--- title: Bernie Sanders Can't Champion Women like Hillary Clinton description: Why reproductive rights groups are taking sides canonical: https://time.com/4192885/bernie-sanderss-abortion-hillary-clinton/ author: Charlotte Alter article:opinion: false article:content_tier: free article:published_time: 2016-01-26T16:35:29.000Z article:modified_time: 2026-08-04T07:56:27.080Z article:section: Politics og:title: Bernie Sanders's Abortion Problem og:description: Why reproductive rights groups call him an ally, not a champion og:url: https://time.com/4192885/bernie-sanderss-abortion-hillary-clinton/ og:site_name: TIME og:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt3a0f1c923b477c0a/69887a9a524fc01e84df6730/gettyimages-506641226.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 og:image:width: 3000 og:image:height: 1688 og:image:alt: Hillary Clinton Campaigns Iowa As State's Caucus Approaches og:type: article twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:title: Bernie Sanders's Abortion Problem twitter:description: Why reproductive rights groups call him an ally, not a champion twitter:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt3a0f1c923b477c0a/69887a9a524fc01e84df6730/gettyimages-506641226.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  # Bernie Sanders Struggles to 'Champion Women' like Hillary Clinton > Sponsored content. 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It explains the politics, personalities and power dynamics behind the headlines, three times a week. #### Where can I get analysis of Washington politics by email? D.C. Brief is TIME's free Washington politics newsletter, available at time.com/newsletters. It is written by a TIME senior correspondent who covers the capital full time. #### Who writes TIME's D.C. Brief? Philip Elliott, a senior correspondent at TIME, writes D.C. Brief. #### Is D.C. Brief free? Yes. D.C. Brief is free at time.com/newsletters. ## Video: What Hillary Clinton and Bernie Sanders Need to Win the Democratic Race [Watch (HLS stream): What Hillary Clinton and Bernie Sanders Need to Win the Democratic Race](https://cdn.jwplayer.com/manifests/88kr3X41.m3u8) (4:50)  _Published 2016-01-16. In early voting states like New Hampshire, the hard work of winning elections is often decided by volunteers on the ground._  by [Charlotte Alter](https://time.com/author/charlotte-alter/)  ## Charlotte Alter Senior Correspondent Jan 26, 2016 4:35 PM UTC  Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton (R) arrives to speak at a campaign event with Cecile Richards (2nd R), president of Planned Parenthood, at Buford Garner Elementary School on January 24, 2016 in North Liberty, Iowa. (Photo by Brendan Hoffman--Getty Images) Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton (R) arrives to speak at a campaign event with Cecile Richards (2nd R), president of Planned Parenthood, at Buford Garner Elementary School on January 24, 2016 in North Liberty, Iowa. (Photo by Brendan Hoffman--Getty Images) Brendan Hoffman—Getty Images  by [Charlotte Alter](https://time.com/author/charlotte-alter/)  ## Charlotte Alter Senior Correspondent Jan 26, 2016 4:35 PM UTC Bernie Sanders supports abortion rights. He just doesn’t support them quite enough for reproductive rights groups. The Vermont Senator was on the defensive at the CNN Town Hall Monday night when an audience member asked him about his assertion last week that Planned Parenthood and the [Human Rights Campaign ](http://www.hrc.org/blog/human-rights-campaign-endorses-hillary-clinton-for-president)are part the “establishment” he plans to bring down. Both organizations recently endorsed Hillary Clinton, [in the first primary endorsement](http://www.nytimes.com/politics/first-draft/2016/01/07/planned-parenthood-in-its-first-primary-endorsement-backs-hillary-clinton/) in Planned Parenthood’s history. Sanders reiterated his support for Planned Parenthood and called for increased funding before clarifying his comment. “What I said on a television program, and I did not say it well, is that sometimes the base of an organization looks at the world a little bit differently than the leadership,” he said. The implication was that the leadership of Planned Parenthood might be “establishment,” even if the base is not. And he’s not totally wrong. Planned Parenthood is “establishment” in exactly the same way Hillary Clinton is “establishment.” The organization has been a fixture in American politics for decades. It has built connections (some of them on [Wall St](http://fortune.com/2015/07/31/planned-parenthood-videos-corporate-donors/)) and weathered controversies. Every move is scrutinized by political enemies. Planned Parenthood president Cecile Richards was grilled by House Republicans just a month before Hillary Clinton survived a grueling 11-hour hearing on Benghazi. [_Meet the Women Who Say There’s a Better Feminist in the Race than Hillary