MADISON, Wis. — On Sep 18th, Peter Barca, State Assembly candidate Angelina Cruz, and a concerned constituent from Congressional District 1 held a press conference calling out Bryan Steil for his extreme anti-abortion record and refusal to support legislation that would protect reproductive health care and IVF treatments.

Peter Barca and Kathy Waligora shared personal stories of how IVF treatments have enabled them to expand their families. If it were up to Bryan Steil and fellow Republicans, women throughout Wisconsin would not have access to abortion, fertility treatments, or even emergency contraception and birth control. 

Watch the press event here and see what speakers had to say, in part, below:

Congressional Candidate Peter Barca: “We’re here today because we want to talk about protecting women’s reproductive freedom, and unfortunately, my opponent [Bryan Steil] is really an extremist on this issue. He’s one of the few Republicans that signed an amicus brief to end Roe v. Wade and then celebrated it as a great day in America […] he supports a national abortion ban which, if that were to pass, that would rip away the reproductive freedoms really of all women in this country so it’s a very important issue, it’s important for services that are provided right here in Racine that certainly would be at risk.”

Assembly candidate Angelina Cruz: “Not only did Bryan Steil call the overturn of Roe ‘a great victory,’ but he’s gone above and beyond to take women’s reproductive freedoms. Steil went so far as to sign on to an amicus brief in Dobbs v. Jackson, asking the court to overturn Roe. He also released a statement saying Dobbs v. Jackson would bring this important issue back to the States. Bryan Steil knew exactly what this would mean for Wisconsin, though; he knew that Wisconsin’s 1849 law banned abortion. […] To make matters worse, he refused to sign any legislation that would help women and families who suffered under Wisconsin’s ban. Bryan Steil prioritizes stripping reproductive freedoms as a core tenet of his political ideology, leaving women and families across the state of Wisconsin behind.” 

Kathy Waligora: “There is no question that my daughter would not be here today were it not for access to abortion care and insurance coverage for IVF. So my family watched in horror when Roe v. Wade was overturned when she was just one month old and again as IVF treatments were halted in Alabama earlier this year. Our families deserve to exist, and I deserve to finally watch one of my children grow. […] I met with Bryan Steil as my member of Congress earlier this summer. I tried to share my story and asked him to support the Access to Family Building Act. I was really surprised when he stopped me mid-sentence, told me that my personal experience wasn’t that important, what happened in Alabama wouldn’t happen in Wisconsin, and he wanted to talk about the next thing. I pushed back. I told him there was no evidence or guarantee that that was the case, and was dismissed again. Bryan Steil says he supports IVF, but he refuses to take even the most basic action to demonstrate that. I know firsthand what it is like to live in Wisconsin as a woman after the overturn of Roe v. Wade, and let me tell you, it did not feel like the ‘great victory’ that Bryan Steil described it as.”