September 19, 2022
Smiley spokesperson: “Her position is pro-life, and she respects the decision the state of Texas made”
According to her own campaign, Tiffany Smiley is “not a moderate”
(Seattle, WA) – In a recent interview with the Daily Beast, Tiffany Smiley’s campaign is doubling down on her support of the extreme Texas abortion ban — with no exceptions for rape or incest—which she made clear she supported earlier in her campaign. In a new national profile, Smiley’s campaign said Smiley’s “position is pro-life, and she respects the decision the state of Texas made”.
The profile, which notes that Smiley was “personally recruited” by Mitch McConnell, also details Smiley’s “Big Lie” problem — her refusal to acknowledge that President Biden was legitimately elected.
“We’ve known it since the beginning of her campaign, and now we’ve heard it straight from her own campaign AGAIN: Tiffany Smiley is no moderate candidate,” said Washington State Democratic Party spokesperson Caitlin Harrington. “Smiley supports allowing politicians to ban abortion with no exceptions — that’s extreme, and it’s wrong for Washington state. Washingtonians cannot count on Mitch McConnell’s handpicked candidate to stand up for their rights or stand up to MAGA Republicans’ radical agenda in the U.S. Senate.”
Read more from The Daily Beast:
On abortion: Tiffany Smiley’s communications director Elisa Carlson “says Smiley has not changed her position. ‘Her position is pro-life, and she respects the decision the state of Texas made,’”.
On the Big Lie: “She’s also got a ‘Big Lie’ problem—which is to say she doesn’t want to publicly support Trump’s false assertion that he was the rightful winner of the 2020 election, but she doesn’t want to say it so explicitly that she offends the MAGA base… In a news clip that made the rounds in political circles, Smiley was asked three times by CNN’s Dana Bash if she considers Biden a legitimately elected president. Through a deer-in-the-headlights glaze, Smiley conceded that Biden is president, but stopped short of the ‘legitimately elected’ part—thereby staying in MAGA’s good graces without being saddled with the ‘Big Lie’ baggage.’”
On Trump: “Running in the primary, Smiley said it would be ‘awesome’ to have Trump’s endorsement. Now, running in the general election, it’s less valuable. Nut Carlson wants inquiring minds to know, ‘Not having Trump’s endorsement doesn’t make you a moderate. We’ve never positioned her as a moderate.’”
BACKGROUND ON TIFFANY SMILEY’S ANTI-ABORTION RECORD:
- Tiffany Smiley is, in her own words, “100 percent pro-life.”
- At the start of her campaign, Tiffany Smiley endorsed the Texas abortion ban — one of the most extreme in the nation, with no exceptions for rape or incest — even while admitting “there’s a lot of parts of it that make it hard for me in Washington state.”
- Smiley cheered the decision that overturned Roe and allowed states to ban abortion with no exceptions.
- She is raising money from, campaigning with, and collecting endorsements from anti-abortion politicians who are committed to passing a national abortion ban.
- Her first vote would be to make Mitch McConnell Senate majority leader — and Republicans are already introducing legislation to ban abortion nationwide.
###
