Could Whistleblower Claims Strip Planned Parenthood of Government Funding?

[Dos Equis]

Senate Republicans Just Voted To Defund Planned Parenthood
Six days after a Planned Parenthood shooting.
Jennifer Bendery
White House & Congressional Reporter, The Huffington Post 
December 3, 2015

WASHINGTON -- Senate Republicans overwhelmingly voted Thursday to defund Planned Parenthood, a purely symbolic effort that could come back to bite some of the party's moderates.

The chamber spent all of Thursday debating a GOP bill to repeal the Affordable Care Act that included a provision to eliminate funding for the reproductive health care provider. Senators rejected two separate amendments to strip out that language.

The first amendment, offered by Sen. Patty Murray (D-Wash.), would have restored Planned Parenthood funding and created a $1 billion women's health care clinic safety fund, fully paid for by a new tax on millionaires. The chamber voted to table it, 54-46.

The second amendment, offered by Sen. Susan Collins (R-Maine), would have simply restored Planned Parenthood funding. The measure failed, 48-52.

Democrats knew they would lose on Murray's amendment, but wanted to force a handful of moderate Republicans to take a politically uncomfortable vote. It worked.

Pro-choice GOP Sens. Collins and Lisa Murkowski (Alaska) voted against the Democratic amendment, while Mark Kirk (Ill.), who is also pro-choice, voted for it. Kelly Ayotte (N.H.) and Rob Portman (Ohio), both considered moderates in their party, opposed the measure.

"While Republicans may want to avoid taking this tough vote, Democrats are going to keep making it very clear exactly where we stand: with women across the country," Murray said ahead of the vote.

The vote was particularly challenging for Kirk and Ayotte. Kirk is in a tight race against Rep. Tammy Duckworth (D-Ill.) for his Senate seat next year, and a July poll showed Duckworth leading by 6 points. Ayotte is also up for re-election, and her race is considered a key battleground in the fight over abortion rights.

Portman, another senator who is facing a re-election race in 2016, has taken hits back home over his support for defunding Planned Parenthood.

Liz Johnson, a spokeswoman for Ayotte, said the New Hampshire Republican opposed Murray's amendment because she "supports the current language in the bill that redirects funding from Planned Parenthood to community health centers." Johnson did not respond, though, when asked if Ayotte has concerns about that approach given that community health centers have indicated they don't have the capacity to take on Planned Parenthood's patients.

Similarly, Portman spokeswoman Caitlin Conant said Portman is "pleased" to support a bill that defunds Planned Parenthood and redirects its millions of patients to community health centers. Conant did not respond when asked about concerns with that approach being untenable.

Collins spokeswoman Annie Clark said the senator voted against the measure because its new spending was financed by "a tax increase that would make it harder for small businesses to compete and survive." She added that Collins has "consistently opposed defunding Planned Parenthood" because it provides important health care services to millions of women.

Aides to Murkowski and Kirk did not respond to requests for comment on why they voted the way they did.

Some of the senators switched their votes when Collins' amendment came up. Collins, obviously, voted for it, as did Murkowski and Kirk. Ayotte and Portman opposed it.

The bill itself won't become law; the president has already threatened to veto it. But Republicans are voting on it anyway to make statements about policy issues ranging from abortion to gun control to health care.

This story has been updated to include comment from Caitlin Conant.

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/defund-planned-parenthood-republicans_566078aae4b079b2818d8011

[Necrosis]

Senate Republicans Just Voted To Defund Planned Parenthood
Six days after a Planned Parenthood shooting.
Jennifer Bendery
White House & Congressional Reporter, The Huffington Post 
December 3, 2015

WASHINGTON -- Senate Republicans overwhelmingly voted Thursday to defund Planned Parenthood, a purely symbolic effort that could come back to bite some of the party's moderates.

The chamber spent all of Thursday debating a GOP bill to repeal the Affordable Care Act that included a provision to eliminate funding for the reproductive health care provider. Senators rejected two separate amendments to strip out that language.



The first amendment, offered by Sen. Patty Murray (D-Wash.), would have restored Planned Parenthood funding and created a $1 billion women's health care clinic safety fund, fully paid for by a new tax on millionaires. The chamber voted to table it, 54-46.

The second amendment, offered by Sen. Susan Collins (R-Maine), would have simply restored Planned Parenthood funding. The measure failed, 48-52.

Democrats knew they would lose on Murray's amendment, but wanted to force a handful of moderate Republicans to take a politically uncomfortable vote. It worked.

Pro-choice GOP Sens. Collins and Lisa Murkowski (Alaska) voted against the Democratic amendment, while Mark Kirk (Ill.), who is also pro-choice, voted for it. Kelly Ayotte (N.H.) and Rob Portman (Ohio), both considered moderates in their party, opposed the measure.

"While Republicans may want to avoid taking this tough vote, Democrats are going to keep making it very clear exactly where we stand: with women across the country," Murray said ahead of the vote.

The vote was particularly challenging for Kirk and Ayotte. Kirk is in a tight race against Rep. Tammy Duckworth (D-Ill.) for his Senate seat next year, and a July poll showed Duckworth leading by 6 points. Ayotte is also up for re-election, and her race is considered a key battleground in the fight over abortion rights.

Portman, another senator who is facing a re-election race in 2016, has taken hits back home over his support for defunding Planned Parenthood.

Liz Johnson, a spokeswoman for Ayotte, said the New Hampshire Republican opposed Murray's amendment because she "supports the current language in the bill that redirects funding from Planned Parenthood to community health centers." Johnson did not respond, though, when asked if Ayotte has concerns about that approach given that community health centers have indicated they don't have the capacity to take on Planned Parenthood's patients.

Similarly, Portman spokeswoman Caitlin Conant said Portman is "pleased" to support a bill that defunds Planned Parenthood and redirects its millions of patients to community health centers. Conant did not respond when asked about concerns with that approach being untenable.

Collins spokeswoman Annie Clark said the senator voted against the measure because its new spending was financed by "a tax increase that would make it harder for small businesses to compete and survive." She added that Collins has "consistently opposed defunding Planned Parenthood" because it provides important health care services to millions of women.

Aides to Murkowski and Kirk did not respond to requests for comment on why they voted the way they did.

Some of the senators switched their votes when Collins' amendment came up. Collins, obviously, voted for it, as did Murkowski and Kirk. Ayotte and Portman opposed it.

The bill itself won't become law; the president has already threatened to veto it. But Republicans are voting on it anyway to make statements about policy issues ranging from abortion to gun control to health care.

This story has been updated to include comment from Caitlin Conant.

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/defund-planned-parenthood-republicans_566078aae4b079b2818d8011

WHY?

[Dos Equis]

Planned Parenthood sues over undercover abortion videos
By Sarah Ferris
01/14/16


Planned Parenthood on Thursday filed a long-awaited federal lawsuit against the anti-abortion activists who have targeted the group with undercover videos for the last year.

