It’s been quite a week. I’m guessing, like me, you saw a connective thread in the headlines: Accountability rarely arrives on its own. It comes because people refuse to stay silent.
Maine Senate candidate Graham Platner’s campaign collapsed after multiple women came forward with allegations of harassment and other intimidating behavior, with the most serious allegation of rape coming from a former girlfriend. His exit from the race was not inevitable. The signs of Platner’s utter disqualification as a candidate for public office were evident from the beginning: the Reddit posts, his disparaging comments about women who had been sexually assaulted, and as one Ms. reader asked, “Was the Nazi tattoo not enough?” The pressure for Platner to step aside was an infuriating slow drip over the last few months … until it wasn’t. But survivors kept speaking, journalists did their jobs, Maine women kept listening and asking questions, and public pressure mounted until even his strongest political supporters concluded his candidacy was no longer tenable.
After Platner’s long, meandering video announcing the suspension of his campaign, EMILY’s List aptly observed: “Eleven minutes, and zero accountability.” As of Friday evening, Platner still has not formally withdrawn from the ballot.
11 minutes and zero accountablity. https://t.co/SoPdHIgPKj
— EMILYs List (@emilyslist) July 9, 2026
That same question of accountability continues to loom over Donald Trump. A federal judge this week ordered the president to pay E. Jean Carroll the $5.8 million he owes following the jury’s verdict finding him liable for sexual abuse and defamation. Carroll’s continued courage reminds us why survivors’ voices matter, and why the legal system, imperfect as it is, remains one avenue for seeking justice.
Meanwhile, the Trump administration is asking the Senate to elevate Todd Blanche, the president’s former personal criminal defense attorney, to become attorney general. Blanche has played a central role in some of the administration’s most troubling actions, including overseeing politically charged Justice Department decisions and blocking further transparency around the Jeffrey Epstein investigation.
Blanche’s confirmation hearing is scheduled for Wednesday, July 15, and Thursday, July 16.
More than 1,200 former DOJ and FBI officials—many speaking publicly for the first time—have come together to urge the Senate to reject his nomination, arguing the nation’s top law enforcement officer must serve the public, not the president. Ms. and our publisher Feminist Majority Foundation also joined civil rights organizations in opposing his confirmation. After all, the independence of the Justice Department has never mattered more.
There was, however, one welcome development this week: After nearly a year of devastating consequences, Planned Parenthood providers are again able to bill Medicaid for many essential healthcare services. The restoration will not erase the damage caused by months of funding cuts, clinic closures and reduced cancer screenings, STI testing and preventive care, but it is an important reminder that organized advocacy can make a difference, even after painful setbacks.
Speaking of advocacy … Ms.’ new storytelling campaign, The Majority, is built around a simple prompt: “Access to reproductive choices gave me the freedom to…” Every story helps demonstrate how reproductive freedom has shaped millions of lives, families, careers and futures. If you haven’t yet shared your story, consider adding your voice.
This week, we also published an extraordinary look at a first-of-its-kind Idaho lawsuit arguing that the Constitution’s guarantee of self-preservation protects pregnant women from being forced to sacrifice their health or their lives—even after Dobbs. Rather than relitigating Roe, the case asks whether states can constitutionally require someone to endure serious bodily harm simply because she is pregnant. It is a reminder that even in the wake of devastating losses, advocates continue to find new pathways toward justice. A decision could come any time in the coming weeks or months.
Finally, if anyone still wondered what kind of future the architects of Project 2026 envision for women, families and LGBTQ+ people, check out this week’s reporting on the Heritage Foundation follow-up to Project 2025: ”Saving America by Saving the Family: A Foundation for the Next 250 Years,” focused on marriage, family and the American Dream. Their patriarchal vision asks women to shrink their ambitions to fit a narrow definition of family and citizenship.
Ms. has always believed the opposite: Women deserve the freedom to define their own lives.
Look to these trusted groups if you or a loved one needs to know more about reliable abortion care:
- A one-stop-shop for abortion seekers: I Need An A
- Other websites to explore all your options for abortion care: Plan C Pills, Abortion Finder
- Safe websites to buy abortion medication: Aid Access, Massachusetts Medication Abortion Access Project, Hey Jane
- If you need help affording abortion care, tell your telemedicine provider or contact an abortion fund near you.
- To protect your digital privacy when planning your abortion, click here.
- For free legal help as a patient or doctor, call If/When/How’s Repro Helpline—844-868-2812—or contact Pregnancy Justice.
- For medical advice, contact the Miscarriage & Abortion Hotline: 833-246-2632.
- If you need to know the abortion law in your state, look to the Center for Reproductive Rights. or Guttmacher Institute.
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A note from Ms. editors: We want to hear from you for The Majority, a new campaign collecting stories about how reproductive freedom has enabled readers to build the lives they want and need. Poll after poll shows a majority of Americans support reproductive healthcare access. Yet public debate overlooks the lives shaped by abortion access, contraception, IVF, miscarriage care, maternal healthcare or comprehensive sex education—countless women who chose to pursue an education, have children, not have children, protect their health and chart their own future. Add your voice and complete the sentence: “Access to reproductive choices gave me the freedom to….” Together, these stories will help show not only why reproductive freedom remains a majority value, but also what it makes possible.
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