Clinton_](http://time.com/4107286/hillary-clinton-bernie-sanders-women-new-hampshire-2016/) Of course, there are very tangible connections between Clinton and Planned Parenthood. Cecile Richards’s daughter works for the Clinton campaign in Iowa. Planned Parenthood [has donated](http://www.politico.com/story/2015/07/hillary-clinton-planned-parenthood-ties-120794) over $9,000 to Clinton’s various campaigns, from her 2000 Senate race to her 2008 presidential campaign, and many of the bigwigs who donate to Planned Parenthood have also donated to Clinton’s campaign. Planned Parenthood is a member of the [Clinton Global Initiative,](https://www.plannedparenthood.org/about-us/newsroom/press-releases/planned-parenthood-announces-first-ever-clinton-global-initiative-commitment-action-2012-annual) and Clinton gave a keynote address at a Planned Parenthood gala while she was Secretary of State. Clinton and Cecile Richards[ are rumored to be close friends](https://www.hillaryclinton.com/feed/republicans-worst-nightmare-hillary-clinton-and-cecile-richards-talk-politics-and-womens-rights/), and they both love pantsuits. So if Hillary Clinton is “establishment,” then yes, so is Planned Parenthood. The problem is that so far in his campaign, Sanders has used “establishment” as a pejorative. The word implies that something (or someone) is out-of-touch, corrupt, even vaguely evil. So by applying that term to an organization—or even the leadership of an organization—that has become a rallying cry for Democrats and and is viewed favorably by almost [60% of Americans](http://www.gallup.com/poll/186188/view-planned-parenthood-favorably.aspx) begs the question: Is the liberal “establishment” really that bad? This is all complicated by the fact that Sanders’s voting record is [solidly](http://feelthebern.org/bernie-sanders-on-womens-rights/) pro-choice. In 1993 he was one of 142 co-sponsors of the Freedom of Choice Act, which did not pass. He’s repeatedly voted to allow women to travel interstate to get abortions, to provide federal funding for organizations that provide abortions, and to increase access to family planning. He has a [100% voting rating](https://votesmart.org/candidate/evaluations/27110/bernie-sanders#.VqaJeFNVhHw) from NARAL, and a 0% voting record from National Right to Life. “We are not returning to the days of back-room abortions, when countless women died or were maimed,” Sanders wrote in a [2012 article ](http://www.huffingtonpost.com/rep-bernie-sanders/united-against-the-war-on%5Fb%5F1464730.html)on the Huffington Post. “The decision about abortion must remain a decision for the woman, her family and physician to make, not the government.” So why would Planned Parenthood, Human Rights Campaign and NARAL Pro-Choice America endorse Clinton? Why wouldn’t they just sit on the fence until the general election? “If you have 100 percent Planned Parenthood voting record, 100 percent pro-choice voting record, there are people who are asking, why is the leadership not either supporting Bernie Sanders or why are they, you know, opposing him?” Sanders asked Monday night. What more do they want from him? Good question, and NARAL had an answer. “Senator Sanders once again highlighted the difference between an ally and a champion,” Kaylie Hanson, NARAL Pro-Choice America National Communications Director, said in a statement about the Town Hall. “His voting record is sufficient, but it doesn’t make him a champion for women. That champion is Hillary.” Cecile Richards has echoed that sentiment: “We have a lot of friends in Congress, but we have one true champion,” she [said.](http://www.refinery29.com/2016/01/101149/hillary-clinton-cecile-richards-planned-parenthood-funding-interview#.1eopgmj:I4Km) Clinton has championed abortion rights as central theme of her campaign to be the first woman president, while the Sanders campaign has been largely focused on fixing systemic income inequality and campaign finance reform, sometimes at the expense of other priorities. “Once you get off of the social issues—abortion, gay rights, guns—and into the economic issues,” he told [Rolling Stone](http://www.rollingstone.com/politics/news/weekend-with-bernie-sanders-20150709) last year, “there is a lot more agreement than the pundits understand.” That quote—offered early in the campaign—has been [widely interpreted](http://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2016/jan/22/bernie-sanders-abortion-policy-women-voters-reproductive-rights) to suggest that Sanders has ranked his political priorities, and that “social issues” like abortion could take a backseat in the Bernie revolution. “We can’t afford a Democratic nominee for president who treats abortion rights like an afterthought,” wrote Emily’s List president [Stephanie Schriock](https://medium.com/@emilyslist/43-years-after-roe-v-wade-ed3583169467#.sk28i47po) on Friday. She went on to accuse Sanders of treating reproductive rights like “extra credit,” and noted that Sanders doesn’t mention