Washington - According to reports, Republican congressional leaders are "desperate" to avoid "a showdown over Planned Parenthood funding." Instead, they would rather conduct a "series of high-profile congressional investigations." Heritage Action released the following statement from chief executive officer Michael A. Needham:
"Planned Parenthood kills an unborn baby every 97 seconds. We do not need a high-profile congressional investigation to know the group should not receive taxpayer funding. No pro-life member should be asked by party leaders to vote to continue funding Planned Parenthood. The Republican-controlled Congress must use the power of the purse to fully defund Planned Parenthood in September."
Background: Some have suggested a Benghazi-type investigation would build bipartisan support to defund Planned Parenthood. A congressional investigation will simply delay action and ensure taxpayer money continues to flow to Planned Parenthood. For some perspective, Planned Parenthood has killed more than 428,000 unborn babies during the 477 days since the House voted to create the Benghazi committee.