The formal complaint marks the first time that Planned Parenthood has taken legal action against the group, the Center for Medical Progress.

The national organization, along with its California affiliate, is accusing the Center for Medical Progress and its organizer David Daleiden for unlawful behavior ranging from secret taping to trespassing. The group said the Center for Medical Progress has violated the laws of three states as well as federal law.

“Today, Planned Parenthood is going on the offense,” Kathy Kneer, president of Planned Parenthood Affiliates of California said in a call with reporters.
In response, Daleiden released a statement that said “game on.”

“I look forward to deposing all the CEOs, Medical Directors, and their co-conspirators who participated in Planned Parenthood's illegal baby body parts racket,” he said.

Daleiden, who has become a national figure in the abortion debate this year, has released 10 videos featuring secretly recorded footage of Planned Parenthood staff members discussing fetal tissue donated from abortions.

The footage includes clips of at least one conversation in which a Planned Parenthood official discusses the amount of money that the group can receive in reimbursement for the fetal tissue.

The jarring dialogue, while it does not indicate illegal activity, has sparked a national outcry and forced Planned Parenthood to defend its funding on the national and state level.

Planned Parenthood has repeatedly defended the practice of allowing women to donate fetal tissue for medical research, though it announced last year that it would no longer accept reimbursement for the procedure.

Planned Parenthood officials say they are still assessing how much money they will seek in damages in the case. In the complaint, the group announced it is seeking compensatory, statutory and punitive damages.

 The timing for the decision is unclear, though the group’s chief legal counsel, Beth Parker, made clear it could take as long as 18 months. The legal back-and-forth could intensify the political debate on abortion through the upcoming elections.

 Planned Parenthood’s executive vice president Dawn Laguens alleged that the Center for Medical Progress has “colluded with right-wing state legislators and members of Congress” in their attack.

“The complaint we filed today, names for the first time, the key individuals behind this fraud. They are some of the nation’s most extreme anti-abortion activists,” Laguens said.

http://thehill.com/policy/healthcare/265905-planned-parenthood-files-suit-against-group-behind-videos

[Straw Man]

Fundie Liars lose again...and in Texas

Texas grand jury clears Planned Parenthood, indicts its accusers

Washington (CNN)A Texas investigation into Planned Parenthood on Monday culminated in an indictment -- of the organization's accusers instead of the group.

The Harris County District Attorney's office announced that Planned Parenthood Gulf Coast had been cleared in the two-month-long investigation.

But the grand jury did indict two individuals who were involved in making secret recordings of the group that were released to publicly discredit the group, which provides health services and abortions.

David Daleiden and Sandra Merritt were indicted for tampering with a governmental record, a second-degree felony, and Daleiden was also indicted on the count of prohibition of the purchase and sale of human organs, a misdemeanor, according to the Harris County district attorney.

"We were called upon to investigate allegations of criminal conduct by Planned Parenthood Gulf Coast," Harris County District Attorney Devon Anderson said in a statement. "As I stated at the outset of this investigation, we must go where the evidence leads us. All the evidence uncovered in the course of this investigation was presented to the grand jury. I respect their decision on this difficult case."

Planned Parenthood officials lauded the indictments.

"As the dust settles and the truth comes out, it's become totally clear that the only people who engaged in wrongdoing are the criminals behind this fraud, and we're glad they're being held accountable," said Eric Ferrero, vice president of communications for Planned Parenthood Federation of America, in a statement.

Daleiden did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Texas Gov. Greg Abbott said state officials were continuing to investigate the Texas Planned Parenthood, however.

"The Health and Human Service Commission's Inspector General and the Attorney General's office have an ongoing investigation into Planned Parenthood's actions," Abbott said in a statement. "Nothing about today's announcement in Harris County impacts the state's ongoing investigation. The State of Texas will continue to protect life, and I will continue to support legislation prohibiting the sale or transfer of fetal tissue."

 
http://www.cnn.com/2016/01/25/politics/planned-parenthood-activists-indicted/index.html

Even Jesus Approves of This

[Straw Man]

Now it's on Fox News

I wonder if our resident fundies will acknowledge it now

http://www.foxnews.com/us/2016/01/25/grand-jury-indicts-leader-behind-planned-parenthood-videos.html

Grand jury in Texas indicts activists behind Planned Parenthood videos

A Houston grand jury investigating criminal allegations against Planned Parenthood stemming from a series of undercover videos on Monday instead indicted two of the anti-abortion activists who shot the footage.

In a stunning turn of events, the grand jury declined to indict officials from the abortion provider, and instead handed up a felony charges of tampering with a government record against Center for Medical Progress founder David Daleiden and center employee Sandra Merritt. Daleidon was also charged with a misdemeanor count related to purchasing human organs.

"We were called upon to investigate allegations of criminal conduct by Planned Parenthood Gulf Coast," Harris County District Attorney Devon Anderson said. "As I stated at the outset of this investigation, we must go where the evidence leads us. All the evidence uncovered in the course of this investigation was presented to the grand jury. I respect their decision on this difficult case."

The case sprang from a series of dramatic undercover videos in which Center for Medical Progress employees posed as prospective buyers of fetal tissue, and captured several employees of Planned Parenthood and its contractors appearing to discuss practices banned by law. However, when the videos were released online last year, Planned Parenthood claimed selective editing had created a misperception.

Anderson didn't provide details on the charges, including what record or records were allegedly tampered with and why Daleiden faces a charge related to buying human organs. Anderson's office said it could not provide details until the documents charging Daleiden and Merritt were formally made public.

"The Center for Medical Progress uses the same undercover techniques that investigative journalists have used for decades in exercising our First Amendment rights to freedom of speech and of the press, and follows all applicable laws," Daleiden said in a statement in response to the indictment.

"We respect the processes of the Harris County District Attorney, and note that buying fetal tissue requires a seller as well. Planned Parenthood still cannot deny the admissions from their leadership about fetal organ sales captured on video for all the world to see," the statement continued.

Planned Parenthood officials swiftly hailed the indictment as vindication.

"These anti-abortion extremists spent three years creating a fake company, creating fake identities, lying, and breaking the law. When they couldn't find any improper or illegal activity, they made it up," Eric Ferrero, vice president of communications for Planned Parenthood Federation of America, said in a statement.

“As the dust settles and the truth comes out, it's become totally clear that the only people who engaged in wrongdoing are the criminals behind this fraud, and we're glad they're being held accountable,” Ferrero said.

The videos, some of which were shot in Texas, riled anti-abortion activists and prompted Republicans in Congress last summer to unsuccessfully called for cutting off funding for the organization.

Texas Gov. Greg Abbott, a Republican, has called footage from the Planned Parenthood clinic in Houston "repulsive and unconscionable." It showed people pretending to be from a company that procures fetal tissue for research touring the facility. Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton also opened his own investigation into the videos.

