Speaker Paul Ryan refused to give in to pro-abortion Democrats’ demands for more Planned Parenthood funding in the Zika aid bill on Thursday.
Democrats have been blocking critical aid bills to combat the virus for months because they do not fund a few Planned Parenthood facilities in Puerto Rico. On Wednesday, House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi said Democrats would continue to block legislation unless the abortion giant gets more taxpayer dollars.
Abortion has become a major issue related to the Zika virus because of a possible link to birth defects. New research suggests the virus may not be to blame for the uptick in birth defects in some areas affected by the virus. Still, abortion advocates have been using the virus as an excuse to push for more abortions of babies with disabilities. Some pro-abortion groups even have been scaring women into aborting their unborn babies without knowing if they have Zika or if their unborn baby has a disability.
SUPPORT PRO-LIFE NEWS! Please help LifeNews.com with a donation during our Fall Fundraising Campaign
Ryan refused to give in to the pro-abortion Democrats’ demands on Thursday and called out their deceptive tactics.
“First of all, there’s no Planned Parenthood [provision] in this bill, and to put an earmark for Planned Parenthood is something that we won’t do,” Ryan said, according to The Hill.
The report explains: “The GOP’s language specifically says the grants can only be used by ‘health services provided by public health departments, hospitals, or reimbursed through public health plans.’ That would mean Planned Parenthood’s two clinics in Puerto Rico — where the virus has infected thousands — aren’t eligible.”
Fact checkers, legislators, news outlets and others are calling out pro-abortion Democrats for making false claims about the funding bills. Even the liberal fact-checking website Politifact debunked Democrats’ claims that Planned Parenthood funding is necessary to aid the fight against Zika.
Earlier this summer, U.S. Sen. John Thune, R-South Dakota, also called out the Democrats for blocking the measure because of pro-abortion politics.
“The exact same amount that Democrats unanimously supported six weeks ago and now Democrats don’t want to support it,” Thune said before Senate Democrats succeeded in blocking a funding bill at the end of June.
“A handful of Planned Parenthood clinics in Puerto Rico,” Thune continued. “Seriously. This is what this is about?”
The Hill previously pointed out how the pro-abortion Democrats are contradicting themselves on the issue: “… the stance puts Democrats in the position of now opposing a Zika funding bill after months of telling Republicans funding was needed right away.”
Democrats are blocking the funding as Zika becomes an increasing concern in Florida and other southern states. Currently, the Centers for Disease Control reports at least 624 pregnant women have been infected with Zika in the U.S. Five of their unborn babies died in miscarriages or abortions, while 16 other babies were born with birth defects in the U.S., the CDC reports.
A funding bill would provide money for vaccine development, mosquito control and other prevention, and health and treatment services for people who contract the virus. The funding would go to researchers, community health centers, hospitals state health departments and Medicaid.
Planned Parenthood has been clear about its plan for Zika. In April, a Planned Parenthood spokesperson said pregnant women who have Zika ought to be able to abort their babies because of the possible risk of birth defects. The abortion activists called killing such babies a “human right.”
Right now, Planned Parenthood is sending staffers to knock on women’s doors in Miami, Florida to talk about the virus, according to the Miami Herald. They also are giving pregnant women “Zika kits” and informational fliers that, whether directly or indirectly, promote abortion.
