Bishop voted to create committee that is 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. Mike Bishop voted in favor of creating the committee last October, despite the fact that multiple investigations cleared Planned Parenthood of any wrongdoing pertaining to the misleading videos created by anti-choice activists who have since been indicted.
The Republican Select Committee’s brazen efforts to villainize Planned Parenthood, which provides live-saving health services to 68,196 Michigan women and their families, are a retread of the repeated, politically-motivated attacks on the organization that are the hallmark of Bishop’s House Republican conference. The Republican-led committee Mike Bishop 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 Mike Bishop’s agenda.
“Mike Bishop’s vote for the House Republicans’ Select Committee makes him responsible for its attacks on women’s health and going after cancer researchers,” said Sacha Haworth of the DCCC. “Families in Michigan’s 8th District deserve a Member of Congress who will do everything they can to protect women’s health. Instead, Bishop has given his Republican colleagues carte blanche to intimidate cancer researchers in the name of attacking Planned Parenthood.”
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Washington Post Editorial Slammed House Republicans For “Witch Hunt” Of Planned Parenthood That Would Waste Money And Potentially Damage Health Care & Medical Research. “Twelve states that undertook investigations of Planned Parenthood found no wrongdoing. An additional eight states refused even to investigate, citing lack of credible evidence. A grand jury in Texas and a federal judge in California exonerated the organization after each conducted extensive reviews. Three congressional committees failed to turn up any improprieties. In short, the hidden-camera videos purporting to show illegal selling of fetal tissue show no such thing. Despite all that, a Republican-led House panel is undeterred in conducting its own investigation, or, more accurately, witch hunt. Even more troubling than the considerable time and money that will be wasted is the potential damage to health care and medical research.” [Editorial, Washington Post, 2/20/16]
Washington Post Editorial Slammed House Republican Panel For Targeting Doctors, Medical Students & Researchers In Subpoenas. “The coyly named Select Investigative Panel on Infant Lives has made sweeping requests (including three subpoenas) for documents and information from more than 30 agencies and organizations that provide abortions or are involved in fetal tissue research. Of particular concern is the panel’s demand for the names of doctors, medical students and researchers involved in performing abortions or conducting research with fetal tissue. Democrats on the panel decried the creation of such a database, which — without rules to protect it from public disclosure — risks individual privacy and safety without legitimate reason. How is the name of a graduate student who five years ago was an intern at a lab relevant to anything?” [Editorial, Washington Post, 2/20/16]
USA Today: “$300,000 allocated to House panel investigating abortion providers.” [USA Today, 11/24/15]