Abbott said the indictments will not impact the state's investigation

“The State of Texas will continue to protect life, and I will continue to support legislation prohibiting the sale or transfer of fetal tissue,” he said in a statement.

Rep. Diane Black, R-Tenn., author of the House-passed "Defund Planned Parenthood Act of 2015," said the she was “profoundly disappointed” in the indictments.

“It is a sad day in America when those who harvest the body parts of aborted babies escape consequences for their actions, while the courageous truth-tellers who expose their misdeeds are handed down a politically motivated indictment instead,” she said.

Planned Parenthood says it abides by a law that allows providers to be reimbursed for the costs of processing tissue donated by women who have had abortions.

The Texas video was the fifth released by the group. Before its release, Melaney Linton, president of the Houston Planned Parenthood clinic, told state lawmakers last summer that it was likely to feature actors — pretending to be from a company called BioMax — asking leading questions about how to select potential donors for a supposed study of sickle cell anemia.

Linton said the footage could feature several interactions initiated by BioMax about how and whether a doctor could adjust an abortion if the patient has offered to donate tissue for medical research. She also said Planned Parenthood believed the video would be manipulated.

Earlier this month, Planned Parenthood sued the center in a California federal court, alleging extensive criminal misconduct. The lawsuit says the center's videos were the result of numerous illegalities, including making recordings without consent, registering false identities with state agencies and violating non-disclosure agreements.

After the lawsuit was filed, Daleiden told The Associated Press that he looked forward to confronting Planned Parenthood in court.

[BayGBM]

Now it's on Fox News

I wonder if our resident fundies will acknowledge it now

http://www.foxnews.com/us/2016/01/25/grand-jury-indicts-leader-behind-planned-parenthood-videos.html

Grand jury in Texas indicts activists behind Planned Parenthood videos

A Houston grand jury investigating criminal allegations against Planned Parenthood stemming from a series of undercover videos on Monday instead indicted two of the anti-abortion activists who shot the footage.

In a stunning turn of events, the grand jury declined to indict officials from the abortion provider, and instead handed up a felony charges of tampering with a government record against Center for Medical Progress founder David Daleiden and center employee Sandra Merritt. Daleidon was also charged with a misdemeanor count related to purchasing human organs.

"We were called upon to investigate allegations of criminal conduct by Planned Parenthood Gulf Coast," Harris County District Attorney Devon Anderson said. "As I stated at the outset of this investigation, we must go where the evidence leads us. All the evidence uncovered in the course of this investigation was presented to the grand jury. I respect their decision on this difficult case."

The case sprang from a series of dramatic undercover videos in which Center for Medical Progress employees posed as prospective buyers of fetal tissue, and captured several employees of Planned Parenthood and its contractors appearing to discuss practices banned by law. However, when the videos were released online last year, Planned Parenthood claimed selective editing had created a misperception.

Anderson didn't provide details on the charges, including what record or records were allegedly tampered with and why Daleiden faces a charge related to buying human organs. Anderson's office said it could not provide details until the documents charging Daleiden and Merritt were formally made public.

"The Center for Medical Progress uses the same undercover techniques that investigative journalists have used for decades in exercising our First Amendment rights to freedom of speech and of the press, and follows all applicable laws," Daleiden said in a statement in response to the indictment.

"We respect the processes of the Harris County District Attorney, and note that buying fetal tissue requires a seller as well. Planned Parenthood still cannot deny the admissions from their leadership about fetal organ sales captured on video for all the world to see," the statement continued.

Planned Parenthood officials swiftly hailed the indictment as vindication.

"These anti-abortion extremists spent three years creating a fake company, creating fake identities, lying, and breaking the law. When they couldn't find any improper or illegal activity, they made it up," Eric Ferrero, vice president of communications for Planned Parenthood Federation of America, said in a statement.

“As the dust settles and the truth comes out, it's become totally clear that the only people who engaged in wrongdoing are the criminals behind this fraud, and we're glad they're being held accountable,” Ferrero said.

The videos, some of which were shot in Texas, riled anti-abortion activists and prompted Republicans in Congress last summer to unsuccessfully called for cutting off funding for the organization.

Texas Gov. Greg Abbott, a Republican, has called footage from the Planned Parenthood clinic in Houston "repulsive and unconscionable." It showed people pretending to be from a company that procures fetal tissue for research touring the facility. Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton also opened his own investigation into the videos.

Abbott said the indictments will not impact the state's investigation

“The State of Texas will continue to protect life, and I will continue to support legislation prohibiting the sale or transfer of fetal tissue,” he said in a statement.

Rep. Diane Black, R-Tenn., author of the House-passed "Defund Planned Parenthood Act of 2015," said the she was “profoundly disappointed” in the indictments.

“It is a sad day in America when those who harvest the body parts of aborted babies escape consequences for their actions, while the courageous truth-tellers who expose their misdeeds are handed down a politically motivated indictment instead,” she said.

Planned Parenthood says it abides by a law that allows providers to be reimbursed for the costs of processing tissue donated by women who have had abortions.

The Texas video was the fifth released by the group. Before its release, Melaney Linton, president of the Houston Planned Parenthood clinic, told state lawmakers last summer that it was likely to feature actors — pretending to be from a company called BioMax — asking leading questions about how to select potential donors for a supposed study of sickle cell anemia.

Linton said the footage could feature several interactions initiated by BioMax about how and whether a doctor could adjust an abortion if the patient has offered to donate tissue for medical research. She also said Planned Parenthood believed the video would be manipulated.

Earlier this month, Planned Parenthood sued the center in a California federal court, alleging extensive criminal misconduct. The lawsuit says the center's videos were the result of numerous illegalities, including making recordings without consent, registering false identities with state agencies and violating non-disclosure agreements.

After the lawsuit was filed, Daleiden told The Associated Press that he looked forward to confronting Planned Parenthood in court.

Epic backfire video. 

[Necrosis]

Just go back through the thread, how many times have we said this is bullshit and the videos and people contained within are frauds?

How often can someone like beach be wrong?

[Straw Man]

Just go back through the thread, how many times have we said this is bullshit and the videos and people contained within are frauds?

How often can someone like beach be wrong?

and after being shown proof over and over again that these videos were doctored he still made this post on page 12 of this thread

Sounds like a talking point.  I haven't seen proof that these videos are doctored.  Have you?

It's called willful fucking ignorance and it's a daily requirement for people like Bum

[LurkerNoMore]

Just go back through the thread, how many times have we said this is bullshit and the videos and people contained within are frauds?

How often can someone like beach be wrong?

HAHAHAHAHA.  Is this a serious question?

Where is his response and spin now?

[Dos Equis]

Abortion Activist Claims Planned Parenthood Videos Caused Raid At His Home
April 5, 2016

SACRAMENTO, Calif. (AP) – An anti-abortion activist who made undercover videos at Planned Parenthood clinics said in a social media posting that California Department of Justice agents raided his home Tuesday.

