Comcast, Boeing, Chevron, JP Morgan Chase and Deloitte, all of which pledged to pay for employee travel costs to obtain abortions in the wake of the Supreme Court’s 2022 Dobbs decision, have donated more than $90,000 to the Florida lawmakers who voted in support of the state’s six-week abortion ban since the bill’s passage last year. 

In the aftermath of the Supreme Court’s Dobbs v Jackson Women’s Health decision overturning Roe v Wade, dozens of corporations stepped forward, publicly committing to covering employee travel costs for abortions, identifying reproductive autonomy as a cornerstone of employee health and well-being. It was a gesture that seemed to align with their stated commitment to principles like access to reproductive healthcare. 

Yet many of the same companies professing a commitment to their employees’ rights to access abortion are funding the very elected officials seeking to limit or end abortion access. Florida’s six-week abortion ban which became law on May 1st, alongside other restrictive legislation targeting abortion rights in the state, stands as one of the most severe restrictions on reproductive freedom in the nation. Despite this, the primary architects of these bills, many of whom have demonstrated unwavering dedication to outright banning abortion in the state, have received significant financial backing from companies claiming to champion reproductive autonomy.

All told, Chevron, Boeing, Deloitte, Comcast and JP Morgan Chase have donated $93,000 to the 2024 campaigns of the legislators who voted for the ban, with $12,000 going to state senators and $81,000 to state representatives.

Despite Chevron’s introduction of travel benefits to ensure abortion access for employees post-Dobbs, the company contributed $1,000 to Rep. Jennifer Persons-Mullicka’s 2024 re-election campaign. She was a driving force behind Florida’s six-week abortion ban in the House. Likewise, Senator Erin Grall, who led the charge in the Senate, received $1,000 each from Chevron and JP Morgan Chase, further underscoring the dissonance between corporate rhetoric and political spending.

Further illustrating this corporate hypocrisy is the rise of politicians like Rep. Jennifer Canady, who, despite being in her first term in the Florida House, has quickly become one of the primary sponsors of anti-abortion bills. Canady received financial support from these companies, with Chevron, Deloitte and Comcast each contributing $1,000 to her campaign.

A House representative from Miami-Dade, David Borrero, recently introduced a bill aiming to effectively ban all abortions from the moment of fertilization, with very few exceptions. Borrero received political contributions from many corporations, including $500 from Boeing, which in light of the reversal of Roe, highlighted its dedication to aiding medical services by covering travel expenses, along with $1,000 each from Chevron, Comcast and JP Morgan. 

These donations are not limited to the legislative branch. In October 2022, post-Dobbs, Florida Attorney General Ashley Moody, known for her unwavering commitment to limiting abortion access, received a $3,000 contribution from Comcast. From her attempts to urge the Florida Supreme Court to block a Florida constitutional amendment protecting abortion, to urging the Court to find that the state constitution’s privacy provision does not protect abortion rights, to her efforts aimed at defunding Planned Parenthood, few have done more to roll back reproductive healthcare options for Floridians. The disparity between her actions and Comcast’s statements on company values raises questions about how much the company’s “values” are really worth.

 

Photo by David Wilson under a Creative Commons license.

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