Stefanik voted to create committee intimidating scientists and medical researchers
Today, House Republicans’ “witch hunt” against women’s health access continues, with their wasteful Select Committee holding its second hearing of the year this afternoon.
Vulnerable Congresswoman Elise Stefanik voted in favor of creating the committee last October, despite the fact that multiple investigations Stefanik voted to create committee intimidating scientists and medical researcherscleared Planned Parenthood of any wrongdoing pertaining to the misleading videos created by anti-choice activists who have since been indicted.
Stefanik has voted to defund Planned Parenthood five times, a critical resource that has provided vital health care to more than 11,000 patients and conducted over 6,000 breast exams in the North Country alone, according to a 2013 annual report.
The Republican Select Committee’s efforts to villainize Planned Parenthood are a retread of the repeated, politically-motivated attacks on the organization that are the hallmark of Stefanik’s House Republican conference. The Republican-led committee Stefanik voted to create is abusing its power to pursue their anti-women’s health agenda, and it’s wasting hundreds of thousands in taxpayer dollars.
And as evidenced by today’s hearing, Republicans are now using the committee to intimidate doctors and medical researchers.
Republicans have now issued subpoenas for the names of medical researchers trying to cure cancer, Alzheimer’s, and other diseases in their continued effort to ruin Planned Parenthood and take away its funding, which means women’s health suffers for Elise Stefanik’s agenda.
“Congresswoman Elise Stefanik’s vote for the House Republicans’ Select Committee makes her responsible for its attacks on women’s health and going after cancer researchers,” said Bryan Lesswing at the DCCC. “North Country families deserve a leader who will do everything they can to protect women’s health. Instead, Stefanik has given her Republican colleagues carte blanche to intimidate cancer researchers in the name of attacking Planned Parenthood.”
Background
Since Entering Congress Elise Stefanik Has Voted Five Times To Defund Planned Parenthood. [Vote #504, 9/18/15; Vote #505, 9/18/15; Vote #527, 9/30/15; Vote #568, 10/23/15; Vote #6, 1/6/16]