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These 4 Women Activists Want To Remind You One Last Time What’s At Stake In 2018 — VIDEO
Get out the vote initiatives come in all shapes and sizes, but they all carry the same message — it's important to show up at the polls on election day. Voting is so important that there are entire organizations dedicated to promoting voter turn out, and this "women go vote" video, put together by a conglomeration of pro-women organizations, emphasizes why women, in particular, need to show up at the polls next week.
The video was put together in conjunction with five different groups, including: Planned Parenthood Votes, NARAL Pro-Choice America, UltraViolet PAC, Voto Latino Action Network, and American Bridge. In particular, the video points to a litany of initiatives spearheaded by President Trump and the Republican Congress which limit, or attempt to limit, a women's right to control her health care.
"They tried to gut the Affordable Care Act," Shaunna Thomas, of UltraViolet PAC, says in the clip, "And rip away health care from millions of Americans, but that was just the beginning."
But, the women in the video say, the Trump administration's actions haven't just affected American women. The decisions they've made, the spokeswomen say, have had global consequences, as well.
"In his first days in office, Trump reinstated the global gag rule,” Ilyse Hogue of NARAL Pro-Choice America, says in the video.
Kelley Robinson, of Planned Parenthood Votes, finishes the thought, adding, "Which effectively defunded thousands of health care providers in impoverished nations, which is a death sentence for women all around the world."
Though the November midterms do not mark a presidential election, they have been characterized by many analysts as a referendum on President Trump, in general. And they could carry great consequences for the him, depending on how the election results.
As it stands, Republicans have a majority in both the Senate and the House, making it relatively easy for Trump to push his agenda through, whether that be by passing laws, or by making appointments. If the midterms disrupt that majority, Trump may have more difficulty delivering on his campaign promises, primarily because he would lack the necessary legislative backing.
The Trump administration has faced pushback from women voters — particularly Democrats — since the 2016 campaign. During Trump's bid for the presidency, this culminated in the anger surrounding the now-infamous Access Hollywood tape, wherein a younger Trump brags about being so famous that he can grab women's genitals.
Momentum and organization only increased after Trump actually won the election. This manifested, initially, with the Women's March, wherein thousands of women and allies around the country demonstrated against what they anticipated to be an administration that would be overtly and blatantly hostile to women.
The new ad encouraging women to get out and vote indicates that the oppositional energy from the days of the first Women's March has not faded. This is just as evident in polls, many of which indicate that women voters are less and less inclined to support the president — or his party.
Of course, whether or not such ad campaigns will be successful depends on whether or not women actually choose to vote in their local elections. And if the 2016 election proved anything, no political movement is a sure thing, unless, of course, people show up.