The Planned Parenthood issue has certainly been in the press lately, and I think it’s worth touching on regardless of where one may stand on the issue of abortion.

The Planned Parenthood issue has certainly been in the press lately, and I think it’s worth touching on regardless of where one may stand on the issue of abortion. At the foundational level, this issue is about the increasing ways in which the sanctity of our country being “a nation of laws” is under siege.

Since 1993, the United States Code of laws has said, “It shall be unlawful for any person to knowingly acquire, receive, or otherwise transfer any human fetal tissue for valuable consideration.” This law has served our country well because one of the measures of any civilized society is how it treats life in all its forms. Yet, we now have video that exposes conversation on actions being taken by some within Planned Parenthood that is outside the bounds of the law. The degree to which there will be judicial consequence will be telling on both the measure of our humanity as a civilization and on our adherence to the law. Thomas Jefferson elaborated on this idea when he said, “the care of human life and happiness, and not their destruction, is the first and only object of good government.”

Something needs to be done, and accordingly the House Energy and Commerce Committee and the House Judiciary Committee have started investigations to see if any laws have been broken. To me, it seems evident the law has been broken, but we will see what their investigations unearth. The Senate will likely vote next week on a bill that would eliminate Planned Parenthood’s federal funding, but oddly its prospects of passage are weak. I joined this week with Rep. Diane Black and 162 cosponsors in the House on H.R. 3134, the Defund Planned Parenthood Act of 2015. This legislation would halt federal funding of Planned Parenthood for one year, giving Congress time to conduct a full investigation and review. I have also signed onto a letter written by my colleagues, Congressman Jim Jordan andCongressman Ron DeSantis, calling for the Attorney General to appoint a Special Counsel to investigate the organization for any potential criminal actions. Given some of Valarie Jarret’s past stands regarding judicial action, it seems unlikely that an impartial investigation could be conducted there, and so we think an independent Special Counsel is the only way in which this can be objectively reviewed.

I’ll keep you posted, as there is certainly more to come on this issue. In the meantime, happy Friday afternoon.