531/poll-majority-want-to-keep-abortion-legal-but-they-also-want-restrictions

Comment by Lucky Pierre Friday, Jul 19, 19 @ 10:20 am
- Lucky Pierre

By Bruce Rauner’s signature, Illinois at the time had arguably the most liberal abortion law in America.

And you defended him.

LOL

Good times.

Comment by Oswego Willy Friday, Jul 19, 19 @ 10:22 am
Cost for IL to pick up the tab on protecting women’s rights - 2.4m

Watching the ILGOP die on this hill - priceless

Comment by Randomly Selected Friday, Jul 19, 19 @ 10:26 am
All about Rauner all day long OW.

Nice try but it was the Democrats and JB who bragged about passing the most progressive abortion law in the nation.

Pritzker signs abortion measure he says makes Illinois most ‘progressive’ on issue
The bill’s House sponsor declared the state is “building a firewall around Illinois” as neighboring states work to restrict abortions. But anti-abortion groups argue Illinois will become “an abortion destination for the country.”

https://chicago.suntimes.com/politics/2019/6/12/18661670/pritzker-abortion-bill-illinois-sign-reproductive-health-act

When will you go back to blaming Pate, Daniels Edgar and Thompson for everything wrong in Illinois?

Comment by Lucky Pierre Friday, Jul 19, 19 @ 10:29 am
The gag rule is antithetical to good health care. Nobody should be gagging health care providers about providing options of care. Period. So JB is clearly right on the policy.

On the politics, this is a dead bang loser for the Illinois GOP. If they were smart they would have just let this go because they’re really in a trick box. If they come out against it, they’re functioning coming out in favor of silencing doctors and other health care providers. But the Illinois GOP never misses an opportunity to shoot themselves in the foot so voila, you have idiocy like this.

Oh yea, and it was the GOP’s Bruce Rauner who signed the bill, so that kind of complicates the attacks on JB.

#BrilliantGOP

Comment by Chicago Cynic Friday, Jul 19, 19 @ 10:31 am
What’s interesting is the 2.4 million shortfall that Illinois plans to send the 28 clinics won’t necessarily be used for abortion. Some of it will, I’m guessing a lot of it, will go to birth control. Which reduces abortions.

Comment by Da Big Bad Wolf Friday, Jul 19, 19 @ 10:41 am
Excellent point Big Bad Wolf. You can also add extreme procedures like pap smears, breast exams, and antibiotics to the list of left-wing priorities the funds will cover /s

Comment by OutOfState Friday, Jul 19, 19 @ 10:46 am
===What’s interesting is the 2.4 million shortfall that Illinois plans to send the 28 clinics won’t necessarily be used for abortion. Some of it will, I’m guessing a lot of it, will go to birth control. Which reduces abortions===

And had the federal funding remained in place, none of it would have gone to abortions. How’s that for winning, Republicans?

Comment by Nick Name Friday, Jul 19, 19 @ 10:53 am
“Abortion is healthcare for women (and men)” is a hoax.

It’s a good thing Illinois can just package up their payables into near junk bonds and keep the spending party going. /s

Comment by cdog Friday, Jul 19, 19 @ 10:54 am
The most SCOTUS can do is put abortion back to the individual states. Then we can finish the political debate short circuited by Roe v. Wade.

Comment by Last Bull Moose Friday, Jul 19, 19 @ 10:56 am
== My Republican friends in Illinois have not been helped by blindly following Trump policies. They might want to consider that reality in this moment.==

Jeez, Kelly, you’re not supposed to help them figure out what they’re doing wrong. They’ll get there on their own at some point, meanwhile just benefit from it

Comment by Lester Holt’s Mustache Friday, Jul 19, 19 @ 11:15 am
==It’s a good thing Illinois can just package up their payables into near junk bonds and keep the spending party going.==

It’s a good thing that Illinois will spend money on birth control to prevent abortions.

Fixed it for ya.

Comment by Da Big Bad Wolf Friday, Jul 19, 19 @ 11:22 am
Nick Name - === Our state now allows abortion for almost any reason up until the moment of birth===

=== I really, really hate this lie. In any delivery room, the only thing happening at “the moment of birth” is delivering the baby. That’s it.===

Did it ever occur to you that these late term abortions occur in abortion clinics? Of course they don’t happen in hospital delivery rooms, that’s why the mother is there.

Quit trying to twist facts around.

Comment by Just Saying Friday, Jul 19, 19 @ 11:29 am
==these late term abortions occur in abortion clinics==

Assumes facts not in evidence. Name one clinic that performs abortions after 24 weeks.

Comment by Jocko Friday, Jul 19, 19 @ 11:36 am
===Did it ever occur to you that these late term abortions occur in abortion clinics? Of course they don’t happen in hospital delivery rooms, that’s why the mother is there.

Quit trying to twist facts around.===

But not at, or up to, the moment of birth. Try to keep up.

Also, third trimester abortions are not only extremely rare, they’re also extremely dangerous. They’re never elective, because insurance won’t cover a third trimester elective abortion. And because of the risks, they’re almost always done in hospitals, not clinics.

My facts are perfectly fine.

Comment by Nick Name Friday, Jul 19, 19 @ 11:42 am
=not only extremely rare, they’re also extremely dangerous==

And extremely because something has gone wrong with the pregnancy, and some very sad wishful parents have had to make a difficult choice for the health of the mother or to prevent suffering of a wanted child. Or both.

This ‘and they willy-nilly rip them out of the womb whenever they feel like it even as they’re being born’ is a despicable lie.

Comment by lakeside Friday, Jul 19, 19 @ 12:16 pm
===This ‘and they willy-nilly rip them out of the womb whenever they feel like it even as they’re being born’ is a despicable lie.===

Amen. It is despicable that pro-lifers spread lies and propaganda at the expense of women who have to suffer unspeakable heartbreak when faced with having to make this decision.

Comment by Nick Name Friday, Jul 19, 19 @ 12:26 pm
“And extremely because something has gone wrong with the pregnancy, and some very sad wishful parents have had to make a difficult choice for the health of the mother or to prevent suffering of a wanted child. Or both.”

This. 1000% Been there. It’s unspeakably awful and what the radical anti-choice crowd want is to force a woman to carry an unviable fetus to term. They want to torture the woman for the sin of having an unhealthy pregnancy. And yes, I use the term torture very deliberately. Imagine the pain of being forced to carry a fetus you know won’t survive outside the womb. But you’ve got to carry that fetus 24/7 for months, knowing what’s to come.

Comment by Chicago Cynic Friday, Jul 19, 19 @ 12:29 pm
Elections = consequences

Comment by Harvest76 Friday, Jul 19, 19 @ 12:40 pm
Cynic, I’m sorry to hear that. My condolences.

Comment by lakeside Friday, Jul 19, 19 @ 1:08 pm
===We’re stopping life saving non-abortion related medical care for women and girls because of our unrivaled zeal for ending abortions===

Fixed it for you, Joe Hackler.

Comment by Jibba Friday, Jul 19, 19 @ 1:26 pm
Chicago Cynic — That is *powerful* testimony. Thank you for having the courage to share it and my condolences on having to endure the loss.

Comment by Flapdoodle Friday, Jul 19, 19 @ 1:30 pm
===All about Rauner all day long===

No, lol, it’s your hypocrisy, lol

You’re so concerned about abortion, you supported the governor who signed at the time the most liberal abortion policy and law Illinois ever had.

You’re a phony to abortion. It’s arbitrary to you.

That’s the joke… on you.

Comment by Oswego Willy Friday, Jul 19, 19 @ 1:37 pm