NEW YORK, NEW YORK — There have now been nine Democratic presidential debates, and zero questions about abortion.
Despite efforts from women’s health organizations to push debate moderators to ask the candidates about abortion access, Hillary Clinton and Bernie Sanders still have not received a question about it during a debate. Planned Parenthood President Cecile Richards told ThinkProgress on Monday that the omission is inexcusable.
“It’s incredible, isn’t it?” she said at a Clinton campaign event in New York City. “And the Republicans seem to be talking about it every chance they get.”
During the debate in Brooklyn on Thursday, Clinton mentioned the topic without prompting and called out the moderators for not bringing it up earlier. “We’ve not had one question about a woman’s right to make her own decisions about reproductive health care, not one question,” Clinton said.
Richards, who has been vocal about her support for the former Secretary of State, applauded Clinton for the remark.
“I think every women in America was so thrilled the other night,” she said. “Even if we can’t get the moderators to ask questions about reproductive rights and abortion access, Secretary Clinton brought it up herself. This is not a time to be on the sidelines. This is not a time to be quiet. This is a time to stand up and say what are you for and what are you willing to fight for.”
Though the issue hasn’t gotten much attention during the debates, Clinton and Sanders have both spoken on the campaign trail about their support for a woman’s right to choose. The two candidates largely agree on the issue.
Ahead of Tuesday’s New York primary, Clinton has been making concerted efforts to reach out to female voters. On Tuesday, she was joined at her get-out-the-vote rally by Richards, New York Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand (D), former Rep. Gabby Giffords, and New York First Lady Chirlane McCray.
Female voters in attendance told ThinkProgress they appreciate Clinton’s willingness to bring up abortion access, even when debate moderators ignore the issue.
“I think it’s horrifying, and I think the fact that Secretary Clinton brought it up the other night speaks volumes to who she’s really fighting for,” said Manhattan resident Mary Jo Pane. “The fact that women’s bodies have been politicized from the beginning of time is absolutely ridiculous. We do not politicize men’s bodies. Why is it only women?”
Mamie Parris, an actress and Clintons supporter, also called it “embarrassing and shameful” that abortion has not come up during the Democratic debates.
“Frankly it just highlights the fight women have to put up to have this paid attention to in politics and in government,” she said. She also called Clinton the only candidate to “broach the subject.”
As Clinton and Richards often mention, many Republican-controlled state legislatures and Republican governors have moved in recent months to strip funding from women’s health organizations like Planned Parenthood, as have Republicans in the U.S. Congress.
Richards specifically called out Sen. Ted Cruz (R-TX) on Tuesday, saying that she does not understand how women can support a candidate who has led the assault on women’s reproductive rights. “A woman voting for Ted Cruz is like a chicken voting for Colonel Sanders,” she said.