anything about abortion, contraception, or reproductive care anywhere in his entire health plan. When CNN’s Chris Cuomo asked Sanders how his presidency would help women as much as Hillary’s would, Sanders answered with a female-friendly variation of his standard stump speech. He mentioned the wage gap, calling it “old-fashioned sexism” before retreating to the familiar territory of wage stagnation and income inequality. “It’s not only women, although it impacts women and women of color even greater, this level of pay inequality,” he said. “We have got to raise the minimum wage in this country to a living wage. That will impact all people.” Instead of doubling down on issues that specifically relate to women—like abortion, contraception, and equal pay—he uses them to talk about about “establishment” politics or wage stagnation. That approaches “[All Lives Matter](http://time.com/time-person-of-the-year-2015-runner-up-black-lives-matter/),” all over again. ## Transcript [ BLANK_AUDIO ] 30 days to the primary, every second counts. We're hoping that this will prove our tenacity and we're willing to not only go out here and knock on doors, but knock on doors in awful weather because That's how strongly we feel about this campaign. [ BLANK_AUDIO ] Three weeks to go now until the first votes are cast in the 2016 presidential race. But the bigger surprise right here, Sanders is closing in on Hillary Clinton. Hillary Clinton and Bernie Sanders deadlocked. Sanders is out for And that has her campaign admitting they are nervous. [ APPLAUSE ] People hearing the message directly from the senator is wonderful, but we can't have a rally every day. The conversations that matter to me are the ones that are happening between individuals. Because at the end of the day, that's what wins an election. If they're home. [ SOUND ] I think the best I ever did was 61 houses. And I think I got 7 commit cards. Which was pretty good. We've had a big push in the past 60 days. My job is not to convince people to change their vote, I'm just there to give them information. Hi. Hi. Mr. Thorner? And also, it's to inform people what day the Primary is on. Should be, here. [ SOUND ] I remember, I think it was about six years ago now, there was one. Disheveled crazy looking guy on floor of the Senate who gave a 10 and a half hour filibuster about how stupid the Bush tax cuts were. And I remember seeing that, being like, this dude is the only dude in the Senate with guts and this is exactly what I believe in. And I started following a little bit more about who is he was and everything I heard him say, I agreed with and loved. Like everything. Well, we're just out here for Bernie, because we believe that he's one of the most different candidates. That can really revolutionize- This is the grind, yes, this is where it's won. Those are the most effective and persuasive ways of talking to voters. All right, whose next? Yesterday alone we knocked on 17, 000 doors. Watch the ice. One day, 17, 000 doors. We're from the Bernie Sanders campaign and we were just wondering if you were planning on voting in the primary on February 9th. [ INAUDIBLE ] Hilary in the primary. Definitely. Wonderful. Be voting for both of you. Great. Leaning strongly in her favor? I'm still not sure. I love Bernie Sanders. Most of us do Who are in this part of the country. But there's some drawbacks, too. I'm torn- She's a woman with very strong convictions just like Bernie- That I admire. And she's stuck to them, but now she's moderated them to say well, I can meet the Republicans halfway. And I don't know what will happen if Bernie can't meet them halfway. I'm not sure that he would Even have a chance of [ CROSSTALK ] Yes, yeah. That's what I'm really worried. The worries that people have about his electability should have really disappeared by now. All these people that no other candidate would get should come out and vote for them Bernie's got those people. And people that haven't voted in 20 years. And I've seen them in the office making calls. I've seen them stepping up and doing stuff. And I think Bernie talks the talk and walks the walk. One of the reasons that I'm really For Hilary is because of the Affordable Care Act and I think she will not only keep it, but improve on it. I've had breast cancer, my husband's had prostate cancer, my son has treatable epilepsy. She's just right on for people from birth to death. If we get that win by three points or five points or whatever, it's gonna be us on On the ground making that difference, creating that margin, and that's what it's about. Doing it three times this week, because we're getting close to the wire. I definitely will do it the remainder of the Saturdays and possibly some of the Sundays. Then I have said that I'll come in two nights a week to make calls Bye. [ LAUGH ] See if we could get the dogs to vote, we'd be doing really just right. 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