Sen. Steve Daines on Thursday sent a letter to Google asking the tech giant to respond to claims from an anti-abortion group that its ads were censored.
In a statement to the Washington Examiner, the Montana senator and the founder of the Senate Pro-Life Caucus said, “This is yet another example of Big Tech using their influence to silence pro-life views.”
“Google’s double standard in censoring Abortion Pill Reversal ads while allowing do-it-yourself abortion pill ads is unacceptable,” the Montana Republican said. “They must immediately reverse this decision.”
In the letter to Google CEO Sundar Pichai, Daines wrote that the company initially approved Live Action’s ads, which the group spent over $170,000 to run for approximately four months. Google terminated the ad campaign this week, saying the ads made “unreliable claims.”
Daines wrote that Google does permit ads for mail-order abortion pills. He asked if the company communicated with “pro-abortion organizations” or consulted doctors in making the decision to end Live Action’s ads and asked the company to reverse it.
Google did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
In a statement, Lila Rose, founder and president of Live Action, said, “Google’s censorship baldly reveals that the corporation is in the pocket of the abortion industry.”
“By restricting scientific information related to abortion pill reversal and other life-saving options, while accepting paid ads promoting life-ending abortions, Google has chosen to operate by an outrageously dishonest and blatant double standard,” Rose said. “The consequence is devastating — more women and girls will be marketed abortions through Google platforms, without also being offered life-affirming options.”
A chemical or medical abortion is administered through two separate pills, mifepristone and misoprostol. Some anti-abortion activists say “abortion pill reversal,” or administering the hormone progesterone, can stop that process, while critics say the claim is a dangerous and unproven theory.
In a statement, Dr. Donna Harrison, executive director of the American Association of Pro-Life Obstetricians and Gynecologists, said, “progesterone has been used safely in early and mid-pregnancy for over 50 years, and is used in every IVF pregnancy to help the mother carry her child.”
“For the women who regret starting an abortion, this information can be life-saving,” Harrison said.
The American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists said in a blog post it does not support prescribing progesterone to stop a medical abortion.
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“Claims regarding abortion ‘reversal’ treatment are not based on science and do not meet clinical standards,” ACOG said.
Sen. Josh Hawley, a Missouri Republican, also sent a letter to Google about the claim.
BREAKING: @HawleyMO just sent a letter to @Google‘s CEO demanding answers about why they are shutting down Live Action’s life-saving Abortion Pill Reversal campaigns & waging war against pro-life Americans. pic.twitter.com/xmMKJg5zPA
— Live Action (@LiveAction) September 15, 2021
