NOW Slams Obama For Order On Abortion Funds Ban

Washington, D.C., United States (AHN) – The president of the National Organization for Women (NOW) came down Sunday on President Barack Obama for agreeing to issue an executive order restricting federal funds for abortions.

In a statement, Terry O’Neill said the organization is enraged the president agreed to issue an executive order designed to placate a small number of anti-choice Democrats who have stalled health care reform in an effort to prohibit women’s access to abortion.

“Through this order, the president has announced he will lend the weight of his office and the entire executive branch to the anti-abortion measures included in the Senate bill, which the House is now prepared to pass,” O’Neill said.

She added that Obama campaigned as a pro-choice president, but by agreeing to the executive order, his actions suggest that his commitment to reproductive health care is unstable at best.

“Contrary to language in the draft of the executive order and repeated assertions in the news, the Hyde Amendment is not settled law – it is an illegitimate tack-on to an annual must-pass appropriations bill,” O’Neill continued. “NOW has a longstanding objection to Hyde and, in fact, was looking forward to working with this president and Congress to bring an end to these restrictions. We see now that we have our work cut out for us far beyond what we ever anticipated. The message we have received today is that it is acceptable to negotiate health care on the backs of women, and we couldn’t disagree more.”

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