Columbus — Ohio Attorney General and candidate for governor Mike DeWine is appearing with Rick Santorum at a campaign event in Troy, Ohio today. The event is explicitly designed to highlight DeWine’s extremist anti-abortion views.
Speaking before the event, NARAL Pro-Choice Ohio Executive Director Kellie Copeland said: “Mike DeWine has used his position to oppose access to birth control coverage for women who receive their health insurance from a religiously affiliated employers. He launched a high profile investigation of Planned Parenthood that ultimately discovered that they were following all state and federal laws. There may be no other politician in Ohio more determined to abuse the resources of Ohio taxpayers for the sole purpose of blocking women’s access to reproductive health care, including safe and legal abortion care, than Mike DeWine.”
In a current case from Texas, DeWine joined AGs from six other states in trying to block a young woman from obtaining an abortion. In a press release justifying his actions, DeWine’s campaign blatantly lied about abortion funding — in truth, private funding has been secured for the young woman. The minor, who is an immigrant, is suing the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services and the Office of Refugee Resettlement for access to abortion care. DeWine signed onto an amicus brief against the effort to assist the 17 year old woman. DeWine’s campaign solicited donors with this message: “American taxpayers should not pay for illegal aliens to get abortions,” but in fact, an advocacy organization, Jane’s Due Process, worked with local abortion funds to obtain funding for the procedure.
Copeland continued: “Last week, Mike DeWine used his office to stand between a young immigrant in Texas and her doctor and then blatantly lied about it to appeal to his political donors. It’s a gross mismanagement of the Ohio Attorney General’s office.”
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