Tom Lantos: “Mr. Chairman, the family planning programs our country supports provide critical reproductive health care for millions…”

“Mr. Chairman, the family planning programs our country supports provide critical reproductive health care for millions of women around the globe. Family planning assistance prevents unwanted pregnancies and yes, helps to prevent abortions. These family planning programs are the only health care these women and their families have. The President's executive order dictates to these groups that they must forfeit their right to determine what they do with their own private funds: you must not talk about certain things, you must not perform certain health care services, you must report to us what you do with your own money. If we were to impose these mandates on domestic groups, they would be struck down as unconstitutional. The United States Government does not fund abortions here or abroad. We have not done that for decades. We have now begun to restrict what groups can do with their own money. Who suffers when we penalize the funding for these groups? Women and children, some of the most impoverished women and children in the world. Mr. Chairman, I urge my colleagues to reject the Hyde amendment, save women's lives, and promote democratic values.”