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John,
If you’re feeling overwhelmed by the headlines, you’re not alone. Creating a new disaster every day is the Trump administration’s attempt to flood the zone and force us into inaction.
This chaos is deliberate.
But we all have a role to play at this moment.
Our team’s job is to stay laser-focused on protecting reproductive freedom, and to support our state and local electeds as they fight back against attacks.
Right now, our eyes are on the confirmation vote for Russell Vought, who Trump nominated for Director of the Office of Management and Budget (OMB).
Vought is one of the main architects of Project 2025, which outlines a dangerous framework for restricting reproductive rights—including in states where abortion is currently legal. His plan includes:
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‘Fetal personhood’ language, which could be used to ban not just abortion, but IVF and even some forms of contraception as well
- Enforcement of the Comstock Act—a zombie law from the 1800s—to ban the transport of abortion medication and medical tools, effectively blocking a huge percentage of abortion services nationwide
- A call for pregnant patients to be excluded from the protections of EMTALA, a federal law that guarantees patients will receive life-saving care in emergency situations
Vought clearly sees the Office of Management and Budget as an instrument to push his extreme agenda, even writing that the office should be “intimately involved in all aspects of the White House policy process.”
If Vought is confirmed, our state and local leaders will be our first line of defense against this dangerous administration, and they’re already preparing:
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In Michigan, Gov. Gretchen Whitmer recently signed a package of bills that make contraception more accessible.
- Governors in states like Massachusetts, California, and Washington are creating stockpiles of the medications most commonly prescribed for abortions.
- In Colorado, Democratic lawmakers have introduced a bill to explicitly add the protections of EMTALA to state law, to keep pregnant patients safe.
Today’s expected confirmation is a frightening reminder of exactly what we’re up against—but these leaders remind us that our path ahead runs through city halls and state houses.
Thank you for traveling this road with us. Together, we will weather this storm. The future of reproductive freedom depends on it.
Sara Tabatabaie
Executive Director
Vote Pro-Choice
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