New Democratic presidential candidate Michael Bloomberg is well-known for his advocacy of abortion rights, and a new report says he often opens his wallet for pro-choice causes.
Bloomberg’s nonprofit, the Bloomberg Family Foundation, donated $13,962,000 to Planned Parenthood Federation of America between 2014-2017, according to research by Newsbusters.
Planned Parenthood is the nation’s leading provider of abortions. In its latest report (2017-18), the organization said its clinics had provided 332,757 abortions over the span of 12 months.
Bloomberg, the former mayor of New York City, has a net worth of $56 billion.
He entered the race in November and immediately jumped into the top five of Real Clear Politics’ average of polls with 4 percent in the nationwide Democratic race. He is in fifth place and trails only Joe Biden, Bernie Sanders, Elizabeth Warren and Pete Buttigieg.
It’s not the first time Bloomberg has used his wealth to support legal abortion. In 2014, he launched a $50 million reproductive health program to help women in Nicaragua, Burkina Faso, Senegal and Uganda “freely and safely make decisions about when to have children,” according to a press release. He also has donated to Emily’s List, an organization that supports pro-choice Democratic female candidates.
“To me, it’s very simple: A woman’s right to choose is a fundamental American right – and it is the law of the land,” he said in 2018 at an Emily’s List luncheon.
In one of his most controversial moves, as mayor of New York City, Bloomberg endorsed a Manhattan requirement that forced public hospitals to teach OB-GYN residents how to perform abortions, the New York Times reports. Bloomberg stood by the decision during his 2018 speech to Emily’s List.
“When I was elected mayor, one of the first things we did was make sure that all city hospitals teach OB-GYN residents reproductive care, including how to safely perform abortions – something we did amid much criticism,” he said.
Bloomberg said his administration also “increased access to emergency contraception, which helped us dramatically reduce unwanted pregnancies, particularly among teens.”
“Women’s health and choice have been an important part of my foundation’s focus,” he said.
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Michael Foust is a freelance writer. Visit his blog, MichaelFoust.com.
Photo courtesy: Getty Images/Stephen Maturen/Stringer
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