Political Quotes

“Mr. President, this afternoon the Senate will be voting on a motion to proceed to a bill that would completely eliminate all Federal funding for Planned Parenthood. While I do not support this legislation, I have received assurances from the majority leader that should the motion to proceed succeed, there will be ample opportunity to offer amendments. Therefore, I would like to take this opportunity to propose an alternative approach which Senator Kirk and I will offer as a substitute for the bill. Throughout my service in the Senate, I have been a strong proponent of family planning and measures to promote and protect women's health. The fact is that the best way to reduce the number of abortions in this country is to ensure that women have access to family planning services they need to protect against unintended pregnancies. That is why I have long supported title X family planning programs. My support for family planning aside, however, I was sickened when I viewed the recently released videos featuring Planned Parenthood physicians in both their edited and unedited versions. The callousness with which Planned Parenthood employees discuss the sale of fetal tissue is appalling. It deserves our attention. The videos also raise valid questions about the ethics and legality of Planned Parenthood's practices in some of its clinics, albeit a minority of its clinics.…”