To Disincentivize Dishonesty, Planned Parenthood Should Sue

Right-wing activists released a video today dishonestly claiming that Planned Parenthood is "selling body parts" of aborted fetuses in violation of federal law. You can watch the dishonest video here and the full footage here. In the deliberately deceptive video, the video editors repeatedly refer to laws banning the sale of organs from aborted fetuses and refer to one of the undercover people as the "buyer," suggesting that they were planning a transaction with Planned Parenthood and started a twitter hashtag #ppsellsbabyparts.

However, in the full video, the faux "buyer" actually says, regarding the purpose of the meeting,  (2:27) "I wanna pick your brain..." which suggests an informal conversation rather than any plans for a transaction.  And at (4:22) the "buyer" says "I'd really like to connect with people who...they don't know that we're out there" which again clearly suggests that they are not asking Planned Parenthood to sell body parts. At no point in the video does the Planned Parenthood employee suggest that they are open to selling body parts.

Moreover, in the video, Dr. Nucatola of Planned Parenthood makes it very clear that Planned Parenthood providers are not going to be making money off of these procedures. Here's what she says at the 5:00 mark:

 Every provider has had patients who want to donate their tissue, and they absolutely want to accommodate them...they just want to do it in a way that is not perceived as 'this clinic is selling tissue. this clinic is making money off of this.' I know in the Planned Parenthood World, for example, they're very very sensitive to that and for an affiliate that's going to do that, they need to...some might do it for free...[but] they want to come to a number where it doesn't look like they're making money.  They want to come to a number that looks like it is a reasonable effort for the effort that is allotted on their part.

And during a longer conversation at the end (2:22:26-2:27:00 ), you can see that the phonies are trying to push payments, and Dr. Nucatola is giving them the message that aside from not losing money, the clinics will not do the procedures in exchange for money.  She says, at various times:

• 2:22:26: "At the end of the day, if you're going to take money out of the equation, which is what most affiliates are trying to do, how can we do this for you in the most beneficial way"
• 2:24:52 "Anything you can do to explain who's benefitting, the benevolence of what they're doing, I think that holds as much value as any cash prize." 
• 2:26:00 "Perhaps the difference is affiliates are looking to benefit in very different ways than just dollars and cents. Again, they're not going to do it in a way that costs them money. They want to break even. They want to be compensated for time and space and whatever impact that it has."

In fact, just to underlie how willfully dishonest the "Center for Medical Progress" is being, both of the "buyers" acknowledge in the video that Planned Parenthood is not selling tissue.

• Buyer #1 (1:29:05): "I never see that. I don't look at it that way.  We're not selling tissue."
• Buyer #2 (1:29:29): "The researchers are paying for procurement...they're not buying a brain."

Gawker explains the covering of expenses in more detail:

Except that, as Planned Parenthood told The Hill, its affiliates “can legally receive reimbursement from a tissue donation procedure for the ‘additional expenses related tissue donation, which can vary based on individual circumstance,’ but it does not go to staff members or providers.” These “additional expenses” might be the $10-30 it costs to transport the tissue being donated, which Planned Parenthood notes is “standard across the medical field.” And no, the patient donating the tissue doesn’t receive any financial reimbursement either.

The "Center for Medical Progress," the group behind this video, was clearly being intentionally dishonest in implying that Planned Parenthood was "selling body parts" in violation of federal law.  Planned Parenthood should sue them for everything they're worth, and should find out through the process of discovery who else was involved in this dishonest campaign.  If our legal system is even remotely adequate, this type of nonsense should be punishable to an extent that makes it clear that these dishonest tactics are not worth it.

Ann Wagner Thinks Komen Should Have Chosen Politics Over Women's Lives

Ann Wagner, Andrew Breitbart's chosen candidate in Missouri's Second District, was upset that the Komen Foundation decided to reverse its decision to cut off funding for Planned Parenthood's breast screening services, services that have saved thousands of women's lives:

I understand if people have religious reasons for being against abortion. But if you think abortion should be illegal, there are better ways of going about it than cutting off funding for breast screenings. This was just a sad partisan attack on Planned Parenthood that demonstrated a willingness to punish thousands of women whose interactions with the organization had nothing to do with the thing Republicans find objectionable.

