NRSC Chairman Sen. Steve Daines (R-Mont.) and Sen. Joni Ernst (R-IA) during a news conference at the U.S. Capitol in January. Photo: Drew Angerer/Getty Images
The National Republican Senatorial Committee this week directed GOP Senate candidates to publicly back a bill introduced by U.S. Sen. Joni Ernst (R) to increase the availability of birth control.
Why it matters: The marching order from the Senate Republicans' campaign arm is meant to defuse a Democratic offensive aimed at forcing the GOP to take politically challenging votes on reproductive rights.
Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.), for example, is pushing for a vote on the Right to Contraception Act timed to the second anniversary of the Supreme Court's reversal of Roe v. Wade.
Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.), for example, pushed a vote blocked by the GOP Wednesday on the Right to Contraception Act, timed to the second anniversary of the Supreme Court's reversal of Roe v. Wade.
The big picture: The NRSC is trying to take control of the narrative, saying none of its candidates back new restrictions on contraception.
"Democrats are trying to make this a campaign issue and scare voters because they can't talk about their failed policies on every other issue," the memo, first obtained by Axios, said.
Between the lines: The pivot to Ernst's bill provides Republicans an alternative talking point when confronted with questions about what they would do at the federal level to protect access to contraception, as anti-abortion state laws have proliferated across the country.
Zoom in: Gov. Kim Reynolds has tried unsuccessfully since 2019 to pass a bill allowing prescription-free birth control in Iowa.
The bill again failed to become law this year despite bipartisan support and a strong majority of Iowans in favor of the proposal after House Republican leadership did not bring it to the floor for full debate.
