Kavanaugh Supported HHS Actions in Violating Civil Rights and Restricting Access to Abortion
09.05.18 – Despite lingering questions about how Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh would rule on abortion access, it is already evident that he is part of a cabal in the highest echelons of government that will restrict access to abortion whenever the opportunity arises. Specifically, last year Kavanaugh joined a DC circuit court panel majority opinion allowing Scott Lloyd’s Office of Refugee Resettlement (ORR) at the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) to continue obstructing a young undocumented woman from leaving its custody to obtain an abortion, even after she met state legal requirements to have the procedure. Kavanaugh’s “dubious compromise” opinion was ultimately overturned by a ruling from the full circuit court.
Under Lloyd, ORR has become notorious for attempting to restrict young women in its custody from receiving abortion services. In fact, Lloyd was behind a new Trump-era policy that requires his sign-off for an abortion for any young woman in ORR care, and has reportedly requested spreadsheets detailing information on every pregnant teen in ORR’s custody. Lloyd also made headlines recently for a paper he wrote equating abortion with the Holocaust.
“From HHS appointees to Supreme Court nominees, the Trump administration continues to fill its ranks with those hell-bent on restricting women’s access to abortion,” said Mary Alice Carter, Executive Director of Equity Forward.
“Brett Kavanaugh’s support for Scott Lloyd’s anti-choice crusade is par for the course when it comes to this administration’s unwavering obsession with rolling back our rights. From top to bottom, this administration is stacked with officials who are determined to make it even harder to get an abortion, including Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh.”
Equity Forward has been sounding the alarm for months on the dangers Scott Lloyd poses to women and children in his position as ORR Director, not only for his attempts to restrict young women’s abortion access, but also for his role in the child separation crisis.
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