Democrats on the House Appropriators Committee yesterday passed a bill that would revers a pro-life order President Donald Trump issued on his first week in office that defunds International Planned Parenthood. Trump’s pro-life rule ensures Americans don’t have to fund the biggest abortion business in the world or its abortion agenda in other countries.
The funding cut to the International Planned Parenthood Federation (IPPF) is the result of the Mexico City Policy, which President Donald Trump signed during his first week in office. The policy prohibits taxpayer funding to international groups that promote and/or provide abortions overseas. The pro-life rule the president initiated is credited with cutting of at least $100 million in taxpayer funds to IPPF.
But yesterday Democrats passed a bill to overturn it.
The bill also weakens the Kemp-Kasten Amendment. Added to SFOPs in 1985, the Kemp-Kasten Amendment restricts funds from organizations that the President determines support or participates in a coercive abortion program. President Trump has used the amendment to redirect funding away from the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) due to the organization’s support of and participation in the management of China’s birth limitation policy.
The bill appropriates $55.5 million for the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA). This is $23 million more than the $32.5 million provided by the FY2020 appropriations bill. pro-life groups have said UNFPA should not receive US support as long as it continues to support and participate in the Chinese population control program and President Trump defunded the agency early in his presidency.
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Pro-life members of the committe said they couldn’t support the bill with the pro-abortion provisions.
Appropriations Committee Ranking Member Kay Granger (R-TX) summarized the pro-life concerns in the FY21 SFOPS bill and said, “I can’t agree to reverse the important policies put forth by this Administration to protect life.”
Rep. Robert Aderholt (R-AL) noted: “President Trump has made his intention very clear. [In his 2019 letter to Speaker Pelosi, the President wrote], ‘I will veto any legislation that weakens current pro-life Federal policies and laws.”
And Rep. Andy Harris (R-MD) pushed back against statements in support of UNFPA, saying, “This is not about family planning. There are many international agencies that provide contraception. They can receive funding. UNFPA promotes abortion, both implicitly and explicitly.”
After voicing their concerns, SFOPS Subcommittee Ranking Member Hal Rogers (R-KY) offered an amendment to restore many of the pro-life provisions undermined in the Democrat bill. But his pro-life amendment died on a party line vote with all Democrats voting pro-abortion and all Republicans voting pro-life.
The full House is expected to pass the measure but the Senate will not likely approve the bill with the pro-abortion language in it and President Trump would veto it if it arrives to him witht he pro-abortion riders attached.
