Pelosi: 'Of course' private companies should provide abortion benefits as 'dangerous' SCOTUS takes away freedom



House Speaker Nancy Pelosi on Sunday declared that the U.S. Supreme Court is "dangerous to the freedoms of our country" and endorsed actions by private companies to provide abortion benefits to employees that may live in states with strong pro-life laws if Roe v. Wade is overturned.

Pelosi was interviewed on CNN's "State of the Union" Sunday after Democrats failed to pass a radical abortion bill last week that would codify Roe and dramatically expand abortion rights by overruling state laws regulating abortion procedures for health and safety or protecting the religious conscience rights of faith-based health care providers.

Host Dana Bash asked what the California Democrat would encourage women to do if they want to obtain an abortion, but live in a state where it would be banned in a post-Roe America.

"For example, would you encourage private companies to provide travel for abortions as a health benefit?" Bash asked.

"Well, of course, that, but the fact is we, as a country — this is — let’s just put this in perspective," Pelosi said. She argued that the history of the Constitution is one of expanding freedoms, citing how previous court decisions on abortion or gay marriage have defined freedom "more fully."

"This is the first time the court has taken back a freedom that was defined by precedent and respect for privacy," Pelosi said. "So, let’s stay focused on who we are as the country and not turn into something where we have to depend on [private companies]. I think that’s all good. It’s helpful to the women, and that’s important.

"But it’s also important to know that this is not right. This is not the path of freedom for our country. So they’re putting freedom on the ballot. And our democracy has been on the ballot because of what they have — are doing to elections," she said.

Pelosi went on to assert that everything from gay marriage to the right to use contraceptives would be in danger if the court overturns Roe.

"Let’s not take our eye off the ball. The ball is this court, which is dangerous to the freedoms of our country. Beware in terms of marriage equality. Beware in terms of other aspects of it," she said.

"The fact is, this is a dangerous court to families, to freedom in our country. And that is why people have to mobilize. And my saying is, we don’t agonize; we organize. We go out there and make sure people know that, if they — actually, elections have consequences."

Watch:

Speaker Pelosi on CNN's State of the Union with Dana Bash youtu.be

Microsoft pledges abortion and gender transition benefits for employees and their dependents



Add Microsoft to the ever-growing list of companies that are pledging to provide female employees with abortion benefits, as well as coverage for so-called "gender-affirming care" for transgender children of employees.

The software company told the Washington Post Wednesday that it "will continue to do everything we can under the law to protect our employees’ rights and support employees and their enrolled dependents in accessing critical health care — which already includes services like abortion and gender-affirming care — regardless of where they live across the U.S.”

In a statement, the company said that employee benefits are being extended "to include travel expense assistance for these and other medical services where access to care is limited in availability in an employee’s home geographic region.”

Microsoft made this announcement in response to a request from the Washington Post for a story on how video game companies have stayed "mostly silent" after a leaked draft Supreme Court opinion indicated that the court has voted to overturn Roe v. Wade in a decision that would uphold Mississippi's 15-week abortion ban.

In the wake of Politico's report on the Supreme Court leak, many large companies have affirmed their commitment to abortion rights by pledging to provide benefits to employees living in states where abortion restrictions would go into effect should Roe be overruled. For example, Amazon, the second-largest private employer in the U.S., will pay up to $4,000 in annual travel expenses for any female employee who travels more than 100 miles to obtain an abortion.

Other companies offering similar benefits include Citigroup Inc., Disney, Yelp Inc., Uber, Lyft, and more.

Disney is notable for also pledging to support employees seeking puberty blockers or cross-sex hormone supplements for their transgender dependents while publicly opposing a Florida law that bans classroom instruction on sexual orientation or gender identity in kindergarten through third grade. Some Republican-controlled states have moved to designate sex-change surgeries or transgender hormone regimens for minors as "child abuse." A recently enacted Alabama law, for instance, bans hormone treatments, transition surgery, or puberty blockers for anyone under 19 years old.

But the Washington Post's story focuses on how video game companies, often bastions of progressive politics, "have kept both their mouths and wallets closed" on these issues as other companies have acted, calling this silence "conspicuous" since the industry has previously championed progressive causes like Black Lives Matter and denounced anti-Asian hate during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Of more than 20 video game companies reached by the Post for comment, only Microsoft, which manufactures the Xbox gaming system, and Activision Blizzard responded with statements.

The corporate push to oppose Republican-backed state laws restricting abortion access or gender transition for minors has begun to receive pushback from Republicans. Sen. Marco Rubio (R-Fla.) recently introduced a bill that would prevent companies from deducting medical expenses related to these benefits from their taxes.

"Businesses should not receive tax breaks for radical leftist activism, especially when that activism jeopardizes our children. Our tax code should encourage family formation and promote a culture of life. Instead, it too often encourages subsidies for the murder of unborn babies and the performance of horrific 'medical' treatments on kids," Rubio said after introducing the bill.

Rubio bill would stop 'woke corporations' from getting tax breaks for paying for abortions



U.S. Sen. Marco Rubio (R-Fla.) says that by paying for employees' abortions and financing so-called "gender-affirming care" for their children, "corporate elites have gone full crazy." In response, he's filed legislation that he says will prevent taxpayers from subsidizing "corporate activism."

Rubio introduced the "No Tax Breaks for Radical Corporate Activism Act" on Tuesday, a bill that would prohibit employers from deducting expenses related to paying travel costs for employees who want an abortion, medical costs for employees seeking cross-sex hormones, or puberty-blockers for their children. The bill comes in response to several major companies that have announced new employee abortion benefits in recent weeks, including Amazon, Yelp, Citigroup, and others.

Federal tax law permits businesses to deduct certain expenses that are considered "ordinary and necessary" for operating, including employee health care plans, some medical expenses, and other related benefits. Rubio's bill would "deny the trade or business expense deduction for the reimbursement of employee costs of child gender transition procedure or travel to obtain an abortion."

“Our tax code should be pro-family and promote a culture of life. Instead, too often our corporations find loopholes to subsidize the murder of unborn babies or horrific 'medical' treatments on kids," Rubio said in a statement. "My bill would make sure this does not happen."

In anticipation that the U.S. Supreme Court will overturn its 1973 Roe v. Wade decision — a landmark legal precedent that established a constitutional right to an abortion — pro-life lawmakers in several states have advanced laws banning or restricting abortions. If Roe is overturned, as a leaked Supreme Court majority opinion suggests it will be, 26 states have so-called trigger laws or unenforced laws on the books that would ban or severely restrict abortion access.

Several major corporations have responded by committing to pay for pregnant employees in those states to travel out of state if they want to kill their unwanted child. Amazon, the second largest private employer in the U.S., on Monday became the latest company to do so, offering to pay up to $4,000 annually in travel expenses for any pregnant employee who travels more than 100 miles for an abortion.

In an op-ed for Newsweek, Rubio criticized these companies for supporting "abortion tourism," as well as Disney for offering to pay for gender transition "care" for children of its employees.

"While the radical Left drives this insanity, the law enables it,' Rubio wrote. "The current U.S. tax code allows employers to deduct employee compensation and benefits. Because a lot can fall under that umbrella, the code also specifies certain expenses that don't qualify for tax breaks. But there is no provision that prohibits Citigroup and others from deducting abortion and gender transition costs. As a result, these corporations may be able to help their employees kill their unborn children or transition their son into a daughter tax-free!

"This has to change. Businesses should not receive tax breaks for radical leftist activism, especially when that activism jeopardizes our children. Our tax code should encourage family formation and promote a culture of life. Instead, it too often encourages subsidies for the murder of unborn babies and the performance of horrific 'medical' treatments on kids," he said.

Yelp joins growing list of companies offering to pay employees' travel expenses to get abortions



Yelp on Tuesday became the latest major company to offer to pay for employees to travel out of state to obtain abortions as a work benefit.

The company is acting in response to states with Republican-controlled legislatures that have advanced pro-life laws banning abortions after an unborn baby develops a heartbeat or has developed the ability to feel pain, among other restrictions. Yelp will cover the travel costs for any of its 4,000 employees who wish to go to a state without abortion restrictions to kill their unwanted children.

“We’ve long been a strong advocate for equality in the workplace, and believe that gender equality cannot be achieved if women’s healthcare rights are restricted,” Miriam Warren, Yelp's chief diversity officer, said in a statement issued Tuesday.

On the same day, the Republican governor of Oklahoma signed legislation that would make it a felony to perform an abortion in the state. The law states that "a person shall not purposely perform or attempt to perform an abortion except to save the life of a pregnant woman in a medical emergency.”

Other red states like Texas and Mississippi have enacted laws banning abortions after six weeks, when a baby develops a heartbeat, or at 15 weeks, which is after the baby's sex becomes apparent and it will soon be visible on ultrasound images. Yelp has about 200 employees in Texas, according to MarketWatch.

Mississippi's 15-week abortion ban is the subject of a lawsuit brought to the U.S. Supreme Court that could decide the future of abortion in America, with the 6-3 majority of Republican-appointed justices poised to roll back the constitutional right to an abortion established in the court's 1973 Roe v. Wade decision.

In the event that Roe is overturned, 26 states have so-called trigger laws that would ban or severely restrict abortion access, prompting Yelp and other companies to create new abortion benefits for employees.

Citigroup in March became one of the largest U.S. companies to pledge to cover employees' travel costs if they leave their states to seek an abortion. The company has more than 220,000 employees, with thousands of employees in Texas.

"In response to changes in reproductive healthcare laws in certain states in the U.S., beginning in 2022 we provide travel benefits to facilitate access to adequate resources," Citi said in a letter to shareholders.

Dating app companies Bumble and Match Group followed, as well as ride-share companies Lyft and Uber.

"The company generally does not take political stands unless it is relevant to our business," Match Group CEO Shar Dubey said in a memo to employees. "But in this instance, I personally, as a woman in Texas, could not keep silent."

While these companies risk alienating customers who support pro-life laws, they create a market opportunity for competitors that embrace conservative values.