Rep. James Lankford, R-Okla. gives his victory speech as his wife and daughters listen at the Republican watch party in Oklahoma City. GOP introduces legislation to defund Planned Parenthood

Senate Republicans — including Majority Leader Mitch McConnell — have introduced legislation to cut off all federal funds to Planned Parenthood, the abortion rights group at the center of a political firestorm over alleged fetal tissues sales.

A “working group” led by GOP Sens. Joni Ernst of Iowa, James Lankford of Oklahoma and Rand Paul of Kentucky drafted the legislation, which is expected to be voted on in the Senate next week. More than 20 other Republicans have signed on as cosponsors, including Majority Whip John Cornyn and Sen. Ted Cruz, both of Texas. Cruz and Paul are both vying for the Republican presidential nomination.


The Senate GOP bill would strip the roughly $540 million in funding that Planned Parenthood is scheduled to receive and steer it toward other women’s health programs, a bid to undermine Democratic complaints about the measure.

“Funds no longer available to Planned Parenthood will continue to be offered to other eligible entities to provide such women’s health care services,” said a statement from Senate Republicans on the new legislation.

“As a mother and grandmother, I find this footage of Planned Parenthood’s role in the harvesting of the organs of unborn babies morally reprehensible and vile,” Ernst said. “The American people are horrified by these videos as well. Simply put, this legislation ensures that funding for women’s health is protected and that taxpayer dollars will not go to Planned Parenthood.”

Planned Parenthood has begun a full-scale drive to defeat the GOP measure, and Senate Democrats — as well as at least one Republican, Sen. Susan Collins of Maine — are opposed to the proposal.

Dawn Laguens, executive vice president of Planned Parenthood, said that the Republican lawmakers are threatening to cut off funding for health care services like cancer screenings and birth control. The group’s advocacy arm does not receive government money.

“It’s outrageous, not to mention wildly unpopular, that politicians are using this widely discredited attack against Planned Parenthood to push through legislation rolling back women’s access to healthcare,” Laguens said. “They’ve already opposed funding for breast cancer prevention and research, killed a bill that would help wounded veterans begin a family, and introduced bills to discriminate against pregnant women.

“Now,” he continued, “they threaten to cut basic, preventive health care — lifesaving cancer screenings, birth control, STI testing and treatment, and well-woman exams — from millions of Americans. This failed in 2011 and it is going to fail again.”

Planned Parenthood has come under heavy criticism since a California-based anti-abortion group began releasing secretly filmed videos in which representatives from Planned Parenthood allegedly discuss fetal tissue sales. Planned Parenthood officials say the organization has done nothing illegal or improper and that it collects fetal tissue to be donated for medical research with a patient’s consent.