A faction of Congressional Republicans are trampling their own leadership in a hell-bent attempt to shutdown the government to defund Planned Parenthood, an idea reminiscent of The Charge of the Light Brigade, in which Tennyson wrote “Into the valley of death rode the 600… Cannons … volleyed… horse and hero fell… When can their glory fade… the noble 600.”
As these Republicans seek to take a noble and glorious stand on principle, they forget Tennyson’s key line “Someone had blundered.” The charge of the 600 was a tragic mistake.
So would be a GOP attempt to defund the Planned Parenthood organization. However, an attempt to defund one part of it might well succeed.
The GOP should focus narrowly upon Planned Parenthood’s trafficking in fetal body parts. This trafficking is a blot on the nation’s character. It has shaken Americans with conscience to the core. It is what should be defunded.
Planned Parenthood defends itself – and abortion and trafficking – by trumpeting about all the other health services it provides women. It presents itself as an indivisible whole.
The GOP should disassemble it into its individual parts, distinguishing between abortion and trafficking in fetal body parts, and separating trafficking from those other services.
The GOP should offer legislation denying federal funding to any abortion organization trafficking in fetal body parts. Give Planned Parenthood the right to choose between federal funds and the “cost reimbursement” it receives from “tissue procurement organizations.”
A shutdown aimed at the whole Planned Parenthood organization is certain to fail, even as pure political statement. A Reuters poll in mid-August found that 74 percent of Americans support the “other health care services” it provides. A Rasmussen poll in mid-July found that Americans support the organization by a wide 53 – 37 margin.
Abortion remains controversial. It is uncertain whether a majority of Americans oppose abortion. However, it is absolutely certain that Congressional Democrats will defend abortion to the death.
Recognizing this reality, the unfairly maligned GOP leadership has warned against a shutdown attempting to defund the whole organization. This reasoned warning, which just cost House Speaker Boehner his job, recognizes that an attempted shutdown as of October 1st would fail three times over: First, with only 54 votes in the Senate, the GOP cannot overcome a Democratic filibuster and pass defunding legislation; second, even if defunding legislation were to pass by some miracle, President Obama would veto it; and, third, even if the GOP had mustered 60 votes to overcome a filibuster, it couldn’t muster the Constitutionally required 67 votes to overcome an Obama veto.
Symbolism is important, but so is winning.
While there is limited polling on trafficking, the Rasmussen poll found a striking difference between support for “using fetal tissue for medical research” (favorable by a narrow 43-37 margin) versus wording that “sourced” the tissue: 54 percent oppose “the sale of body organs from aborted babies,” more than twice the number who support it, just 25 percent. Properly framed and articulated, a campaign against trafficking could succeed.
Moreover, even Planned Parenthood has conceded the issue in its actions, albeit not in its words. In an early-September letter to Congress, the organization admitted that four of the six units involved have ceased dealing in fetal tissue, at least temporarily.
Thus, victory is possible. Democratic senators would think twice before defending trafficking. Legislation de-trafficking Planned Parenthood might well pass Congress. Obama would think twice before vetoing. Congressional Democrats would think twice before upholding a veto whose sole purpose was to perpetuate trafficking.
De-trafficking Planned Parenthood would also partially defund the organization, which relies upon both federal funding and “cost recovery from fetal tissue procurement organizations.”
Finally, ending trafficking “now” would protect unborn children immediately and henceforth from the brutality that abortion coupled with trafficking involves, the “crunch here, but not there” abortion practices encouraged by the monies to be had by the “harvesting” of certain organs or “living parts.”
Republicans should consign Tennyson and the Light Brigade to history and fight a meaningful and winnable fight today – right now. Legislation de-trafficking Planned Parenthood might succeed without a shutdown.
Were a government shutdown over trafficking to be launched, and were it to fail, it would fail as a genuine effort to succeed and as a moral statement, rather than only as a vainglorious statement. Some Republicans seem to forget that politics is the art of the possible.
Red Jahncke is president of The Townsend Group, a management consulting firm in Connecticut. Thinking of submitting an op-ed to the Washington Examiner? Be sure to read our guidelines on submissions.
