'It's Terrifying': Expert Explains Project 2025's Possible Impacts On Abortion And Contraception

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On "Forbes Newsroom," Mini Timmaraju, President and CEO of Reproductive Freedom for All, discussed her organizations $100 million plan to help bolster reproductive rights in the 2024 elections, and warned about Project 2025's plans to attack abortion.    Fuel your success with Forbes. Gain unlimited access to premium journalism, including breaking news, groundbreaking in-depth reported stories, daily digests and more. Plus, members get a front-row seat at members-only events with leading thinkers and doers, access to premium video that can help you get ahead, an ad-light experience, early access to select products including NFT drops and more:  https://account.forbes.com/membership/?utm_source=youtube&utm_medium=display&utm_campaign=growth_non-sub_paid_subscribe_ytdescript   Stay Connected Forbes on Facebook: http://fb.com/forbes Forbes Video on Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/forbes Forbes Video on Instagram: http://instagram.com/forbes More From Forbes:  http://forbes.com

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00:00Now, you mentioned no matter what former President Trump says, there's only one candidate who

00:07will protect abortion rights, and I wanted to ask you about the RNC platform, because

00:11ahead of the convention next week, the RNC released its policy platform, and when it

00:15comes to reproductive health and abortion, a lot of the headlines used words like a dramatic

00:22shift and a softening in the RNC's historic position when it comes to abortion.

00:29It seems like they are moving away from federal limits or a federal ban on abortion based

00:35on some of the analysis of this platform, but Minnie, I want to ask, what do you make

00:39of the RNC platform and how it treats reproductive health?

00:42Yeah, I mean, it's terrifying.

00:45So look, I mean, I think the American people are very familiar with Donald Trump's incredible

00:50talent at lying and kind of hiding the truth.

00:55A couple of things.

00:57First of all, you know, Project 2025, which is the Heritage Foundation led blueprint for

01:02a future Trump administration, despite his efforts to deny it, I mean, recent reporting

01:06today from CNN indicates over 25 plus authors and folks involved with Project 2025 were

01:13also Trump administration leaders.

01:16So they're entangled.

01:18They're all part of the same allied organization, organizational infrastructure that a Biden

01:24administration will put forth.

01:25And, you know, you mentioned the Supreme Court cases.

01:28You know, what's really terrifying about the medication abortion and the emergency abortion

01:32care cases is the court didn't actually settle the law.

01:35They just punted the cases down the road.

01:37And you look at Project 2025 and right there in plain writing is plans for a Trump admin

01:43to rescind those actions.

01:45So those are executive actions by Joe Biden and Kamala Harris.

01:48Going back to the platform, I was really disturbed to see the number of outlets that called it

01:53softening of language, because what the GOP did was really, really sneaky.

02:01They did not do their laundry list of bills that they've supported in the past.

02:05And they made a big show of having a public fight with some of the most extreme abortion

02:09activists in their party.

02:10But what they did do was put language that very clearly indicated that they support states

02:16invoking the 14th Amendment and applying it to embryos and fetuses.

02:22What that does is it extends.

02:24It basically creates a pathway for legislation that enshrines personhood for embryos.

02:33That is the basis for some of the most challenging, scary attacks on abortion, but also contraception

02:40and also IVF.

02:41You know, the big Alabama case that everybody got really worked up about on IVF.

02:45That was based on personhood, personhood theology, personhood ideology.

02:52So that's the root of that movement.

02:55And at least a dozen or so anti-abortion leaders praised it openly.

03:00They weren't hiding it, that that was actually a big deal for them.

03:04Because you think about this court, and you think about states enacting rules like that,

03:07you can say, leave it to the states, leave it to the states.

03:10States enact legislation like this, it goes to this court.

03:14And now we have a federal personhood decision from this Supreme Court.

03:19And that would just be endgame for contraception, IVF, and so many other reproductive technologies.

03:26And listen, that's always been what that movement has advocated for.

03:31And we can see it in the light of day.

03:32So I'm excited that so many people caught it, disappointed in the narrative in the press.

03:38But it's our job as advocates to educate folks about this.

03:41Now we're talking both about the RNC platform and Project 2025.

03:45And this might feel like a really basic question, but for folks who are seeing headlines about both of these things,

03:50what is the difference between Project 2025 and the RNC platform?

03:56Yeah, I mean, the difference is that the RNC platform is the, quote,

04:00official on the record policy that the party has adopted.

04:06But really, in a year where you have an incumbent and for all intents and purposes,

04:10Donald Trump is functioning as an incumbent in this situation.

04:14It is the president's message.

04:17And Donald Trump, I think, is smart to make the message seem more moderate and palatable.

04:23But what Project 2025 is, is actually a lot more powerful.

04:27And look, Democrats have their own versions of this, too, right?

04:30You have allied groups that support the president, that put out their policy platforms like ours.

04:36And you have those organizations endorsing or supporting that candidate, right?

04:41So every side has this.

04:44So if you line up Joe Biden and Kamala Harris and their equivalent organizations putting out platforms like Project 2025,

04:51they match very clearly what a Biden-Harris administration has done.

04:55And that is how you know what's accurate.

04:57When you look at Project 2025 and you look at the Trump administration and who he appointed and what he did in office,

05:06not what the GOP platform says, his campaign mandate, but what he actually did.

05:12And that is our message.

05:13Look at what Donald Trump did.

05:15Not what he's saying through the GOP platform now, but what the folks who ran his admin did.

05:20They overturned Roe.

05:22And it was in that blueprint.

05:24So believe it when they say they're going to do it again.

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