Why the Planned Parenthood Cut Will Not Pass in the Senate

The really scary push to defund Planned Parenthood that passed in the house now moves for approval in the Senate. The Pence Amendment is only part of the larger federal spending bill. So of course when the Senate debates the Planned Parenthood controversy, it will be in context of the overall issue, the federal budget. Yet, the amendment to defund Planned Parenthood, at least in its current form, is unlikely to pass in the Senate.

Several prominent pro-choice senators have unabashedly voiced their unanimous opposition to this proposal. They include Kirsten Gillibrand of New York, Jeanne Shaheen of New Hampshire, Barbara Boxer of California, Richard Blumenthal of Connecticut and Al Franken of Minnesota. Franken has said to the press that he believes the Democrats have enough votes to block the amendment. At this point, numbers appear to be on the side of choice.

Furthermore, the House Budget Committee Chair, Paul Ryan (R-WI), believes that the Republicans do not have enough votes to pass the legislation as it appears now. Most major news outlets have agreed that the legislation stands little chance of passage in the Senate. After all, the Senate is much more supportive of the right to choose than the House.

Unfortunately, the need to pass a budget will define the parameters of the Senate's debate. If Congress does not pass a federal budget, there is a threat of a total government shutdown. Such an event has not occurred since 1995. Both parties would like to blame the other as being unwilling to compromise and thus avoid blame for the potential government shutdown. So the real issue for most senators is not the right to choose, but how the battle over the budget goes, and where the Planned Parenthood issue fits into that larger debate.

So under normal circumstances, the proposed defunding of Planned Parenthood would easily be struck down by Senate Democrats, however, this threat of a government shutdown might just force some Democrats to "compromise" and allow some parts of the amendment to survive. In my opinion, that is the greatest threat to Planned Parenthood, not the current outright defunding.

Again in context of the larger political hoopla surrounding the federal budget, the Planned Parenthood funding issue will likely serve as ammunition for both sides. Since this issue is being fairly well covered in the liberal press, many Democratic senators would not want to lose base support by allowing the defunding measure to pass as it stands. This pressure works in favor of the right to choose since pro-choice politicians retain a majority in the Senate.

I really do hate the fact that anti-choice politicians wantonly take so many important issues (federal budget, health care reform) hostage. Yet the progressive edge over the conservatives in the Planned Parenthood funding issue is beneficial in so far as it should stop liberals from panicking. However, just because progressives have a few advantages in the Senate does not mean that they should not rest in announcing, no shouting, their opposition to this proposal. Even though Republicans probably won't get their way, it is still an attack on w omen's constitutional rights everywhere. Which is why engaging in rallies and other such means of opposition are always relevant.

Please contact your senators and urge them to strike down this legislation. If you call their offices, make sure to use the well written and thorough prompt that Zaneta has provided a few posts ago.

After all, who else has the responsibility of keeping liberal politicians on their toes?

What do you all think, how will this turn out?