9 Takeaways from Planned Parenthood CEO Cecile Richards’s Brazen Congressional Testimony

Planned Parenthood CEO Cecile Richards testified before the House Oversight Committee this morning – the first appearance on Capitol Hill for Planned Parenthood since investigative journalists began exposing their abhorrent practices of selling parts of butchered babies.

Richards’ testimony was full of the same deception and spin that has been continually spouted by Planned Parenthood’s allies in Congress, the Obama White House, and the mainstream media. 

You can read her spin for yourself here in her written testimony submitted into the Congressional Record.

As Planned Parenthood continues to spread their galling abortion distortions on the Hill and beyond, we have compiled real facts and figures to hold them accountable for their misleading testimony.

Here are 9 important takeaways from today’s testimony:

1) Planned Parenthood CEO Cecile Richards confirms that some Planned Parenthood affiliates sell the body parts of aborted babies.

In her testimony, Ms. Richards states, “Planned Parenthood is proud of its limited role in supporting fetal tissue research.”

Once again, Planned Parenthood is admitting to everything in the videos. Just as Ms. Richards did in her letter to Congress, she confesses to numerous things Planned Parenthood often tries to hide.

She has had numerous opportunities to refute the video footage of top-level Planned Parenthood executives negotiating prices of butchered baby body parts. She has not refuted this footage one time.

She has hidden behind stale talking points about legal loopholes, broad laws, etc. But she hasn’t denied that it happens.

And, in fact, she apologized for something about the videos, although in her testimony today, she once again was unclear about exactly what she was apologizing for.

2) Planned Parenthood clinics perform zero mammograms. None.

Congresswoman Mia Love and several of her colleagues questioned Ms. Richards about how many mammograms are performed annually by Planned Parenthood.
Cecile Richards once again reiterated: no Planned Parenthood clinics have mammogram machines.

Zero.

Despite the claims of President Obama and other celebrity allies of Planned Parenthood, their clinics don’t provide mammograms.

3) Planned Parenthood Receives Taxpayer Subsidies, Throws Big Parties

The House Oversight Committee released a report this morning exposing Planned Parenthood for “lavish” travel and theme parties with names such as “Gathering of Goddesses and Gods.” The message from Chairman Chaffetz was a simple one – Planned Parenthood is able to raise a lot of money so why do they need federal subsidies?

Why do we give hundreds of millions every year when Planned Parenthood seems to have no money problems at all?

4) Planned Parenthood Refuses to Admit How Much Money They Make on Abortions

Congresswoman Mia Love asked Ms. Richards how much of their revenue comes from cancer screenings. Richards replied that they make no profit from their cancer screenings as they merely receive reimbursements for the cost.

So Rep. Love asked how much of their revenue comes from abortions?

Numerous members of Congress asked this question and Richards said she would do her best to get the numbers. But later, while being questioned once again, she admitted she might not be able to get those numbers.

Why not? Could it be because it would prove that a significant amount of Planned Parenthood’s revenue centers on abortions and not on other services provided?

5) Planned Parenthood Cancer Screenings on the Decline, While Abortions on the Rise

Congresswoman Love stated that there have been marked reductions in cancer screenings and breast exams.  She pointed to reports showing a 53% reduction in cancer screenings and 42% reduction in breast exams. At the same time, Planned Parenthood annual reports show increasing numbers of abortions performed over this same time period.

6) Planned Parenthood Uses their Organizational Structure to Avoid Tough Questions

In her testimony, Cecile Richards once again stated that she didn’t know numerous things. She reminded the Committee that abortions are performed by the affiliates and not the national office. She again reminded the Committee that Planned Parenthood has broken up their organization and, therefore, she didn’t know a number of things about their lobbying efforts as well.

This is on purpose. They do this in such a way as to avoid having to answer the hard questions.

Questions like…

• Why is our federal government sending hundreds of millions of taxpayer dollars to Planned Parenthood each year?
• How much does Planned Parenthood spend lobbying and pressuring lawmakers to keep health codes for abortion clinics low while claiming that the reason they need so much money is because they are like any other hospital or health care center?
• How much money do you make by killing hundreds of thousands of babies each year?
• How much do you charge for each body part you sell of those butchered babies?

There are dozens of other tough questions, such as how much money does Planned Parenthood transfer from their 501(c)(3) to their 501(c)(4) for political activity. Chairman Chaffetz reported that it’s at least $22 million over the past 5 years.

Planned Parenthood loves to say that federal money doesn’t cover abortions. One wonders if they really think we are dumb enough to not understand the fungible nature of money.

Taxpayer money to Planned Parenthood allows them to cover overhead expenses such as rent, salaries of abortionists, and other costs. This is more money they can spend on killing unborn babies.

7) Planned Parenthood Provides Fewer Services than Federally Qualified Health Centers

Planned Parenthood’s supporters love to pretend that defunding Planned Parenthood would be bad for women’s health and health care for poor communities.

But Ms. Richards once again confirmed today that Planned Parenthood clinics provide significantly fewer services than federally qualified health centers, and those centers provide all of the same non-abortion services provided by Planned Parenthood, including birth control, manual breast exams, and STD testing.

Cecile Richards once again confirmed that Planned Parenthood does not provide emergency first responder care, well-child services, mammograms, immunizations, radiological services, nurse on staff, and more.

For every Planned Parenthood clinic, there are 20 community health centers ready to provide all the non-abortive services currently being given by Planned Parenthood.   It is a blatant lie to claim these communities would be left unserved if Planned Parenthood loses its federal funding. 

8) Planned Parenthood Officials Visited the Obama White House 151 Times in the Last Six Years

This fact shared by Congressman Jim Jordan speaks for itself.

9) Planned Parenthood fights higher medical standards while claiming they are exactly like hospitals and other health care centers.

In her submitted testimony, Ms. Richards states, “Planned Parenthood operates just like all other health care providers or hospitals that provide medical care to Medicaid patients.”

Then why does Planned Parenthood continually fight against higher medical standards and why have many of their top officials been caught on tape complaining about laws intended to protect women and children that hold them to a high standard of care?

Then why is Planned Parenthood taking their fight to the Supreme Court to challenge common-sense regulations in Texas and other states that simply intend to hold abortion clinics to the same health standards as other surgical centers?

Could it be because these regulations would eat into their profits they make off the killing of babies and subsequent sale of their body parts?

Planned Parenthood – You can’t have it both ways.

You can’t claim that you offer necessary health services and then state that you don’t in order to avoid being held to the same high standards of care that every woman deserves.  

All in all, Ms. Richards’ testimony served to reiterate one thing – Planned Parenthood is proud that they stop the beating hearts of innocent children and harvest their body parts. 

They continue to call those of us who expose Planned Parenthood’s practices liars and warriors against women, but have yet to deny the simple truth that they receive payment for the harvest of babies’ organs. 

Enough is enough, Ms. Richards.   It is time Planned Parenthood is held accountable for their actions and for the $500 million in federal funding they receive annually. The American people deserve facts, not stale talking points and strawman arguments. 

The women and children whose lives are destroyed by Planned Parenthood deserve the truth of what is happening inside those clinics to be exposed once and for all. 

This is why we are fighting in nearly a dozen pro-life cases around the country, including defending a board member of the Center for Medical Progress – the investigative journalists exposing Planned Parenthood’s abhorrent practices of selling aborted baby body parts.

This is why we continue fighting on Capitol Hill to protect every life.

And this is why we want to defund Planned Parenthood and send that taxpayer money to clinics that actually provide comprehensive health care.

Join us today.