'That procedure that you talked about was a procedure I endured,' Speier said during debate. Lawmaker gets personal on abortion

The debate over defunding Planned Parenthood turned personal Thursday night as California Democratic Rep. Jackie Speier told colleagues of her own abortion experience.

Speier spoke out after Republican Rep. Chris Smith of New Jersey read at length from a book written by a former abortion provider, now an anti-abortion activist, who described in great detail how a second-trimester abortion looks on an ultrasound.


Speaking next, Speier said that she had to stray from her prepared remarks because “my stomach is in knots.

“That procedure that you talked about was a procedure I endured. I lost a baby,” Speier said, revealing that she had an abortion at 17 weeks gestation of a wanted child because of medical complications. “But for you to stand on this floor and to suggest, as you have, that somehow this is a procedure that is either welcomed or done cavalierly or done without any thought is preposterous.”

The emotional exchange came amid three hours of debate over Republican Rep. Mike Pence's plan to cut off funding for Planned Parenthood — part of his push to starve the group of money in order to force it to stop performing abortions.

Rep. Paul Broun, a Republican of Georgia and a physician, and Rep. Gwen Moore, a Democrat of Wisconsin, had a particularly tense exchange.

Broun said, “We treat green turtle eggs better than we treat children in the womb.” He also argued that because most clinics are in ethnic neighborhoods “more black babies are killed” by Planned Parenthood.

Moore spoke next, countering: “I know all about black babies. I’ve had three of them. I had the first one at the ripe old age of 18.” Moore said that Republican public policy has “utter contempt for poor women and poor children.”

Rep. Stephen Lynch, Democrat of Massachusetts, said he supports the work of Planned Parenthood and is against the Pence amendment, even though he is anti-abortion. “I’m a pro-life Democrat,” Lynch said. “We used to agree that the best way to decrease abortions is to prevent unwanted pregnancy.”

Most members stuck to the talking points. On the Democratic side: Every dollar spent on family planning saves taxpayers $4 on health care; the Hyde Amendment already assures no federal dollars are spent on abortions; the effort is a war on women.

On the Republican side: The money is fungible; keeping the lights on for an abortion provider is tantamount to funding abortions; Planned Parenthood is a criminal organization that is complicit in covering up statutory rape, a reference to the recent sting videos by Lila Rose; Planned Parenthood just has to stop performing abortions and then we won’t oppose the funding.

A vote on the amendment is expected Friday.