Democrats in the U.S. Senate are trying to overturn President Donald Trump’s measures that defund the Planned Parenthood abortion chain.
This week, they tried to slip two pro-abortion amendments into a 2020 funding bill for the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), according to Politico.
One proposal came from U.S. Sen. Patty Murray, a pro-abortion Democrat from Washington state, who wants to repeal the new Title X rule that defunded Planned Parenthood of about $60 million, the report states.
Republican leaders told Politico that her proposal is a “poison pill,” and Susan B. Anthony List President Marjorie Dannenfelser accused Senate Democrat leaders of reneging on their bipartisan budget agreement from last month.
“Democratic Leaders Pelosi and Schumer agreed to keep anti-life poison pills out of subsequent appropriations bills,” Dannenfelser told LifeNews.com. “Now, on day one of subcommittee markups, Senate Democrats are threatening to derail the entire process with an amendment to force taxpayers to fund the abortion industry against their clearly expressed will.”
The new Title X rule prohibits grantees from promoting or performing abortions in the same facility that provides Title X services. It helps to ensure that taxpayer dollars are not indirectly subsidizing abortions. Planned Parenthood, which does more abortions than any other group in the U.S., refused to comply with the new rule and gave up about $60 million in taxpayer funding.
Title X grants help low-income individuals access birth control, cancer screenings, STI tests and treatments and other health care services.
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Murray’s amendment quickly caused an “uproar” in the Republican-controlled Senate, according to Politico.
Here’s more:
As a result, Senate Appropriations Chairman Richard Shelby (R-Ala.) abruptly canceled a subcommittee markup for the Labor-HHS-Education measure. Any work on the bill will be postponed until both sides can hash out what constitutes a “poison pill,” the aide said. The full committee is still scheduled to consider the bill on Thursday.
“Title X has always had strong bipartisan support, so I’m unclear why they fear voting on it now,” Murray told POLITICO.
Murray’s statement is misleading. Title X still has strong bipartisan support, and Trump did not cut a cent from the program through his new rule. Republicans oppose her amendment because it would put more money back in the hands of the abortion industry, something Americans do not want.
Politico reports Senate Democrats also proposed a second pro-abortion amendment that would force taxpayers to send money to groups that promote and provide abortions overseas. Trump blocked foreign aid to pro-abortion groups through the Mexico City policy during his first week in office. The move defunded Planned Parenthood’s international arm of about $100 million and the British-based abortion chain Marie Stopes of about $73 million in U.S. tax dollars.
Dannenfelser said the Democrats’ new attempts at funding the abortion industry are completely unacceptable.
“It is unacceptable for Senate Democrats to renege on their end of the deal,” she said. “We urge Republicans to hold Speaker Pelosi and Leader Schumer accountable.”
Polls indicate that most Americans do not want their tax dollars to fund the killing of unborn babies. In 2016, a Harvard University poll found strong opposition to taxpayer-funded abortions. A January poll by Marist University found similarly strong opposition, with 75 percent saying they oppose taxpayer-funding for abortions overseas and 19 percent support them.
Democrats in Congress attempted a similar move in June, adding pro-abortion amendments to a $1 trillion spending bill. It passed the Democrat-controlled U.S. House, but failed in the Senate, where Republicans narrowly have control.
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Author: Micaiah Bilger
