Anti-abortion groups gathered in the nation's capital Thursday to begin a lobbying effort with Congress and the Trump administration to end federal funding for Planned Parenthood, with some calling on the Department of Government Efficiency to make the organization one of its cost-cutting targets.
The initiative called Defund Planned Parenthood targets federal Medicaid funding for the abortion provider. More than 150 of the groups signed a letter Wednesday urging Congress to cut Medicaid funding for Planned Parenthood and other centers that provide abortions through the budget reconciliation process.
"Today is a historic moment where the pro-life movement stands united behind one message: Defund Planned Parenthood," said Kristan Hawkins, president of Students for Life, as she kicked off the rally in view of the U.S. Capitol.
She called on President Donald Trump and other Republicans to "defund your political enemies," adding that the abortion lobby has long targeted Republicans.
The federal Hyde Amendment restricts government funding for most abortions, and less than 5% of the services Planned Parenthood provides are abortions, according to the organization's 2023 annual report. But that report stated the organization provided 392,715 abortions between Oct. 1, 2021, to Sept. 30, 2022, a 15% increase from the previous report.
Vicki Ringer, Planned Parenthood's South Carolina director of public affairs, said claims that Planned Parenthood uses Medicaid funding for abortion is "an attempt to mislead the public" and emphasized Planned Parenthood's role in providing broader reproductive healthcare.
"We should be expanding health care to low-income people rather than trying to kick off these people who rely on us for healthcare," Ringer said.
Rachel Rebouche, dean of Temple University's Beasley School of Law, said the Defund Planned Parenthood movement has been building for 10 years but gained momentum as the anti-abortion movement has been emboldened by Trump's presidential victory and by Republicans winning control of Congress in November.
Tina Whittington, executive vice president at Students for Life, said she was confident that Trump would consider cutting Planned Parenthood's Medicaid funding and that DOGE could be just the tool for doing it.
"I'm more confident because we're in an era where DOGE's actions are targeting waste, fraud and abuse," she said. "And this is a great way to do that."
The Supreme Court announced it will hear a case in April involving South Carolina's attempt to strip Medicaid funding for Planned Parenthood. Experts said the lawsuit could prompt similar efforts in conservative states across the country to chip away at the organization's federal funding.
Trump reinstated a policy that requires foreign nongovernmental agencies to certify that they don't provide or promote abortion if they receive U.S. aid for family planning. He also pardoned several anti-abortion activists who had been convicted of blockading abortion clinics.
He also has appointed abortion opponents to some key Cabinet positions that could affect the availability of medication for abortions, Medicaid coverage for family planning services, collection of abortion-related data and abortion access for troops and veterans. In a pre-recorded message to the thousands who attended the March for Life in January, Trump said he proudly stood for families and for life.
Sen. Tommy Tuberville, R-Ala., said during Thursday's rally that he "truly believes President Trump is the most pro-life president in history."
"Absolutely zero taxpayer dollars should be going to abortion," he said. "… And I know President Trump agrees."
Marjorie Dannenfelser, president of SBA Pro-Life America, said Republican control of the White House and Congress represents a unique opportunity to push for legislation targeting Planned Parenthood.
"I believe this is the moment they will be defunded, and this is the blow that will bring them down," she said.
Advocates on either side of the abortion debate are waiting to see if Trump's Department of Justice will revive the Comstock Act, a 19th-century obscenity law, to restrict the mailing of medication abortion or other materials used for abortions. Attorney General Pam Bondi has a history of defending abortion restrictions, and her confirmation was celebrated by abortion opponents.
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