By Susan Brinkmann, OCDS
Staff Journalist
Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-NV) drew a line in the sand yesterday when he told pro-life lawmakers that any attempts to defund Planned Parenthood will not be included in any budget deal.
According to The Hill, Reid defended Planned Parenthood’s work to promote contraception and said stripping the nation’s largest abortion provider of taxpayer funds will result in depriving low-income women of family planning services and cancer screenings.
Pro-life lawmakers say the government shouldn’t be in the business of funding abortion providers. They’re also citing the many recent scandals associated with Planned Parenthood, such as failing to report the sexual abuse of minors, as a reason why taxpayers should not be forced to support the clinics.
Reid’s comments come a day after 19 Senate Democrats sent a letter to Vice President Joe Biden pledging to defeat all efforts to strip Planned Parenthood of federal funds for the rest of the year.
In the letter, the senators said the bill would “effectively shut down health centers that serve three million women each year and provide nearly one million lifesaving screenings for cervical cancer, more than 830,000 breast exams and nearly 4 million tests and treatments for sexually transmitted infections, including HIV.”
Aides to Reid and House Speaker John Boehner (R-Ohio) met for an hour and a half Wednesday evening to discuss a compromise, but both offices declined to comment further on the talks.
Another pro-life measure that is bound to cause problems in the ongoing budget battle is an amendment that would re-instate the so-called Mexico City policy, which bars non-governmental organizations that receive federal funds from promoting abortions.
“I think they could create real significant problems for this budget and they should be out,” said Sen. Chuck Schumer (D-NY) about this and other amendments conservatives have attached to the bill.
If “the House cannot go forward without these riders, it’s going to create real problems and make it very difficult to get a budget,” Schumer said.
The most recent budget extension will fund the government through April 8 but lawmakers say these and other contentious issues between the two parties are beginning to make the prospect of a government shut down much more likely.
© All Rights Reserved, Living His Life Abundantly®/Women of Grace® http://www.womenofgrace.com
