Nevada TV Ad Buy Challenges Nevada Senator Harry Reid to Live Up to His Pro-Life Ideals with Health Care Reform
WASHINGTON, Aug. 25 /Christian Newswire/ -- Today the Susan B. Anthony List announced a new health care ad scheduled to begin running this week in Nevada. The ad is part of the Susan B. Anthony List's Votes Have Consequences program, an effort to educate citizens about the voting records of legislators who are out of step with their districts.
"Self-indentified 'pro-life Democrats' like Senator Reid can present a powerful voice in the national abortion debate," said Marjorie Dannenfelser, President of the Susan B. Anthony List. "We've seen this influence with the health care debate in the House. Yet such leadership in the Senate remains lacking. Senator Reid claims to oppose taxpayer funding for abortion, but he has voted for it and still has not spoken out against the greatest expansion of government-backed abortion since Roe v. Wade. Make no mistake -- government-sponsored abortion coverage is a stark departure from our long tradition of limiting federal taxpayer-funds for abortion. It's time for Senator Reid to live up to his self-label. It's time for him to honor his commitments and the consciences of the majority of Nevadans by opposing the abortion mandate in health care reform."
A copy of the Susan B. Anthony List ad was hand- delivered to Senator Reid's Washington office this week, along with a letter from organization President Marjorie Dannenfelser requesting an official response. The initial $50,000 ad buy will close out the August recess, running in Nevada for two weeks beginning this Wednesday, August 26, 2009. Additional buys are planned as the Congressional debate on health care reform continues throughout the fall.
"Senator Reid was elected on a pro-life platform, but his lack of leadership in the national debate over the abortion mandate in health care reform is a great disappointment," said former Congresswoman Marilyn Musgrave, Project Director for the Susan B. Anthony List's Votes Have Consequences Program. "It is vital that Nevadans make their voices heard. Without their action, taxpayers will foot the bill for abortion on-demand in the largest expansion of government-backed abortion since Roe v. Wade."
Earlier this year, when asked by The Weekly Standard if he could support a national health care bill that provided coverage for abortion, Reid responded "I could." Senator Reid holds a 0% voting record with the National Right to Life Committee for the 111th Congress. Earlier this year, he voted against permanently allowing unborn children to be covered under the State Children's Health Insurance program (SCHIP). He also voted against restoring the pro-life Mexico City Policy, which restricts federal funding for overseas abortion providers. In earlier sessions of Congress, Reid voted with the pro-life cause by supporting the ban on partial-birth abortion, the Unborn Victims of Violence Act, and the enforcement of state parental notification laws through the Child Custody Protection Act.
The Susan B. Anthony List is a nationwide network of Americans, over 162,000 residing in all 50 states, dedicated to mobilizing, advancing, and representing pro-life women in politics. Its connected Candidate Fund increases the percentage of pro-life women in the political process.
