Sen. Joe Manchin said Monday he’ll vote with Republicans to block federal funding to Planned Parenthood, making him the only Senate Democrat so far to side against the women’s health and abortion provider.
The West Virginia senator said he’s “very troubled” by the group’s “callous behavior” as depicted in a series of undercover videos showing top Planned Parenthood officials discussing how some doctors collect aborted fetal tissue during abortions for biomedical companies.
“Until these allegations have been answered and resolved, I do not believe that taxpayer money should be used to fund this organization; instead those funds should be sent to other health care providers, including community health centers, which provide important women’s healthcare services,” Manchin said in a statement Monday.
The Senate is poised to vote Monday afternoon on a bill from Sen. Joni Ernst, R-Iowa, blocking Planned Parenthood from receiving federal funding, primarily through Medicaid and Title 10 Family Planning dollars. But Republicans are unlikely to garner the 60 votes necessary to pass the legislation. Even if they did, President Obama has said he would veto such a bill.
Manchin is the first Senate Democrat to announce he’ll vote on defunding the group. Sen. Joe Donnelly of Indiana, another moderate Democrat, hasn’t yet said how he’ll vote. Two other centrist Democrats, Sen. Bob Casey of Pennsylvania and Heidi Heitkamp of North Dakota, have said they’ll oppose the bill.
