Republican state senator Alberta Darling used to serve on the board of Planned Parenthood. However, this year she wrote legislation to defund the organization, thus denying health care to
at least 12,000 women in Wisconsin.
Now, not content with merely denying women health care, she is lying about why and when she left Planned Parenthood. Here is her official story:
"I belonged to the Planned Parenthood board when I was a very young woman, before I entered public office," said Darling, a Republican who is facing Democrat Sandy Pasch in Tuesday's 8th Senate District recall election. "I joined that board because I was working on family planning and wanting children to be wanted, and I was working on teen pregnancy prevention.
"Then when Planned Parenthood – this was like 25, 30 years ago – when Planned Parenthood shifted its focus to abortion, I said, 'I can't be on this board, that's not why i joined,' and I got off. That was before I was in elected office," she said. "That was before I was a state rep."
Bullshit. From the same story:
Despite Sen. Alberta Darling's claim that she left the board of directors at Planned Parenthood of Wisconsin before she was elected to the State Assembly in 1990, a review of the organization's records shows she spent five years on the board after being elected.
And while Darling says she left the group when its focus "shifted" to abortion, Planned Parenthood actually began offering abortion services while she still was on the group's board.
What motivation could Alberta Darling have to lie about her time on the Planned Parenthood board? Could it be to appease her new right-wing base before an election? Could it be to appear like less of a craven opportunist who chucks long-held views in order to help her career?
Whatever the reason, she's not talking:
Darling's campaign spokesperson did not return calls seeking comment on this story Thursday.
Oh you silly reporters, trying to get a comment from Darling on why she lied. Don't you know that Darling only listens to people in even numbered years, and this is 2011?