Even Conservatives Shocked With Loesch's Latest Distortions About Planned Parenthood

Yesterday, I detailed how Loesch's attempt to smear Planned Parenthood failed miserably. Today, she's still defending the post while demonstrating absolutely no comprehension of the word "access." In fact, her defense is so sad that she has had to threaten to block conservatives who have a basic understanding of reality and are calmly refuting her points.

Loesch started out by attacking Eric Boehlert without, of course, actually addressing the issue:

@SarahWW is a conservative on Twitter, who in fact doesn't even support federal funding of Planned Parenthood:

However, as she pointed out, Loesch was clearly distorting the truth:



Loesch's response was to flail around and continue distorting the truth:

This claim is false, as was noted yesterday: Cecile Richards clearly said that Planned Parenthood offers access to mammograms, not that they provide mammograms, on the clip that Loesch is referring to. So even conservative @SarahWW had to ask Loesch why the folks at Big Journalism can't make honest arguments for their positions rather than relying on dishonesty:

And since Loesch was losing the argument, badly I might add, she of course had to threaten to block Sarah with the feeble excuse that Sarah was "flooding her timeline:"

As I've stated many times, the problem with the astroturf leadership of the tea party is not that they're extremely conservative; it's that they don't even allow honest conversations to take place. If they don't like Planned Parenthood, then make an honest argument and let people decide for themselves based on the facts: don't just make up nonsense and threaten to block everyone who points out that it's nonsense. Loesch is so afraid of honest debate that she'll even threaten to block people who are just as conservative as she is, but still care about making sure they get the facts right.

Loesch Tries to Smear Planned Parenthood, Fails Miserably

Note to Big Journalism: Fact-checking is much easier if you have basic linguistic competence.

Dana Loesch tweeted the following earlier today:

That tweet went to a mind-bogglingly dumb blog post at Big Journalism demanding a retraction from Media Matters latest debunking of a b.s. right-wing talking point. The wingnuts were claiming that the president of Planned Parenthood Cecile Richards was lying when she said that Planned Parenthood provided access to mammograms because they called a few Planned Parenthood clinics that said they couldn't do mammograms at the facilities. In response, Media Matters wrote this:

FACT: Planned Parenthood Provides Access To Mammograms By Referring Patients To Locations That Perform The Service

Planned Parenthood Website: "A Staff Member At Your Local Planned Parenthood Health Center Can Discuss Breast Cancer, Breast Exams, And Breast Health With You And Help You Find The Services You Need."

To which Big Journalism brilliantly responded:

Providing "access" to mammograms is not the same as giving them.

Well, this would sure be a witty point by Big Journalism if Cecil Richards had claimed that Planned Parenthood gives mammograms. But her actual quote was:

If this bill would ever become law, millions of women in this country are going to lose their health care access, not to abortion services...to basic family planning, mammograms..."

So her quote was that the provide access to mammograms, and they do provide access to mammograms, and Big Journalism's idiotic response is "but access to mammograms isn't the same a giving mammograms so she's lying." Truly astounding.

A Nice Quote For Andrew Breitbart, Dana Loesch, And Their Confused Followers

Jason Linkins at Huffington Post:

One thing that conservative agitprop activists have taught me about the world of prostitution rings and human trafficking is that the actual ringleaders of actual prostitution rings never walk into places like Planned Parenthood and willingly offer, "Hey, I run this prostitution ring of minors and undocumented immigrants, and I was wondering what services are available to me!" That is only something that people who are pretending to be the ringleaders of a pretend prostitution ring do. It's too bad that the opposite isn't true, because it would be much easier to run actual prostitution rings to ground.

But running an actual prostitution ring to ground isn't something these activists genuinely want to do. And, insofar as the FBI and the Department of Justice actually had to expend resources investigating a hoax, their efforts actually make the running-to-ground of actual prostitution rings much harder. But whatever! Like I said before, if you're visited by someone claiming to be the ringleader of a prostitution ring, call the authorities!

Can we just stop the charade? Seriously, the idea that ACORN and Planned Parenthood and (if you listen to Breitbart) every other group that supports progressive causes or God-help-us actually improves the lives of poor people are all secretly running sex slave operations reaches a level of absurdity inexpressible in natural language. It's an insult to the people who actually work tirelessly to end sex trafficking and worse, to the victims of that despicable practice. And news organizations that give a platform for hacks like Andrew Breitbart and Dana Loesch who peddle this garbage are willfully making the American public more stupid. Here's a form you can use to contact Anderson Cooper to tell him that having Dana Loesch and/or Andrew Breitbart on as guests damages the credibility of the program.

