President Obama has ratcheted up the rhetoric in a looming shutdown fight, saying that Democrats are ready to negotiate with Republicans over “legitimate” budget issues.
“Democrats are ready to sit down and negotiate with Republicans right now,” the president said in his weekly address on Saturday. “But it should be over legitimate issues like how much do we invest in education, job training, and infrastructure – not unrelated ideological issues like Planned Parenthood.”
The government runs out of money on Oct. 1. A group of conservatives in the House and Senate have refused to vote for any spending bills that include funding for Planned Parenthood.
The women’s health and abortion provider has gotten a lot of heat for a series of undercover videos that discuss the harvesting of aborted fetal body parts.
Planned Parenthood gets about $500 million in federal funding each year.
The House voted on a separate bill to defund the group, but President Obama issued a veto threat on Wednesday on the bill.
But the vote on that bill doesn’t appear to appease conservatives who were shocked by the Planned Parenthood videos.
“Unless it’s tied to must-pass legislation, there’s no chance of success,” said Rep. Tim Huelskamp, R-Kan. in The Hill newspaper “Everybody knows that.”
Obama’s address appears to be a precursor to the blame game that both sides could start playing if a shutdown occurs. Democrats want to blame Republicans for refusing to budge on Planned Parenthood, while Republicans say that such action is necessary to defund a group that they accuse of violating federal law.
