Listen to any of the mainstream media coverage of the call to defund Planned Parenthood and you will hear them refer to the Republicans shutting down the government. I expect that spin from them.
What is infuriating is that so many Republicans inside the DC beltway swallow that message hook, line, and sinker. They point back to effort to defund Obamacare and say that it failed. That line of thinking is just an excuse for inaction. Planned Parenthood is not Obamacare.
Carly Fiorina got a lot of attention at last Wednesday’s debate with her resolute and passionate call to defund Planned Parenthood. Then on Friday at the Heritage Action Take Back America Presidential Candidate Forum, it took 25 seconds for her to show how we should put the ball squarely in the President’s court.
On Friday, the US House of Representatives passed HR 3134 to place a moratorium for one year on funding Planned Parenthood.
(Note to Georgia 2nd District – Sanford Bishop Voted “NO.” )
Section 3a reads as follows:
“For the one-year period beginning on the date of the enactment of this Act, subject to subsection (b), no funds authorized or appropriated by Federal law may be made available for any purpose to Planned Parenthood Federation of America, Inc., or any affiliate or clinic of Planned Parenthood Federation of America, Inc., unless such entities certify that Planned Parenthood Federation of America affiliates and clinics will not perform, and will not provide any funds to any other entity that performs, an abortion during such period.”
The bill now goes to the Senate where they will need 60 votes to get it to the floor for debate. If all goes as expected, there will be 57 or 58 votes and Republicans will wring their hands while sending out impassioned fund raising letters committing to “fight” the funding of Planned Parenthood.
The fact is that the Republicans in the Senate do not need 60 votes. This same restriction can be placed as an amendment on a Continuing Resolution that extends the funding of the federal government beyond September 30.
The Republican majorities in the House and Senate that we all worked so hard to put in place over the past four years can do something. They can pass and send the President a resolution to continue funding everything in the government – except Planned Parenthood.
Obama has promised to veto it and blame the Republicans for shutting the government down. He did this with the attempt to defund Obamacare. Senate Republicans felt that the public blamed them for being obstructionists. So, they don’t want to do it again.
This is not Obamacare. This is not even reducing the budget for women’s health care. It is a one year moratorium for a single non-government organization.
Compared to what Planned Parenthood is doing, this proposal is as bland as washing down unsalted grits with room temperature milk. Yet, Senate Republican leadership does not seem to be willing to stand up for anything. The pattern of excuses and surrender is so predictable now that there is no reason to believe that they will stand up for it.
House and Senate leadership, please stop telling us how hard you are fighting and actually climb in the ring. If you take control of the message, you can do something. You can get something of substance out of this. You can win this debate. We understand and can even accept compromise – but we are tired of collapse.
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