Agents seized all video footage from his apartment, along with his personal information, David Daleiden said in a Facebook post. Daleiden, the founder of a group called the Center for Medical Progress, said agents left behind documents that he contends implicate Planned Parenthood in illegal behavior related to the handling of fetal tissue.

Center for Medical Progress spokesman Peter Robbio confirmed the social media posting is authentic, but he declined further comment. He said Daleiden lives in Orange County.

MORE: David Daleiden, Activist Behind Planned Parenthood Videos, Offered Probation

Rachele Huennekens, a spokeswoman for state Attorney General Kamala Harris, said in an email that she can’t comment on any ongoing investigation.

Harris said in July that she planned to review the undercover videos to see if center violated any state charity registration or reporting requirements. She said that could include whether Daleiden and a colleague impersonated representatives of a fake biomedical company or filmed the videos without Planned Parenthood’s consent.

Harris, a Democrat, is running for the U.S. Senate. Daleiden suggested in the social media posting that the raid was politically motivated because Harris has accepted campaign contributions from Planned Parenthood.

Daleiden faces related charges in Texas. One of his Texas attorneys, Terry Yates, did not return telephone and email messages Tuesday.

Texas authorities initially began a grand jury investigation of Planned Parenthood after the undercover videos were released in August.

But the grand jury cleared Planned Parenthood of misusing fetal tissue and indicted Daleiden and a colleague, Sandra Merritt, in January on charges including using fake driver’s licenses to get into a Houston clinic.

Daleiden previously said his group followed the law in making the videos. His post Tuesday called the raid an “attack on citizen journalism” and said he will “pursue all remedies to vindicate our First Amendment rights.”

http://sacramento.cbslocal.com/2016/04/05/abortion-activist-claims-planned-parenthood-videos-caused-raid-at-his-home/

[Straw Man]

Abortion Activist Claims Planned Parenthood Videos Caused Raid At His Home
April 5, 2016

SACRAMENTO, Calif. (AP) – An anti-abortion activist who made undercover videos at Planned Parenthood clinics said in a social media posting that California Department of Justice agents raided his home Tuesday.

Agents seized all video footage from his apartment, along with his personal information, David Daleiden said in a Facebook post. Daleiden, the founder of a group called the Center for Medical Progress, said agents left behind documents that he contends implicate Planned Parenthood in illegal behavior related to the handling of fetal tissue.

Center for Medical Progress spokesman Peter Robbio confirmed the social media posting is authentic, but he declined further comment. He said Daleiden lives in Orange County.

MORE: David Daleiden, Activist Behind Planned Parenthood Videos, Offered Probation

Rachele Huennekens, a spokeswoman for state Attorney General Kamala Harris, said in an email that she can’t comment on any ongoing investigation.

Harris said in July that she planned to review the undercover videos to see if center violated any state charity registration or reporting requirements. She said that could include whether Daleiden and a colleague impersonated representatives of a fake biomedical company or filmed the videos without Planned Parenthood’s consent.

Harris, a Democrat, is running for the U.S. Senate. Daleiden suggested in the social media posting that the raid was politically motivated because Harris has accepted campaign contributions from Planned Parenthood.

Daleiden faces related charges in Texas. One of his Texas attorneys, Terry Yates, did not return telephone and email messages Tuesday.

Texas authorities initially began a grand jury investigation of Planned Parenthood after the undercover videos were released in August.

But the grand jury cleared Planned Parenthood of misusing fetal tissue and indicted Daleiden and a colleague, Sandra Merritt, in January on charges including using fake driver’s licenses to get into a Houston clinic.

Daleiden previously said his group followed the law in making the videos. His post Tuesday called the raid an “attack on citizen journalism” and said he will “pursue all remedies to vindicate our First Amendment rights.”

http://sacramento.cbslocal.com/2016/04/05/abortion-activist-claims-planned-parenthood-videos-caused-raid-at-his-home/

you mean the guy indicted in Texas who may also be facing charges in California

how odd that his home would be raided

 

[Dos Equis]

Last charge dropped against anti-abortion duo behind Planned Parenthood videos
Published July 26, 2016 
FoxNews.com

A Texas judge on Tuesday dismissed the last remaining charge against two anti-abortion activists who made undercover videos allegedly showing Planned Parenthood officials selling baby body parts.

District Judge Brock Thomas dismissed the charge of tampering with government records against 27-year-old David Daleiden and 63-year-old Sandra Merritt upon the request of the Harris County prosecutor's office.

"The dismissal of the bogus, politically motivated charges against [Center for Medical Progress] project lead David Daleiden and investigator Sandra Merritt is a resounding vindication of the First Amendment rights of all citizen journalists, and also a clear warning to any of Planned Parenthood's political cronies who would attack whistleblowers to protect Planned Parenthood from scrutiny," Daleiden said in a statement.

The pair's attorneys had pushed to have the charge dismissed, saying Daleiden and Merritt never should have been indicted. If they had been convicted of the felony charge, each could have been sentenced to up to 20 years in prison.

Prosecutors alleged that Daleiden and Merritt used fake driver's licenses to conceal their identities while dealing with Planned Parenthood.

Daleiden claimed victory on Tuesday, not only for his legal woes coming to an end, but also due to the continuing investigation into Planned Parenthood's practices, an investigation spurred on by the videos he helped produce.

"A year after the release of the undercover videos, the ongoing nationwide investigation of Planned Parenthood by the House Select Investigative Panel makes clear that Planned Parenthood is the guilty party in the harvesting and trafficking of baby body parts for profit," Daleiden said.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

http://www.foxnews.com/us/2016/07/26/last-charge-dropped-against-anti-abortion-duo-behind-planned-parenthood-videos.html

[Dos Equis]

Federal judge blocks Arkansas Planned Parenthood defunding
Published September 29, 2016
Associated Press

In this Jan. 22, 2009, file photo, the shadow of an anti-abortion activist holding a cross can be seen near a Planned Parenthood in Dubuque, Iowa.  (AP)

LITTLE ROCK, Ark. –  A federal judge on Thursday temporarily prohibited Arkansas from blocking Medicaid payments to Planned Parenthood, expanding her order requiring the state to continue paying for services for three patients who had sued over the move.

U.S. District Judge Kristine Baker issued a preliminary injunction preventing Arkansas from suspending payments to Planned Parenthood for any services to Medicaid patients in the state. Republican Gov. Asa Hutchinson last year terminated the organization's Medicaid contract because of secretly recorded videos made by an anti-abortion group.

Baker last year had ordered the state to continue paying for services for three women who sued over the defunding move, and Planned Parenthood asked her to expand that decision to cover any Medicaid patients who want to obtain health care services through the organization. The state has appealed that ruling covering the three patients to the 8th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals.

