Bridge Project Statement on Sen. Rubio’s Family Leave Plan and the Independent Women’s Forum

This week Senator Marco Rubio claimed that he is working with Ivanka Trump on a paid family leave plan, something long overdue and desperately needed by American working families. However, early reporting indicates that the plan is actually just an ability to draw from Social Security and is based on policies touted by the Independent Women’s Forum, a right-wing interest group with ties to the Koch brothers.

“Senator Rubio and Ivanka Trump’s proposal for a so-called ‘budget-neutral’ family leave plan is not paid family leave at all, but rather a cut to Social Security that will particularly hurt low-income women,” said Dawn Huckelbridge, director of American Bridge’s Women’s Rights Initiative. “Women already receive less in earnings and Social Security benefits than men and are more likely to experience poverty, including in retirement. This is not a comprehensive fix for working families, but another hollow proposal that does not serve the women and families who need it most.

The plan came from a right-wing organization that grew out of an effort to defend Clarence Thomas from sexual harassment charges, is closely tied to the Koch brothers, and has gone on to deny the wage gap and the idea that the workplace is in any way unfair to women. It’s another indication of how extreme, out of touch, and anti-woman this administration is.”

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