11 Republican senators sent a letter to Google CEO Sundar Pichai on Thursday, demanding the internet giant reverse its ban on the pro-life organization Live Action’s ads promoting an Abortion Pill Reversal (APR) hotline.
On Tuesday, Live Action founder and president Lila Rose said Google banned her organization’s advertisements, including an ad for APR.
Senators Steve Daines (R-MT), Marsha Blackburn (R-TN), Mike Braun (R-IN), Cindy Hyde-Smith (R-MS), Roger Wicker (R-MS), Marco Rubio (R-FL), Mike Lee (R-UT), James Lankford (R-OK), James Inhofe (R-OK), Tom Cotton (R-AR), and Ted Cruz (R-TX) sent a letter to Pichai, informing him they are “deeply concerned by Google’s decision to ban” the content.
Sen. Steve Daines (R-MT) directs a question about limiting abortions to Xavier Becerra, nominee for Secretary of Health and Human Services, at his confirmation hearing before the Senate Finance Committee on Capitol Hill February 24, 2021 in Washington, DC. (Michael Reynolds-Pool/Getty Images)
U.S. Sen. Marsha Blackburn (R-TN) speaks during a hearing before Senate Judiciary Committee December 10, 2019 on Capitol Hill in Washington, DC. The committee held a hearing on “Encryption and Lawful Access: Evaluating Benefits and Risks to Public Safety and Privacy.” (Photo by Alex Wong/Getty Images)
“Google’s pro-life censorship is out of step with the science and reflects an unacceptable bias against pro-life views. We insist that you immediately reverse this decision,” they wrote.
The senators continued:
Google initially approved Live Action’s APR ads and they ran for over four months, spending over $170,000 and directing thousands of people to the APR hotline. On September 13, Google unexpectedly shut down these ads without warning or evidence, citing its “unreliable claims” policy. Google has subsequently indicated that it took this action after reviewing a one-sided pro-abortion “report” provided by a left-leaning news agency.
The senators noted Google’s claim that “it censored APR ads because they made ‘unproven medical claims,’ citing ‘serious concerns’ from the pro-abortion American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists (ACOG),” Adding that “It is shameful that Google has acted to appease pro-abortion activists by silencing pro-life voices, rather than considering all the evidence and following the science,” they added.
From there, the senators provided evidence that counters Google’s claims:
Progesterone treatment has been safely used in pregnancy for decades to prevent miscarriage. In APR, this treatment is used to halt a chemical abortion, giving a mother (and her baby) who changes her mind after only taking the first abortion pill a second chance. APR treatments, moreover, have reportedly saved the lives of over 2,500 children and have a 64-68% success rate.
“While banning pro-life APR ads, Google continues to allow ads for purveyors of the deadly abortion pill mifepristone by mail, despite the fact this drug has resulted in at least 24 mothers’ tragic deaths and at least 1,042 mothers being sent to the hospital,” the senators continued, citing apparent hypocrisy by the Masters of the Universe.
“Google’s double standard on abortion is disingenuous and an egregious abuse of its enormous market power to protect the billion-dollar abortion industry,” they added. “The practical consequence of Google’s abortion distortion is that pregnant mothers in crisis will only have the option to be marketed abortion drugs through Google’s ad platforms, while life-affirming alternatives are suppressed.”
Therefore, the senators are calling on Google to provide them with answers to the following questions:
Did any Google employees communicate with, or receive communications from, any representatives of pro-abortion organizations or news agencies, requesting Live Action’s APR ads be banned? If so, please provide the names of these organizations and news agencies.
Were scientists or medical doctors with a diversity of views on abortion consulted in the decision to ban the APR ads? Or only those who promote abortion (like ACOG)?
Will Google also remove ads for the deadly abortion pill mifepristone?
On Wednesday, Senator Josh Hawley (R-MO) also sent a letter to Pichai, demanding answers on the company’s censorship of pro-life groups, stating, “Your company appears to have taken a page out of the progressive left playbook and has started targeting pregnancy resource centers and pro-life activist organizations for disfavor.”
You can follow Alana Mastrangelo on Facebook and Twitter at @ARmastrangelo, and on Instagram.
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