Baker ruled Thursday that any future Medicaid patients who seek services at Planned Parenthood would suffer irreparable harm if she didn't expand that order.

"Should the court fail to issue injunctive relief, members of the patient class will be denied their choice of provider for family planning services," she wrote.

Planned Parenthood praised the ruling.

"This is a win for the Arkansans who rely on Planned Parenthood of the Heartland for birth control, cancer screenings, and other essential health care," Suzanna de Baca, chief executive officer ofPlanned Parenthood of the Heartland, said in a statement. "Every person deserves access to quality, affordable health care from the provider they know and trust, and today, the court recognized that."

Attorney General Leslie Rutledge, a Republican, said she was disappointed with Baker's decision.

"Her order unfortunately allows Planned Parenthood to continue to use its patients to pad its bottom line at taxpayers' expense," Rutledge said in a statement. "Thankfully, the ultimate issues in this case will be decided by the Court of Appeals."

The state has said Planned Parenthood received $51,000 in Medicaid funds in the fiscal year before Hutchinson's decision to terminate the contract. None of the money paid for abortions. Baker last year had initially blocked the defunding move, but later narrowed her order to the three patients.

Arkansas is among several states that tried to cut off funds to Planned Parenthood. Republican lawmakers and governors around the country targeted the organization after several videos were released by the anti-abortion Center for Medical Progress. The center said the videos showed thatPlanned Parenthood illegally sells fetal tissue for profit.

Planned Parenthood said the videos were heavily edited and denied seeking any payments beyond legally permitted reimbursement of costs. The organization, in an effort to squelch the controversy, announced last year it would no longer accept reimbursement for the cost of providing the tissue to researchers. A federal appeals court earlier this month upheld a judge's injunction blocking Louisiana from cutting off funding to the organization.

A Texas grand jury that looked into the videos cleared Planned Parenthood in January of misusing fetal tissue and indicted anti-abortion activists involved in making the videos. Prosecutors later dropped those charges, agreeing with defense attorneys that the grand jury exceeded its authority by investigating the activists.

http://www.foxnews.com/politics/2016/09/29/federal-judge-blocks-arkansas-planned-parenthood-defunding.html

[Dos Equis]

Sen. Chuck Grassley Refers Planned Parenthood for Criminal Charges
By Joe Crowe   |   Wednesday, 14 Dec 2016

Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Chuck Grassley is referring a number of Planned Parenthood affiliates and companies for investigation to the FBI and the Department of Justice, according to a statement on his website.

Grassley is recommending criminal charges for allegedly profiting from the sale of fetal body parts from abortions.

"I don't take lightly making a criminal referral. But the seeming disregard for the law by these entities has been fueled by decades of utter failure by the Justice Department to enforce it," Grassley said in a statement.

"And, unless there is a renewed commitment by everyone involved against commercializing the trade in aborted fetal body parts for profit, then the problem is likely to continue."

The committee analyzed more than 20,000 pages of documents voluntarily released by the organizations in the case. Videos released by the anti-abortion activist group Center for Medical Progress led to the investigation, but the committee's findings were based on the documents, not the video, according to the statement.

The committee's findings were that Planned Parenthood's cost analyses "lack sufficient documentation and rely on unreasonably broad and vague claims of costs for the 'transportation, implantation, processing, preservation, quality control or storage of fetal tissue.'"

The committee found that Planned Parenthood only made the analyses "long after the fact and at the insistence of the committee."

"Planned Parenthood must be prosecuted, and the over half a billion dollars in taxpayer subsidies that are propping up this absolutely corrupt and potentially criminal enterprise must be cut off immediately," said Lila Rose of the anti-abortion group Live Action.

Dana Singiser, vice president of Planned Parenthood's governmental affairs, released a response:

"Planned Parenthood strongly disagrees with the recommendations of the Senate Republican staff, especially in light of the fact that investigations by three other Congressional committees, and investigations in thirteen states including a grand jury in Texas, have shown Planned Parenthood has done nothing wrong," according to the Des Moines Register.

The Obama administration, however, is not likely to follow through on Grassley's recommendation, according to The Washington Times.

http://www.newsmax.com/Newsfront/Chuck-Grassley-Refers-Planned-Parenthood-Criminal/2016/12/14/id/763878/

[Dos Equis]

Paul Ryan: GOP will defund Planned Parenthood
By Deirdre Walsh, CNN Senior Congressional Producer
Thu January 5, 2017

Washington (CNN) — House Speaker Paul Ryan said Thursday that Republicans will move to strip all federal funding for Planned Parenthood as part of the process they are using early this year to dismantle Obamacare.

Ryan made the announcement during a news conference on Capitol Hill.

Congressional Republicans have tried for years to zero out all federal funding for Planned Parenthood because the group provides abortion services. The issue helped trigger a 16-day government shutdown in 2013, and Democrats and President Barack Obama insisted any provision targeting the group be removed from a bill to fund federal agencies.

Another effort to defund the group will spur another high-profile clash and could be a tough vote for some moderate Republicans such as Maine Sen. Susan Collins and Alaska Sen. Lisa Murkowski, who has opposed past efforts.

The vast majority of federal money that Planned Parenthood does receive funds preventive health care, birth control, pregnancy tests, breast cancer screening and other womens health care services. Democrats also point out that much of the money the group received is through the Medicaid program, which reimburses health care clinics that provide care to those covered by the federal program.

Under the "Hyde amendment" that is attached to annual funding bills, no federal money is allowed to go to programs that include abortion services, unless they are needed to preserve the life of the mother or are caused by rape.

Democrats immediately denounced the news that Republicans again were working to bar future federal funds for Planned Parenthood.

"This is a priority for the Republicans," said House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi Thursday afternoon. "So I just would like to speak individually to women across America: this is about respect for you, for your judgment about your personal decisions in terms of your reproductive needs, the size and timing of your family or the rest, not to be determined by the insurance company or by the Republican ideological right-wing caucus in the House of Representatives. So this is a very important occasion where we're pointing out very specifically what repeal of the (Affordable Care Act) will mean to woman."

Cecile Richards, president of Planned Parenthood Action Fund, said "it's likely no accident that this attack was launched the day after Vice President-elect Mike Pence, a long-time opponent of Planned Parenthood, held a closed-door meeting with Speaker Ryan and the Republican leadership."

http://www.cnn.com/2017/01/05/politics/paul-ryan-planned-parenthood-obamacare/index.html

[Dos Equis]

GOP to Kill Obama Order Requiring Taxpayer Funding of Planned Parenthood
Posted on February 10, 2017
by Keith Koffler

The government was forced by the courts to allow abortion. But that doesn’t mean the government should be forcing you to pay for it.

From the Washington Examiner:

House Republicans will vote next week to liberate states from an Obama rule requiring them to subsidize Planned Parenthood.

