Posted on 09/04/2015 10:54:07 AM PDT by VinL
Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas) plans to send a letter to Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) early next week urging him not to schedule a vote on legislation that continues to fund Planned Parenthood.
“In light of recent and horrific revelations that Planned Parenthood is trafficking in fetal tissue and body parts from abortions, we urge you not to schedule or facilitate the consideration of any legislation that authorizes or appropriates federal dollars for Planned Parenthood," reads a draft of Cruz's letter, which was obtained by The Hill.
The Washington Post first reported on the letter's existence.
The GOP presidential candidate, whose is now circulating the letter around the Senate for signatures, has said he would support any procedural means to block funding to the organization.
“I believe we should use every and any procedural tool available to defund Planned Parenthood,” Cruz said before Congress left for its August recess.
“Whether or not one accepts the view of our President that abortions should be legal and widely available at any stage of pregnancy, we should all be able to unite around our President’s stated understanding of the “tradition in this town, historically, of not financing abortions as part of government-funded health care,” the letter continued.
The Hyde Amendment, however, already bans federal funding from being used for abortions except in cases of rape, incest or when it's necessary to save a mother's life.
“The American people should no longer be forced to fund the abortion industry; therefore we will oppose any government funding legislation that would authorize or provide federal funds for Planned Parenthood,” Cruz said.
In an interview this week, however, McConnell appeared to pour cold water on the idea that the GOP-controlled Congress would be able to defund the organization. He said it would have to wait for a new president.
“I would remind all of your viewers, the way you make a law in this country, the Congress has to pass it, and the president has to sign it. The president's made it very clear he's not going to sign any bill that includes defunding of Planned Parenthood, so that's another issue that awaits a new president hopefully with a different point of view," McConnell said in an interview with WYMT-TV.
A standalone vote in the Senate to defund the group was blocked by mostly Democrats in early August.
Cruz’s letter is similar to one 18 House conservatives sent to House Speaker John Boehner (R-Ohio) in July in which they made clear they would oppose any government funding measure that continues Planned Parenthood funding.
It’s also similar to one GOP senators sent to then-Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) during the summer of 2013 in which they made clear they would oppose any government funding measure that funded or enforced ObamaCare.
Cruz signed onto that letter, and was largely considered the architect of a campaign to defund ObamaCare that led to the 16-day government shutdown in October 2013.
Congress must pass new legislation to fund the government by Oct. 1. Lawmakers return to Capitol Hill on Tuesday after their annual August recess.
The others are trying to divine their "conservative" messages- for Cruz, it's in his DNA.
Another failure in the making? While I’m not longer supporting Cruz, I still had faith in him but I am wavering. He is turning out to be very two-faced and seems to have a growing string of failures to his name. As much as Congress should defund Planned Parenthood, I suspect Cruz will fail. Consider his track record: Iran deal, gives Obama ability to approve it with 34 votes, then complains. If he really objected, why did he and 98 other senators do this? And trade deal, he approved it. And so on. What has he accomplished? Nothing. Show me one victory with his name on it?
Did you by any chance catch the WND article on the GOP impotence? The report outlines a civilized low key discussion with an aide to leadership. Sorry I can’t even link it to you, but the gist was that the DC leadership in spite of the evidence to the contrary is SCARED of using all its tools to stop dead, or otherwise even hinder Obama.
They will NEVER agree to defund Planned Parenthood, for example, because they will NEVER agree to defund their atrocities occurring on American soil, because it would mean a fight that brings a shut down. Never mind that they (WE) won in a landslide after the last shut down! I mean, what is going on???
But he sends a lot of letters and gives many speeches!
So because he isn’t likely to refund planned parenthood on his own, he should bother doing what he was elected to do and try? Bohner, McConnell, Reid, Obama, and McCain have a lot of successes. Should he just join them?
Show me one victory with his name on it?
You would have joined the chorus, including Gen. Arnold, dismissing General Washington in 1778.
You can’t win ANY battles you don’t fight. Mitch and Boehner have a pretty good win-loss ratio. So what?
I want someone who will fight on my side. Ted’s the one.
Oldplayer
Sad but true, all talk, no action, maybe not honest about the results.
Letters, committees and votes engineered so important issues almost pass don’t accomplish anything. The one that mattered was getting McConnell and Boehner out of leadership positions. Don’t know that more of the same accomplishes that.
Hey Rita, yeah, I saw the headline, but no need to read it.
I’ve never been a Republican, always been unaffiliated. So, if the substance of the article is that the GOP has neither ideology or principle, I’ve always believed that to be the case.
But, at the same time, the GOP’s malleable nature, is why I feel there’s a glimmer of hope. These guys are motivated by only one overriding fear— that they might lose their fiefdom. So, as you indicate, they’re afraid of confronting this president-— but the underlying reason is their abject fear of losing the cushy life they have in DC.
So, we’re not confronted with a situation where one has to change hearts, minds and philosophies-— it’s simply a matter of electing a republican president who’s
a conservative ideologue, who will then instill the exact fear of losing their fiefdoms.
Rita, what we got, 54 GOP senators? Led by a president who commands their allegiance at the risk of their electoral defeat— I say you have at least 45 new Barry Goldwaters.
Cruz would do that- that’s really the only reason I support him.
I know you like Trump— perhaps you believe he will do the same.
Anyway, you’re my only reply on the thread. The usual Trump/Walker supporters dog my threads with their evocative posts, but we don’t have time to reply to nonsense, do we?
-:)
You’re the best, Vin. And such a good sport. I think you have hit on the barest of facts. Fear is useful, and it works!! Thanks for all you do, and doing it for all the right guys. Love, Rita
Cruz has won many victories that have benefited all Americans.
Thanks, Rita -High praise from the resident wordsmith. Dittos. -:)
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