March 21, 2019 Press Release

WaPo: Top Trump Administration Officials Attend Event at Hungarian Embassy Promoting Anti-Immigrant Policies

Event promoted Hungary’s recently released “birth plan,” which essentially pays certain women to have more children

03.21.19 – Despite the egregious human rights abuses and virulent anti-immigrant sentiment rippling through Hungary, top Health and Human Services (HHS) official Valerie Huber and White House Special Assistant Katy Talento recently attended an event hosted by the Hungarian Embassy which promoted the country’s policies seeking to grow the country’s “dwindling population through births rather than through immigration.”  

Other influential anti-abortion lobbyists — including representatives from the Heritage Foundation and the Family Research Council — also attended the event, which promoted Hungary’s recently released “birth plan,” a program that has received widespread criticism and essentially pays Hungarian women to have more children and discourages immigration.         

Equity Forward has been tracking Valerie Huber and Katy Talento through its HHS Watch campaign; both officials have a long history of anti-birth control and anti-abortion advocacy. Huber recently made headlines for her work leading U.S. efforts to form an anti-reproductive health care coalition with countries across the world, including countries such as Saudi Arabia and Bahrain.

“It’s incredibly alarming that officials from our nation’s health department attended an event which was not only blatantly anti-immigrant, but also only incentivizes certain women to have more children,” said Mary Alice Carter, Executive Director of Equity Forward. “It’s clear that Trump’s health department will do anything to promote its dangerous anti-woman agenda around the world, even palling around with human rights abusers. Alex Azar’s health department should be working to ensure all people can make the best decisions about their families and futures, not working with countries who are promoting racist, anti-immigrant policies. ”

About Equity Forward

Equity Forward is a watchdog project that seeks to ensure transparency and accountability among anti-reproductive health groups and individuals. In addition to running HHSWatch.org, an extensive website with a library of research on nearly 50 political appointees at our nation's health department, Equity Forward also runs PutPeopleBeforePolitics.org, which calls on Secretary Azar not to cut nearly $100 million in lifesaving research at the behest of the anti-abortion lobby.

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