Senate Democrats on Monday managed to block a Republican effort that would have stopped all federal funds from going to Planned Parenthood.
The 53-46 procedural vote fell seven short of the 60 needed to beat a Democratic filibuster and bring the bill up for debate, reported The Associated Press.
GOP leaders have made defunding Planned Parenthood a high priority following the release of a series of videos secretly-recorded by an anti-abortion group showing Planned Parenthood officials discussing the process of harvesting aborted fetal tissue and selling it to medical researchers.
Critics of Planned Parenthood contend the videos prove that the group illegally profits from selling aborted baby parts, but Planned Parenthood says it complies with the law and only receives money to cover the cost of the harvesting procedures, as HNGN reported.
The defunding fight is expected to continue when Congress returns from summer break in September, as conservatives in both the House and Senate are demanding that a provision be attached to any spending bill to block federal funds from going to Planned Parenthood, according to CNN. Some Republicans have said they are willing to force a government shutdown in October if federal support is not halted.
"The time has come to have a full-throated debate about this, and the time has come to end all taxpayer funding for Planned Parenthood," Sen. Rand Paul, R-Ky., a presidential candidate and co-sponsor of the Senate bill, said Monday, reported The Washington Post. "It's about time we had a debate in our country about this, and it's about time we said enough is enough"
White House press secretary Josh Earnest admitted on Monday that neither he nor the president have viewed the videos, but said, "what the president has said is that Planned Parenthood provides valuable health care services for men and women across the country. He would veto any legislation that tried to advance wholesale defunding for Planned Parenthood."
