Moderate Republicans will likely be anti-abortion advocates’ biggest hurdle in their mission to ban federal funding from Planned Parenthood in a reconciliation package — and some are already voicing their opposition.
Defunding Planned Parenthood was brought up briefly in a Tuesday evening closed-door meeting between Speaker Mike Johnson, House Majority Leader Steve Scalise and some moderate Republicans, where they were discussing potential Medicaid cuts, according to two sources familiar with the matter.
One of the sources said that Reps. Mike Lawler, Brian Fitzpatrick and Jen Kiggans were among the moderate Republicans who made it clear to House GOP leadership that they oppose adding a measure to cut federal funding to Planned Parenthood to a reconciliation bill.
When NOTUS asked whether defunding Planned Parenthood and other abortion providers was discussed in the meeting, Johnson demurred, saying while leaving his office that it “was not on our agenda.” Other Republicans were also cautious leaving the meeting when asked on the topic.
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“That was sort of a closed-door discussion, I’m not going to go into that now,” Rep. Jeff Van Drew told reporters.
There is real concern among some Republicans that leadership will still add defunding Planned Parenthood language to the reconciliation bill even after Tuesday’s discussion, the other source told NOTUS.
At the annual gala of the anti-abortion group Susan B. Anthony Pro-Life America last week, Johnson pledged that the reconciliation bill “is going to redirect funds away from ‘big abortion.’” But with a razor-thin majority in the House — and factions already fighting over major provisions like Medicaid, food assistance, and taxes — Johnson risks alienating even more moderate members if he ultimately includes a provision to defund Planned Parenthood.
“We need simplicity in this bill,” Fitzpatrick said of the reconciliation bill before the closed-door meeting, where he said he was planning to bring the issue up.
“I think there’s other policy areas that we need to focus on,” he continued.
Following publication of this story, a spokesperson for Kiggans said the congresswoman’s position was taken “out of context.”
“Congresswoman Kiggans is proudly pro-life and firmly opposes any federal funding for abortion, " the spokesperson said in a statement. “She attended a closed-door policy discussion with House leadership and Republican colleagues focused on Medicaid reform within the broader reconciliation process. The Congresswoman supports thoughtful, targeted Medicaid reforms that strengthen the program, preserve its integrity, and ensure it serves those who it was originally intended to help.”
Republican members of the House Energy and Commerce Committee are scrambling to find $880 billion in cuts, a near-impossible task without making deep cuts to social benefits. The move to defund Planned Parenthood — including whether to bar Medicaid reimbursements from being available to organizations that provide abortion — has been floated in several private meetings, as NOTUS previously reported. However, it’s unclear if doing so will actually save money.
Anti-abortion leaders say that defunding Planned Parenthood is less politically risky for Republicans than supporting a national abortion restriction, but for some moderates — especially those from blue states with more abortion access — that’s likely not the case.
Lawler told NOTUS on Tuesday morning that he has yet to see specific language on the matter, but added that “fundamentally, obviously, from the standpoint of providing health care to women, you know, I’m not for taking away people’s health care.”
“Obviously, Planned Parenthood does provide a lot of services outside of abortion-related services, and so, you know, I’d have to see what they’re proposing,” Lawler said.
Polling on the issue of federal funds for abortion providers, including Planned Parenthood, is divided — and part of the answer depends on how a survey question is written.
A January Marist poll, commissioned by the anti-abortion group Knights of Columbus, found that 57% of respondents oppose “using tax dollars to pay for abortion.” (Under the Hyde Amendment, it is already illegal to use federal funds directly for abortion.)
On the other hand, a January survey by the nonpartisan research firm PerryUndem found that 73% of respondents oppose Congress taking away “funds from Planned Parenthood for providing birth control, wellness exams, and cancer screening.”
Some moderates don’t care if defunding Planned Parenthood winds up in reconciliation — and won’t push back if it does.
Rep. Don Bacon, who during last year’s midterms tried to distance himself from his past support for a measure that would ban abortion nationwide, told NOTUS that he’s “not opposed to it.”
“I know some other people are,” Bacon added. “ A lot of people in my district don’t like money going to organizations that do abortion — taxpayer money. So, I just, so I won’t push back on that.”
This story has been updated with a comment from Kiggans’ office.
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Oriana González and Reese Gorman are reporters at NOTUS.
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