Sen. Mark Kirk (R-IL)
Senate Republicans aren't as confident about defunding Planned Parenthood as the
bluster from some quarters suggests. While Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell is making encouraging noises about using its legal fetal tissue donation practices as an excuse to attack Planned Parenthood, the menu of options
points to a tinge of uncertainty:
The Senate will vote next week on a GOP bill that could eliminate the $540 million in government funding the group receives, according to Republican aides. Also under consideration is a narrower provision that would put in place a moratorium on funding for the group until a congressional investigation is completed into alleged sales of fetal tissue from abortions.
Seeking to thwart Democratic criticism that such a move would undermine women’s health, GOP leaders may move to reprogram Planned Parenthood funds to other women’s programs.
It's almost like they retain some shred of awareness that cutting women's health funding over some heavily edited videos describing legal practices would be a bad move for 2016, as much as the Republican base might like it. Meanwhile, some Republicans who are up for re-election don't want to talk about it:
Sen. Lisa Murkowski (R-Alaska) was noncommittal when asked about whether she would vote to defund Planned Parenthood. Sen. Mark Kirk (R-Illinois) also begged off when pressed about where he stands on the matter. “I’ve got to go,” Kirk said as he got onto an elevator in the Capitol.
But it's Mark Kirk's re-election vs. the presidential ambitions of the likes of Rand Paul and Ted Cruz. So Kirk isn't likely to be able to keep ducking the question for long, not with
some attack on Planned Parenthood, whatever the specifics, coming up in the Senate.