In one of his last actions, Obama effectively forced states to fund Planned Parenthood. Many states have policies barring state funds for the abortion giant, and Obama’s 11th-hour executive order prohibited such policies.

Next week, the House plans to use the Congressional Review Act to repeal that Obama regulation — a first salvo in their fight to roll back Obama’s legacy on abortion.

According to congressional aides, the vote is scheduled for late next week and will specifically axe Obama’s Title X rule. During his final weeks in office, Obama finalized the regulation, explicitly barring states from pulling federal grant money from clinics that provide abortion.

http://www.whitehousedossier.com/2017/02/10/gop-kill-obama-order-requiring-taxpayer-funding-planned-parenthood/

[Dos Equis]

No way are they giving up their cash cow.

Trump Planned Parenthood Offer Rejected
By Jen Krausz   |    Tuesday, 07 Mar 2017

An informal proposal from President Donald Trump to Planned Parenthood was rejected after the organization, which receives $500 million a year from the government to provide health services to women, refused to stop providing abortions as a condition of keeping or getting increases in funding.
Republicans are looking at various ways to defund the organization, including as part of a bill to repeal and replace Obamacare or by an executive order, but the group signaled that cutting abortion services from its offerings would not be an option, according to The Washington Times.

"Providing critical health care services for millions of American women is non-negotiable," Planned Parenthood executive vice president and chief brand officer Dawn Laguens said to the Times.

Laguens noted that no federal funds are used to pay for abortions directly, although some in the pro-life movement have pointed out that the use of federal funds to pay for non-abortion services facilitates the organization using more of other funds collected to pay for abortions.

Trump confirmed discussions about the informal proposal to The New York Times.

"As I said throughout the campaign, I am pro-life and I am deeply committed to investing in women’s health and plan to significantly increase federal funding in support of nonabortion services such as cancer screenings," he said, according to The New York Times. "Polling shows the majority of Americans oppose public funding for abortion, even those who identify as pro-choice. There is an opportunity for organizations to continue the important work they do in support of women’s health, while not providing abortion services."

Organization President Cecile Richards tweeted, "Planned parenthood is proud to provide abortion—a necessary service that’s as vital to our mission as birth control or cancer screenings."

"We won’t back down in the face of threats or intimidation, or turn our backs on the patients who count on us. Not today, not tomorrow," Richards continued in another tweet.
 
Planned Parenthood has often said that only 3 percent of its services are abortions, but news outlets such as The Washington Post have said that the figure is misleading because it uses the number of services performed rather than the number of patients.

Twitter users commented about the offer.

http://www.newsmax.com/TheWire/trump-planned-parenthood-funding-abortion/2017/03/07/id/777434/

[mazrim]

No way are they giving up their cash cow.

Yep. Health care services, lol.

[Dos Equis]

Fourteen of 15 Felony Charges Dismissed Against Planned Parenthood Videomakers
by DR. SUSAN BERRY
22 Jun 2017

A superior court in California has dismissed 14 of 15 felony charges against the video journalists who exposed alleged profiteering from the sale of body parts of aborted babies within Planned Parenthood and its partners in the biomedical procurement industry.
The charges were dismissed against David Daleiden and Sandra Merritt of the Center for Medical Progress (CMP) – with leave to amend, meaning California Attorney General Xavier Becerra may refile those charges, if he includes more specific facts.

Judge Christopher Hite also denied the attorney general’s request for contempt sanctions against Daleiden’s criminal defense counsel, former Los Angeles County District Attorney Steve Cooley & Associates (SCA) and his associate, former Los Angeles County Deputy District Attorney Brentford J. Ferreira.

“We were pleased with Judge Hite’s rulings over all,” Cooley and Ferreira said in a statement sent to Breitbart News. “We look forward to further pre-trial litigation.”

CMP itself broke the news on Facebook Wednesday:

BREAKING: State judge GRANTS most of defendant Daleiden’s and Merritt’s demurrer motions, knocking out the 14 recording charges until the CA AG amends their complaint. The judge also denied the AG’s request for contempt sanctions against David’s defense counsel, and agreed Judge Orrick’s federal gag order in the civil lawsuit should not prevent defendants from using the videos in our defense.

Christian News reports the California Department of Justice’s statement on the dismissal:

Following the defense’s complaint that there are too many surreptitious recordings to know which ones the California Department of Justice is relying on, the judge requested more specificity in the charging document, specifically to identify the videos that are the basis of the charges. The California Department of Justice has 10 days to amend the complaint and will be making the requested changes.

Becerra’s office alleged that Daleiden and Merritt recorded 14 individuals connected to the abortion and fetal tissue industries in Los Angeles, Pasadena, San Francisco, and El Dorado, without their consent.

“This is a politically motivated prosecution,” Daleiden told reporters Wednesday. “And this is discriminatory against pro-life Americans and a rally against Californians who happen to have a different point of view.”

The explosive videos of the individuals, allegedly discussing how they obtain the highest quality fetal body parts during abortions in order to maximize sales to biotech companies, rocked the nation and set off multiple congressional investigations into the abortion and fetal tissue procurement industries.

Becerra, a former Democratic congressman who became attorney general after his predecessor, Kamala Harris, was sworn in as a U.S. senator, said his office “will not tolerate the criminal recording of confidential conversations,” reported the Los Angeles Times.

“The right to privacy is a cornerstone of California’s constitution, and a right that is foundational in a free democratic society,” Becerra added.

The Los Angeles Times’ editorial board took issue with Becerra’s actions:

It’s disturbingly aggressive for Becerra to apply this criminal statute to people who were trying to influence a contested issue of public policy, regardless of how sound or popular that policy may be. Planned Parenthood and biomedical company StemExpress, which was also featured in the videos, have another remedy for the harm that was done to them: They can sue Daleiden and Merritt for damages. The state doesn’t need to threaten the pair with prison time.

According to OpenSecrets.org, Becerra received a total of $5,535 from Planned Parenthood during his congressional election bids between 1998 and 2014.

Harris is on record as having received $2,600 in 2016 from Planned Parenthood for her Senate race campaign. Additionally, Harris was the recipient of $39,855 from the Abortion Policy/Pro-Abortion Rights lobby group, according to OpenSecrets.org. ElectionTrack.com reported Harris received $15,000 from Planned Parenthood for her attorney general campaign bids.

As Breitbart News reported, emails obtained by the Washington Times in September of 2016 showed that Harris’s office collaborated with Planned Parenthood to produce the California legislation criminalizing undercover journalists for publishing and distributing recordings of private communications with abortion providers.

According to the Times:

The documents are another indication of Ms. Harris‘ close relationship with Planned Parenthood and call into question the impartiality of her ongoing investigation of Mr. Daleiden, legal experts said.

The emails show Beth Parker, chief legal counsel for Planned Parenthood Affiliates of California, sending multiple drafts of AB 1671 to Jill Habig, who was at the time special counsel to the attorney general.

