5 things Trump has done as president that are disastrous for women

Trump often uses his Twitter account to tweet about things which aren’t true, or which are frankly, bizarre.

He did both on Friday, ahead of the ratification of the 19th Amendemnt (which gave white women the right to vote in America), saying that he has done more for women in America than any other president before.

Yes, really.

But obviously past four years would suggest otherwise. Here’s a list of some of the things that Trump has said and done which prove that his bar for doing things for women may be different from most other people’s.

1. Trump cut funding for international women’s organisations

International women’s organisations which receive funding from the US – such as the UNFPA – had their funding cut after Trump got into office. His new administration took several measures to reduce the funding that was given to these organisations, which often provide a lifeline for women and young girls in vulnerable positions.

2. He tried to make it easier for companies not to pay their employees equally

The Obama administration had passed an executive order which made it illegal for companies with over 100 employees to report the wages that they pay their employees. One of the main reasons for this was to track what progress firms were making on gender equality in the workplace. But the Trump administration started the process of repealing that executive order soon after Trump got into office, and have also rolled back attempts to provide paid maternity leave.

3. Attempted to dismantle reproductive services for women

Trump’s administration revoked funding from federal services such as family planning providers which offered abortion services and have openly spoken against organisations such as Planned Parenthood. Pregnant women are forbidden to be referred to abortion clinics, and in some states, will be given misleading information about the risk of an abortion if they do choose to opt for that procedure. The administration also tried to make it harder for women to access birth control, by making it easier for employers to drop their provision of it from their healthcare coverage.

4. Appointed Judge Brett Kavanaugh to the Supreme Court

Trump appointed Brett Kavanaugh to the Supreme Court in 2017, making it clear that he would appoint a justice who is widely considered to be anti-abortion. Kavanaugh was also accused of sexual assault and rape in an explosive Senate testimony by Christine Blasey Ford, which he denied.

5. Generally said *a lot* of misogynistic things

Before Trump was elected president, the infamous Access Hollywood tape about how he sexually assaults women came out – but that didn’t even stop him from becoming the president, despite his obvious sexism. In his time in office, Trump has continued to make remarks about women’s appearances, call female senators "mean" or suggest that they don’t deserve their roles, yelled at female journalists and more. Even more recently, Trump promoted the racist ‘birther’ conspiracy theories around Kamala Harrris, who was born in the US to immigrant parents, after she was announced to be Joe Biden’s running mate for the 2020 elections.

Trump’s claims that he has done more for women than any other president in history are false – given that he’s actively tried to roll back several of the initiatives which have benefited women as a group in the US, in the last decades.

But that doesn’t actually seem to matter to him at all.