Republican presidential candidate Sen. Ted Cruz (TX) is calling for a full Congressional investigation into Planned Parenthood's sales and transfers of aborted fetus parts. The Senator's call follows orders from two Republican governors, Louisiana's Bobby Jindal and Texas' Greg Abbott, for state-level investigations.
"Congress should immediately begin an investigation of Planned Parenthood's activities regarding the sale and transfer of aborted body parts, including who is obtaining them and what they are being used for," said Cruz in a written statement Tuesday.
Cruz said the potentially illegal fetal tissue program is yet another reason to "fully defund" Planned Parenthood. "There is no place for taxpayer funding of organizations that profit from taking away innocent life, much less profiting off the bodies of the lives they have stolen," wrote Cruz.
Cruz's call follows responses from two other Republican leaders. Early Tuesday, Louisiana's Gov. Jindal ordered his state health department to launch an investigation into the issue, while Texas' Gov. Abbott ordered two separate investigations and issued the following statement:
The video of a high-level Planned Parenthood executive discussing the details of internal abortion procedures – including harvesting of baby body parts – is unnerving and appalling. In light of the video, I have directed the Texas Health and Human Services Commission to conduct an immediate investigation of this alleged practice in addition to a separate investigation ordered by the Texas Office of the Attorney General.
The calls to action are the result of a video (above) that has now gone viral showing a Planned Parenthood's Sr. Dir. of Medical Services Dr. Deborah Nucatola casually discussing how the organization sells the body parts of aborted fetuses, an illegal practice if it is conducted in the way in which the video evidence suggests. Planned Parenthood responded by accusing the pro-choice organization that crated the video, the Center for Medical Progress, of having deceptively edited the footage. The organization responded by pointing to the almost three-hour long unedited interview they have posted online.
Update: Wednesday, House Speaker John Boehner (R-Ohio) called for a Congressional probe into Planned Parenthood over the practices revealed in the CMP exposé, with House Energy and Commerce Chairman Fred Upton (R-Mich) announcing his committee would begin "seeking information" from the group.