“Attached is the language for AB 1671, proposed amendments to Penal Code section 632,” Ms. Parker wrote in an email marked March 8. “I look forward to your thoughts about this.”

Ms. Parker sent a revised draft of the legislation to Ms. Habig on March 16. “Here’s the rewrite of the video tape bill,” she wrote. “Let me know what you think.”

Habig later became deputy manager of Harris’ U.S. Senate campaign. The campaign website featured a petition asking voters to support and protect Planned Parenthood’s federal funding.

Charges brought against Daleiden and Merritt in Harris County, Texas – under suspicion of bias – were ultimately dropped, however. One of Planned Parenthood’s biotech partners – StemExpress – also backed off a lawsuit against the videomakers.

When the felony charges in California were filed, Daleiden said:

The bogus charges from Planned Parenthood’s political cronies are fake news. They tried the same collusion with corrupt officials in Houston, TX and failed: both the charges and the DA were thrown out. The public knows the real criminals are Planned Parenthood and their business partners like StemExpress and DV Biologics—currently being prosecuted in California—who have harvested and sold aborted baby body parts for profit for years in direct violation of state and federal law. We look forward to showing the entire world what is on our yet-unreleased video tapes of Planned Parenthood’s criminal baby body parts enterprise, in vindication of the First Amendment rights of all.

Though Planned Parenthood has denied any wrongdoing in its alleged sale of body parts, it also announced in October 2015 that it would no longer accept payments for aborted fetal tissue.

The organization and its media and political allies continue to insist the CMP videos were “deceptively edited.” However, a Democrat opposition research firm named Fusion – hired by Planned Parenthood itself to review the videos – said while their analysts observed the videos had been edited, “the analysis did not reveal widespread evidence of substantive video manipulation.”

Additionally, Fusion noted, “[A]nalysts found no evidence that CMP inserted dialogue not spoken by Planned Parenthood staff.”

An analysis by Coalfire, a third-party forensics company hired by Alliance Defending Freedom, found that the videos were “not manipulated” and that they are “authentic.”

The Senate Judiciary Committee and the House Select Investigative Panel have referred Planned Parenthood Federation of America, several of the largest Planned Parenthood affiliates in the country, and three of their business associates in the fetal tissue procurement industry to the FBI and U.S. Department of Justice for criminal prosecution.

http://www.breitbart.com/california/2017/06/22/14-15-felony-charges-dismissed-planned-parenthood-videomakers/

[Dos Equis]

Your federal tax dollars hard at work.


Planned Parenthood: Teach your preschoolers 'their genitals don’t determine their gender'
Published August 04, 2017
Fox News
 
Apparently children as young as 4 are not too young to be told that gender and sex are different and that their genitals don't indicate their gender, according to new Planned Parenthood guidelines for parents.

On a page of its website titled “How do I talk with my preschooler about their body?” the abortion provider says if a child inquires why boys and girls have different bodies, a parent should introduce the concept of transgender identity.

“While the most simple answer is that girls have vulvas and boys have penises/testicles, that answer isn’t true for every boy and girl,” the organization says. “Boy, girl, man and woman are words that describe gender identity, and some people with the gender identities ‘boy’ or ‘man’ have vulvas, and some with the gender identity ‘girl’ or ‘woman’ have penises/testicles. Your genitals don’t make you a boy or a girl.”

Parents should then point out to their child, the page continues, that genitals do not definitively establish gender, and that their children “can make that decision based on your values and how you plan to talk with your kid about gender as they grow up.”

Critics, mainly from conservative ranks, say Planned Parenthood’s encouragement of parents to discuss gender identity with children who barely can string a sentence together and haven’t yet learned the alphabet is preposterous.

Some people with the gender identities 'boy' or 'man' have vulvas, and some with the gender identity 'girl' or 'woman' have penises/testicles. You genitals don't make you a boy or a girl.

- Planned Parenthood's new guidelines on discussing the body with preschoolers
“Gender is not fluid, either you have a penis or you don’t,” said Tim Wildmon, president of American Family Association, a Mississippi-based group that promotes conservative values. “What Planned Parenthood is promoting here is just stupidity masked as sensitivity. If you’re an adult and trying to talk to a child about whether they’re really a boy or girl, you’re at risk of harming them psychologically.”

“Unless a boy or girl is exhibiting behavior or says that they’re messed up about what they are, there’s no reason to bring something like that up” at such a young age, he said.

What Planned Parenthood is promoting here is just stupidity masked as sensitivity.

- Ted Wildmon, president, American Family Association
Efforts to obtain a comment from Planned Parenthood were unsuccessful.

Critics also say that Planned Parenthood’s suggested talking points are misleading.

“Of all the things it is — absurd, irresponsible, pretentious — one thing it definitely is not is scientific,” New York Daily News columnist S.E. Cupp wrote about the guidelines. “If you do need help talking to your kids about gender and gender identity — and there’s no shame in that — please, use real science as a guideline, and not garbage propaganda.”

“The truth is, sex is more complicated today. But the conversations you’ll more likely need to have with your kids will center on technology — the dangers lurking on the internet, sexting, revenge porn — and not anatomy.”

http://www.foxnews.com/us/2017/08/04/planned-parenthood-wants-to-preschoolers-to-know-gender-and-sex-arent-same.html

[Dos Equis]

Stop Tax Giveaways To Planned Parenthood
REP. ROBERT PITTENGER
Congressman, North Carolina's 9th District
11/01/2017

For decades, American taxpayers have unknowingly provided tax breaks that help lower the cost of building new abortion clinics.

The 1976 Hyde Amendment forbids the use of federal funds to pay for abortion.  However, a loophole in the tax code allows abortion providers to utilize special tax-exempt bonds to finance construction of abortion clinics.  The tax break lowers the cost of the bond, which is ultimately backed by hardworking American taxpayers.

Planned Parenthood, the nation’s largest abortion provider, has repeatedly used this loophole.

In 2012, Planned Parenthood financed major renovations on their national headquarters with a tax-free, taxpayer-subsidized $15 million municipal bond.  Abortion facilities in several other states, including Massachusetts, Florida, and Illinois, have also been financed with these “abortion bonds.”

These special tax-exempt bonds are intended to be used for construction of hospitals, schools, roads, and other projects which fulfill critical government functions and support the common good.  Abortion does not fit this category.  Using these special bonds for abortion facilities effectively diverts much-needed money away from essential public works projects.

While the full extent is unknown, the use of tax-exempt bonds has gifted abortion providers with significantly lower costs when financing construction of abortion clinics.

Tax-exempt bonds cost the federal government billions of dollars.  These bonds are intended to support infrastructure projects.  Their use for abortion facilities is wrong and a blatant abuse of your tax dollars.

