Cecile Richards
Appearances
The Daily Show: Ears Edition
TDS Time Machine | Jon Interviews Trailblazing Women
That's big of you. And it's great.
The Daily Show: Ears Edition
TDS Time Machine | Jon Interviews Trailblazing Women
It's incredible. It's odd. It's absolutely incredible to see now. Well, first, that birth control itself is a topic of political debate in this presidential election.
The Daily Show: Ears Edition
TDS Time Machine | Jon Interviews Trailblazing Women
Well, I mean, actually, it's just... Yeah, I mean, for women, obviously, birth control's not a... It's not a religious topic. It's a health topic. And 99% of women in America use it. And at Planned Parenthood, we provide birth control to millions of women every single year. So, yeah, I think they're kind of mystified by what the controversy is all about.
The Daily Show: Ears Edition
TDS Time Machine | Jon Interviews Trailblazing Women
Well, you would think so, again, since everyone uses it now. And actually, the exciting thing is, for the first time, we think women actually will get, finally, get birth control covered by their insurance plans, which is a great health, it's a great advance for women's health, it's a great economic issue for women.
The Daily Show: Ears Edition
TDS Time Machine | Jon Interviews Trailblazing Women
But, again, I think we're seeing in this presidential primary this sort of, like, race to the bottom, where every presidential candidate on the Republican side is trying to say, I would be absolutely the worst for women, including being opposed to birth control coverage. I think the last time we actually, that birth control was probably a controversial topic was during Prohibition.
The Daily Show: Ears Edition
TDS Time Machine | Jon Interviews Trailblazing Women
That was actually when, yes, actually for the first time married couples could use birth control legally.
The Daily Show: Ears Edition
TDS Time Machine | Jon Interviews Trailblazing Women
Yeah, it's actually really hard to... I don't even know if I can respond to that.
The Daily Show: Ears Edition
TDS Time Machine | Jon Interviews Trailblazing Women
No, and thanks for covering this issue. No, for women, look, at Planned Parenthood, we see one in five women in America at some point in their lifetime. And this last year, I think I've heard from every single one of them because they are absolutely astounded that we are now re-debating issues that I think have been settled for a long time.
The Daily Show: Ears Edition
TDS Time Machine | Jon Interviews Trailblazing Women
The reality is we're the largest family planning provider in America, and we do more to prevent unintended pregnancy and the need for abortion than any organization in this country. And so... What would be something...
The Daily Show: Ears Edition
TDS Time Machine | Jon Interviews Trailblazing Women
More than 90% of our services are preventive care. We provide not only more than 2 million folks with birth control each year, but we do more than 750,000 pap smears every year, breast exams for women.
The Daily Show: Ears Edition
TDS Time Machine | Jon Interviews Trailblazing Women
No, that's right. No, actually, I mean, the great thing about Planned Parenthood, we're all across the country. And for many women, we are their only medical provider. We are their doctor. And the one doctor visit they get a year is at Planned Parenthood.
The Daily Show: Ears Edition
TDS Time Machine | Jon Interviews Trailblazing Women
And that's why, again, I think there's just been this sort of groundswell concern when politicians are saying we're going to end not only Planned Parenthood, but all family planning in America.
The Daily Show: Ears Edition
TDS Time Machine | Jon Interviews Trailblazing Women
Absolutely right, John. In fact, as I said, one in five women have been to Planned Parenthood, so they actually know what we do. Not that I'm competitive, but I did just see some national polling. Sixty-nine percent of the American people not only support Planned Parenthood, but believe that we should get public funding to provide the services that we do.
The Daily Show: Ears Edition
TDS Time Machine | Jon Interviews Trailblazing Women
Congress's approval rating hovering around 10%, I think. So I think if it really came down to who do you think's on your side as a woman, as a family, I think folks would vote for Planned Parenthood.