Also, here's the latest update on the situation from Media Matters: Lila Rose's Video Contradits Her Claim that Planned Parenthood is Corrupt.

h/t to Lee for the quote.

Dana Loesch and Billy Long Pimp Already-Debunked Pimp Smear Against Planned Parenthood

The site Big Journalism, with editor in chief Dana Loesch, today published a (yawn) "shocking" expose of highly edited tapes that they claim shows Planned Parenthood supporting sex trafficking. Loesch has been pushing the story from her site via Twitter:

The story is oh-so-juicy-and-exciting, except for the minor fact that it was already debunked over a week ago! Planned Parenthood was not "covering up for sex trafficking," considering that they reported the incident to law enforcement officials long ago! Media Matters had the scoop almost immediately, since this stunt could be seen from a mile away.

It was nothing more than a desperate attempt by the Breitbart network to regaining relevance after they have already been thoroughly discredited. Just one more reason why Anderson Cooper and any other self-respecting journalist should not give Dana Loesch a platform to spread her deliberate misinformation.

But that didn't stop Congressman Billy Long from retweeting this nonsense:

There is virtually NO HOPE of having meaningful political debate while conservatives allow this kind of garbage to fester in the Republican party.

Defending the Truth in St. Louis

Tomorrow marks the kick-off of 40 Days for Life, a sustained protest of Planned Parenthood. Protesting will take place 7 days a week, 12 hours a day for 40 days. The official website of 40 Days for Life describes its movement as 40 days of "prayer and fasting, peaceful vigil and community outreach." Planned Parenthood, which experienced similar protests this past spring, is concerned that protesters will harass patients and distribute false information.

Planned Parenthood of St. Louis provides a variety of services including birth control and emergency contraception; testing and treatment for sexually-transmitted diseases; counseling and testing for patients with HIV; screening for breast, cervical, testicular and prostate cancer; HPV vaccinations, colposcopy and cryotherapy (procedures that can help prevent cervical cancer); vasectomies; well-woman GYN exams; and yes, abortions and abortion counseling.

While the protesters focus on abortion alone, it's important to recognize that Planned Parenthood provides a wide variety of health services. Planned Parenthood is a resource available to all members of the community, but importantly, is overwhelmingly utilized by the poorest members of our community. And no wonder. If I need to pick up my birth control pills, I would much rather do so in the privacy of my local Walgreens rather than face down a line of angry protesters each month-even if it means I pay more for a drug than I would have had I gone to Planned Parenthood and paid according to their sliding-scale fee schedule. I have insurance, I can afford my prescription co-pay, I have that luxury. Not everyone does.

Obviously these protesters have a right to picket outside. But patients also have a right to receive medical care without fear of harassment. I drive past Planned Parenthood on Forest Park Parkway frequently, and the protesters are generally quiet and non-threatening. However, there have been times when angry people have been gathered outside the gates, shouting at anyone who dares walk inside. A polisci professor who volunteers as a clinic escort has told me stories of protesters videotaping cars driving in and out of the Planned Parenthood parking lot in order to look up license plate numbers and attempt to find home addresses. Given the still-recent murder of Dr. George Tiller, a late-term abortion provider in Wichita, these protests are understandably intimidating to patients and clinic employees alike.

Fortunately, Planned Parenthood of the St. Louis Region is fighting back. They've launched a Defend The Truth campaign, complete with a large banner on the side of their Central West End building. There's also a new blog, promising "regular updates on reproductive health news, useful resources and links, as well as personal stories of why our patients, staff, board members and community love Planned Parenthood."

If you'd like to support Planned Parenthood and the services it provides to our community, you may donate to their Defend the Truth campaign here. I think their donation page says it best:

"No woman, man, or teen should have to be harassed while accessing basic health care or going to work. Planned Parenthood of the St. Louis region is a critical safety net provider of preventative care in our community, serving more than 52,000 people each year."

If you think it's important for all members of our community to have access to quality medical care, and you think they should be able to receive that care with dignity and without fear of harassment, please donate what you can. Defend the truth.