As a Christian, father, and grandfather, I believe life begins at conception and that abortion is a moral travesty.  Millions of Americans similarly hold deep religious and moral convictions about abortion.  These hardworking taxpayers should never be forced to pay for the willful termination of an innocent life.
Our position is not a radical stance.  In fact, a 2016 Knights of Columbus/Marist poll found that 62 percent of Americans oppose taxpayer funding for abortion, including those who consider themselves pro-choice.

At a time when many of my constituents and millions of other hardworking Americans are forced to face tough financial decisions to make ends meet, it’s unconscionable that the federal government would provide Planned Parenthood and other abortion providers with taxpayer-funded subsidies and preferential tax treatment.

That’s why last week, I introduced the No Abortion Bonds Act, a bipartisan bill that ends taxpayer-subsidized, tax-exempt bonds for abortion providers.  My important pro-life legislation is co-sponsored by a bipartisan coalition of over seventy Members of Congress and is endorsed by National Right to Life, Family Policy Alliance, March for Life, U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops, Americans United for Life, Concerned Woman of America, and several other pro-life, pro-family organizations.

My bill will ensure the spirit of the Hyde Amendment is enforced in the tax code.  This legislation will end another taxpayer subsidy of the abortion industry.

The No Abortion Bonds Act includes exemptions for facilities that only perform abortions in cases of rape, incest, or danger to the life of the mother.  We also include a common sense exemption for hospitals.

Not every American shares my longstanding commitment to the “right to life” and speaking up for innocent babies who cannot defend themselves.  However, I believe we all can agree that taxpayers shouldn’t provide subsidies to construct abortion clinics, and this week, I took action to make that law.

Congressman Robert Pittenger (NC-09) is Chairman of the Congressional Task Force on Terrorism and Unconventional Warfare, Vice Chairman of the Subcommittee on Terrorism and Illicit Finance, and serves on the House Financial Services Committee, with a special focus on supporting small businesses, community banks, and credit unions.

http://dailycaller.com/2017/11/01/stop-tax-giveaways-for-planned-parenthood/

[Dos Equis]

Planned Parenthood under investigation by Justice Department over sale of fetal tissue
Brooke Singman By Brooke Singman,   Jake Gibson   | Fox News
DOJ launches investigation into Planned Parenthood
Department of Justice looking into the organizations alleged selling of human fetal tissues.

The Justice Department has launched a federal investigation into Planned Parenthood’s practices and the sale of fetal tissue.

In a letter first obtained by Fox News, Justice Department Assistant Attorney General for Legislative Affairs Stephen Boyd formally requested unredacted documents from the Senate Judiciary Committee, the same panel that led the congressional probe into the women’s health organization.

“The Department of Justice appreciates the offer of assistance in obtaining these materials, and would like to request the Committee provide unredacted copies of records contained in the report, in order to further the Department’s ability to conduct a thorough and comprehensive assessment of that report based on the full range of information available,” Boyd wrote.

Fox News has learned that last month, the FBI first requested the unredacted documents from the committee.

Fox News is told that Committee Chairman Chuck Grassley, R-Iowa, and Ranking Member Dianne Feinstein, D-Calif., said they needed to receive a letter and be assured that the documents would be used for investigative purposes.

The letter, sent to Grassley and Feinstein on Thursday, is a rare confirmation by the Justice Department of a federal investigation.

Trump says government will maintain funding if Planned Parenthood stops abortions services
“At this point, the records are intended for investigative use only—we understand that a resolution from the Senate may be required if the Department were to use any of the unredacted materials in a formal legal proceeding, such as a grand jury,” Boyd also wrote.

A spokesman for the committee told Fox News on Friday that they received the Department's "official request for unredacted copies of its 2016 report and we will work to cooperate fully."

In that final report entitled “Human Fetal Tissue Research: Context and Controversy” published in December 2016, Grassley referred Planned Parenthood and other providers to the FBI for investigation.

Grassley said at the time that the committee has discovered enough evidence that shows how abortion providers had transferred fetal tissue and body parts from aborted fetuses for research by charging amounts higher than they actually cost.

“The report documents the failure of the Department of Justice, across multiple administrations, to enforce the law that bans the buying and selling of human fetal tissue,” Grassley wrote last December urging the Justice Department and FBI to investigate. “It also documents substantial evidence suggesting that the specific entities involved in the recent controversy, and/or individuals employed by those entities, may have violated that law.”

Tucker and the executive vice president and chief brand officer of Planned Parenthood debate the GOP's health care plan's intent to cut funding over abortion services and its potential impact on the organization and women nationwide #TuckerVideo
Planned Parenthood EVP: No one will bully, bribe us

Feinstein, however, said in a statement Friday that the 2016 report was only presented to the "majority," meaning the Republicans on the committee.

"I hope that there isn't a partisan purpose in taking this action and that the department handles the chairman's request in a professional and ethical manner," Feinstein said in a statement.

The now-federal investigation comes after a 2015 undercover investigation by activists David Daleiden, leader of the pro-life Center for Medical Progress, and Sandra Merritt, an employee of the group, who both posed as fetal researchers and made undercover videos of themselves trying to buy fetal tissue from Planned Parenthood.

The recorded conversations included officials from Planned Parenthood and StemExpress, a California company that provides blood, tissue and other biological material for medical research and has received fetal tissue from Planned Parenthood.

Planned Parenthood, at the time, strongly rejected accusations it violated any law or acted unethically. The group also “strongly” disagreed with Grassley’s recommendations to refer the matter to the Justice Department “especially in light of the fact that the investigations by three other Congressional committees, and investigations in 13 states including a Grand Jury in Texas, have all shown that Planned Parenthood did nothing wrong.”

“Over two years ago, citizen journalists at The Center for Medical Progress first caught Planned Parenthood’s top abortion doctors in a series of undercover videos callously and flippantly negotiating the sale of tiny baby hearts, lungs, livers, and brains,” Daleiden said Thursday. “It is time for public officials to finally hold Planned Parenthood and their criminal abortion enterprise accountable under the law.”

The federal investigation by the Trump administration will reopen the years-long debate on whether Planned Parenthood and other providers violated the law with the illegal sale of body parts.

http://www.foxnews.com/politics/2017/12/07/planned-parenthood-under-investigation-by-justice-department-over-sale-fetal-tissue.html

[Dos Equis]

[Dos Equis]

New Evidence Suggests Planned Parenthood Lied To Congress About Aborted Baby Part Profits
The Center for Medical Progress submitted evidence to a federal judge to back up a new accusation Planned Parenthood may have lied to Congress.
By Nicole Russell
OCTOBER 30, 2018
http://thefederalist.com/2018/10/30/new-evidence-suggests-planned-parenthood-lied-congress-aborted-baby-part-profits/

[Dos Equis]

Court Rules Ohio Can Defund Planned Parenthood
13 Mar 2019
https://www.breitbart.com/politics/2019/03/13/court-rules-ohio-can-defund-planned-parenthood/