Liberal advocacy group MoveOn.org released a new attack ad accusing the Republican party of pushing a "war on women.
The ad features an all-female cast of MoveOn.org members reading selected statements from Republicans, including recent remarks from presidential candidate Rick Santorum opposing abortion in rape cases and Rush Limbaugh's criticisms of the administration's contraception mandate.
"A woman impregnated through rape, should accept that horribly created gift, the gift of human life. Accept what God has given you and make the best of a bad situation,” a woman says, quoting comments made by Santorum. Santorum, a strong anti-abortion-rights conservative, has stated his opposition to abortion even in cases of rape.
"If we are going to pay for your contraceptives, and thus pay for you to have sex ... we want something for it. We want you post the videos online so we can all watch," another woman says, repeating comments by conservative talk-radio host Limbaugh.
"These aren't our words. They're all real things said by prominent members of the Republican party," the MoveOn.org members say. “Judging from their comments, the GOP must have a serious problem with women. And until the Republicans get over their issues, we women have got a serious problem with the Republican Party.”
"[I]t’s clear that the Republican leadership doesn’t value women," said MoveOn.org Organizing Director Lenore Palladino in a statement. "Women across the country are outraged when they hear about the GOP’s full-fledged attack on women’s rights. That’s why we’re showing the millions of women voters what the Republican agenda means for them."
MoveOn.org uploaded the new ad on YouTube Monday and plans to air it over network television to coincide with Tuesday's Alabama and Mississippi primaries.
The video also comes amid controversies over the Obama administration’s new contraception mandate and a Virginia bill signed by Gov. Bob McDonnell (R) requiring women to undergo abdominal ultrasounds before getting an abortion.
Faith-based groups and many Republicans protested the Obama birth-control ruling as an attack on religious freedom. Democrats, on the other hand, have sought to portray the controversy as a women’s health issue.
Limbaugh faced criticism from Democrats and liberal groups for his comments on Sandra Fluke, a Georgetown University law student, who testified on the administration's contraception mandate.
Limbaugh suggested that supporters of the mandate, such as Fluke, were asking government to pay for them to have sex.
The controversial broadcaster apologized for his comments as critics applied pressure to advertisers, calling on them to drop his show.
