ICYMI: Rep. Jennifer McClellan (D-VA04), Reproductive Care Advocates Slam Trump Ahead of Rally in Richmond

Read highlights from the press conference below:

• “Trump is proud of appointing the Supreme Court justices necessary to overturn Roe v. Wade. He brags about ripping away reproductive freedom from millions of women across the country, he’s called for women to be punished for having an abortion and to punish the providers that provide that care, and he wants to take credit for the extreme abortion bans passed by Republicans in states across the country … and we’re here to give him that credit. Because even though Virginians stopped MAGA Republicans’ attempts to pass an extreme abortion ban here in Virginia by voting at the ballot box this past November, the stakes could not be higher for reproductive freedom this November,” said Biden-Harris National Advisory Board member Congresswoman Jennifer McClellan. “President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris are fighting to protect reproductive freedom. They are the only candidates fighting to protect reproductive freedom and the right for patients and their doctor to make their own decisions. The choice is crystal clear: A vote for Joe Biden and Kamala Harris is a vote for reproductive freedom. … A vote for Donald Trump is a vote to attack reproductive freedom.”

• “If Trump and his MAGA Republicans enact a nationwide abortion ban, our Freedoms will be stripped away. Virginians and 80% of Americans, want the freedom to decide what is best for our bodies and our lives. We don’t want Donald Trump’s MAGA extremists taking away our options and controlling our futures. If Donald Trump gets his national abortion ban, Virginia women would have nowhere to turn for reproductive health care — We would all lose freedom,” said Dr. Sara Imershein, M.D., M.P.H., a Virginia abortion provider. “The stakes in November couldn’t be higher. Reproductive freedom is on the ballot and women’s health and safety are on the line. The answer: vote. Vote for reproductive freedom. Vote out extremist MAGA politicians. Vote for Joe Biden and Kamala Harris.”

• “In states that have passed strict abortion bans, my colleagues struggle with determining at what point a patient is sick ‘enough’ in the eyes of the law to allow her to abort a pregnancy. Often, physicians must confer with hospital attorneys to make these determinations, resulting in delays in care. This could be the reality in Virginia if a national abortion ban becomes law. … Isn’t this a decision that should be left to pregnant patients and their families rather than politicians?” said Dr. Jessica DeMay, M.D., a Richmond OB/GYN and maternal-fetal medicine specialist.

• “I chose to have an abortion… I also desperately wanted another child. The quicker I could begin to heal, the sooner I could try to have a healthy baby. But most of all, I thought of my son. I didn’t want to risk my life going through a traumatic delivery when I knew there was something safer,” said Jessica. “I was able to make that life-or-death decision in one of the most difficult times in my life. I did not want to risk my life going through a potentially traumatic labor and delivery. I did not want to tell my son and everyone else in my life why I would not be coming home with a baby after clearly being pregnant. I wanted a baby and to move forward. … If Donald Trump got the national abortion ban he’s pushing for, I wouldn’t have been able to make this choice or access the care that I needed.”