TPM Source Says Family Planning Aid A Priority for Obama
January 29, 2009 - 6:25pm (Print)
At the signing ceremony for the Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Act today, a source told TPM's Elana Schor that aid for family planning is a priority for Obama, and may get done as soon as next week:
A source present at today's White House signing ceremony for the Lilly Ledbetter bill tells me that President Obama gave assurances that the family planning aid would be done soon -- perhaps as soon as next week, when the House is set to take up a spending bill that would keep the government funded until October.
According to Schor's source, Obama does grasp that family planning funding is ultimately a money-saver: "Obama emphasized that the family-planning aid 'makes the budget look better, it's a money saver,' the source said."
Allison Conyers, a spokesperson for the National Family Planning and Reproductive Health Association, told me, "We do know that family planning is important to the President and he's going to move quickly on it, but we don't have confirmation on which bill it would be on." Conyers confirmed that the "family planning aid" reproductive health groups are looking for is the same Medicaid family planning expansion originally attached to the stimulus.
Does this news allay frustration among advocates that the expansion was dropped from the stimulus?
"We realize that it's important to pass this in any way shape or form. Obama is still committed to family planning and making something happen as soon as possible. That makes us feel better," Conyers responded.
I am thrilled to read this. On further reflection, it makes no sense that Obama would repeal the global gag rule last week, only to deny expansion to medicaid coverage. Yes, he is sacrificing the health of women who are already marginalized, but it is for the sake of political expediency - the whole world is waiting for the US to pass the stimulus bill. If that's all it took to appease the Republicans, Obama probably figures that passing medicaid expansion will be easy enough at a later time with the Democrats in control. When viewed in context, I can still love Obama.
The personal is political.
It would have been nice if the administration and Nancy Pelosi had coordinated on this, so that she wouldn't have ended up with egg on her face during deliberation of the stimulus bill. Assuming Obama does go ahead with the family-planning aid, this whole fruitless brouhaha could have been avoided.
Why didn't the Obama team communicate this earlier and more clearly? Why is this leaking out from this "source" now after it became such an issue instead of before to stem the confusion.
Frankly I trust women's advocacy groups like Planned Parenthood and the March of Dimes to generate outcry where outcry is needed. If Obama had assured these groups ahead of time that axing family planning and contraception from the stimulus bill was just politics and that his plan all along was to propose another measure next week with the same language.. this all could have been avoided. Even if this had happened behind the scenes, fine.
Clearly, women's groups and journalists who cover women's issues felt the need to sound the alarm, put on the pressure, start petitions and ask us to phone the White House and demand that Obama stand up for women. The perception for many was clearly that women had been cast aside to appease the kicking and screaming GOP and their misinformation media campaign? Badly played Obama team.
Caving to the GOP on this issue (and only this issue) was a slap in the face to those of us who have been beating back GOP attacks for the past 8 years. Who deserves the respect and courtesy here? Women's groups or the GOP? It is absurd.
"It's clear that expansion of the Medicaid family planning program is a
long term goal that can be attained in ways other than through
inclusion in the stimulus. But putting it into the stimulus, and then
permitting the public consensus that it doesn't belong there,
undermines our collective understanding of the crucial significance of
family planning to economic stability and viability."
I was feeling torn on the issue of taking out the family planning from the stimulus. Family planning will save money in the long term, but perhaps better to give it to a later bill. This stimulus is such a heated talk, and it needs to happen.
Hopefully, in time, we'll be ready to get this family planning funding. Thank god, we got LillyLedbetter + Global Gag repeal.
Too much on the plates...
