Donald Trump Is Planned Parenthood’s Favorite Republican

By: American Decency Staff

Planned Parenthood gained an unlikely new booster on Tuesday morning:Republican frontrunner Donald Trump.

The billionaire told Chris Cuomo on CNN’s New Day that he opposes federal funding going to Planned Parenthood to pay for abortions, but that he’s okay with tax dollars going to the group to pay for other services that it provides.

“The problem that I have with Planned Parenthood is the abortion situation. It is like an abortion factory, frankly,” Trump began. “And you can’t have it. And you just shouldn’t be funding it. That should not be funded by the government, and I feel strongly about that.”

Then Cuomo asked Trump if he could support funding for other Planned Parenthood efforts, such as providing contraception to women.

“What I would do when the time came, I’d look at the individual things they do, and maybe some of the individual things they do are good,” Trump continued, with characteristic eloquence. “I know a lot of the things are bad. But certainly the abortion aspect of it should not be funded by government, absolutely.”

And he went on: “I would look at the good aspects of [Planned Parenthood], and I would also look, because I’m sure they do some things properly and good and that are good for women, and I would look at that, and I would look at other aspects also. But we have to take care of women.”

So here’s the thing: As NPR detailed last week, federal law prevents the use of taxpayer dollars to pay for abortions in virtually all cases.

Planned Parenthood gets federal money through the Title X family planning program—none of those funds can be used to pay for abortions—and through Medicaid, which can cover the cost of abortions only “in very restricted cases.”

So, in short, Trump defended the status quo: half a billion dollars of taxpayer cash for the group.

Planned Parenthood applauded Trump’s remarks.

“Donald Trump seems to have realized that banning all abortions, shutting down the government, and defunding Planned Parenthood are extreme positions that are way too far outside the mainstream for even him to take,” said spokesman Eric Ferrero in a statement.

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