The head of America’s largest abortion provider disagrees that it’s "difficult" to be both pro-life and a Democrat. But the actions of her and her organization say otherwise.
Anchor Nicolle Wallace, filling in for Brian Williams during MSNBC’s 11th Hour last Wednesday, invited Planned Parenthood President Cecile Richards on-air as controversy swirled around the Democrat Party’s touted exclusion of the pro-life movement by DNC Chair Tom Perez.
For her final question, Wallace asked Richards about the “politics” of Planned Parenthood and abortion.
“When I was coming up in Republican politics, it was perilous to be a pro-choice Republican. You sort of whispered it, you knew who the other six pro-choice Republican women were, and you sort of hung together,” Wallace began. She wanted to know if the same held true “on the Democratic side.”
“Is it difficult right now to be a pro-life Democrat?" Wallace continued. "Do you guys make it difficult?” Wallace’s question followed Perez’s recent comments that all Democrats should support abortion.
Richards denied Wallace’s suggestion.
“Oh, I don't think so,” she responded, before adding, “abortion is one of these issues that it is – I think shouldn't be politicized.”
(Which is why her organization donated $38 million to presidential candidate Hillary Clinton, right?)
Richards then tried to change the subject.
“I think it’s actually a very deeply personal issue, and I respect folks having their own personal feelings about it,” she hedged. “I think the question is, ‘what should the government be doing about it?’ And so, I think there’s are – there are room for people to have their own personal options without saying, ‘Well, I’m going to make everybody else abide by my own – my own views.’
An bizarre answer, considering Richards agrees with the Democratic Party platform which calls for the repeal of the Hyde Amendment, which currently bars federal funding from going towards abortion (with a few exceptions). In other words, Richards champions the idea of forcing taxpayers to fund abortion – regardless of their personal views.
“I hope this administration will really think twice before signing into legislation, or signing into law legislation that would take away women's access to healthcare,” Richards concluded.
According to Planned Parenthood’s most recently published annual report, the organization performed 323,999 abortions and received $553.7 million in “government health services grants and reimbursements” for the year 2014 – 2015.
