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Just weeks after Arizona Congressman Trent Franks called the acts of Planned Parenthood “the worst human rights atrocity in the history of the United States,” another Arizona representative, Martha McSally says that defunding the organization and possibly forcing a government shutdown would be “repeating the mistakes of the past.”
McSally joined Blue State republican representatives Ryan Costello (Pa.), Elise Stefanik (N.Y.), Mimi Walters (Calif.), Daniel Donovan (N.Y.), John Katko (N.Y.), Carlos Curbelo (Fla.), Cresent Hardy (Nev.), Bruce Poliquin (Maine) and Tom MacArthur (N.J.) in signing a letter in which they urged Congress to “avoid another unnecessary and harmful government shutdown.
The group claimed that they “were elected by our constituents to be principled, pragmatic leaders.”
A search of McSally’s congressional records or statements shows no evidence that she sought to bring healthcare alternatives to Planned Parenthood clinics to the women in her district which is home of the 5th poorest metropolitan area in the country.
In July McSally created controversary when she told Republicans to watch their “language when we’re talking about some of these issues.” McSally said “We really have to watch our language when we’re talking about some of these issues. … The language just turns women off because we come off as the party of just cold, lack of compassion.”
It was the Planned Parenthood officials’ lack of compassion for the unborn while they negotiated the price of disected human babies that spurred the calls to deny Planned Parenthood federal funding. The undercover videos, produced by the Center for Medical Progress (CMP), as part of its Human Capital project documented Planned Parenthood’s sale of baby body parts.
The freshmen representatives’ letter reads:
Dear Colleague:
With less than two weeks until the September 30 deadline to fund federal government operations, we are writing today to express our strong support for a funding resolution that will avoid another unnecessary and harmful government shutdown. We believe Congress should complete its work and provide funding for the federal government through September 30, 2016, but we are willing to support a short-term resolution that will give both the House and the Senate the additional time necessary to negotiate final spending numbers.
As freshman Members of the House Republican Conference, we were elected by our constituents to be principled, pragmatic leaders. They expect us to fulfill our responsibilities, avoid repeating the mistakes of the past, and live up to our commitment to work every day to help keep the American economy moving forward.
The sixteen-day government shutdown in 2013 cost our economy an estimated $24 billion and stalled the creation of over 100,000 private sector jobs. It also imposed unacceptable delays in life saving NIH research studies and payment of veterans’ disability claims, cost over $500 million in lost revenue at our national parks, and shut thousands of children out of Head Start programs. In short, the shutdown not only hurt taxpayers with the loss of important government services – it actually cost more taxpayer money to close the federal government than to keep it open.
We are living in challenging times that require serious, thoughtful leadership. We are proud of the many accomplishments that House Republicans have achieved this year, including passage of the first real entitlement reform in two decades, measures to strengthen veterans’ health care, new efforts to combat human trafficking, and legislation to accelerate the discovery and delivery of life saving medical innovations. These legislative achievements will make a real difference in the lives of all Americans. We need to build on that record by passing fiscally responsible spending bills that will cut wasteful spending, rein in our debt, and reform government.
We stand together in the effort to keep the government funded beyond September 30 as we continue the fight to pass responsible spending bills that put the taxpayers first.
Franks full testimony can be seen in the video below: