Some 135 members of the House of Representatives today sent a formal request to United States Attorney General Loretta Lynch demanding the Department of Justice (DOJ) immediately investigate the practices of Planned Parenthood regarding the sale of aborted baby body parts following the release of two graphic videos.
Representative Marsha Blackburn (R-TN) was joined by 134 of her colleagues today in sending the letter. Blackburn serves as Vice Chair of the House Energy and Commerce Committee, which launched an investigation into the “abhorrent” videos earlier this month.
“The harvesting of human fetal body parts for sale is an activity, which shocks the conscience. Moreover, the tragic ethical considerations, potential for criminal violations, and involvement of taxpayer subsidies raise issues of great public importance,” Blackburn and her colleagues wrote in the letter to DOJ.
The letter points out that 42 U.S.C. §289g-2 notes that “it shall be unlawful for any person to knowingly acquire, receive, or otherwise transfer any human fetal tissue for valuable consideration if the transfer affects interstate commerce.” Violators may be “imprisoned for not more than 10 years.”
However, the law is weak and was written by abortion advocates in such a way as to purposefully authorize the sale of aborted baby body parts provided very limited and minimal conditions are met.
The full text of the letter follows:
Dear Madam Attorney General:
The release of two graphic online videos that show Planned Parenthood Federation of America, Inc. (PPFA) leadership in conversation with individuals interested in purchasing fetal body parts is deeply disturbing.
42 U.S.C. §289g-2 notes that “it shall be unlawful for any person to knowingly acquire, receive, or otherwise transfer any human fetal tissue for valuableconsideration if the transfer affects interstate commerce.” Violators may be “imprisoned for not more than 10 years.”
According to their website, PPFA is a tax-exempt corporation under Internal Revenue Code section 501(c)(3) and had a net revenue of $1.21 billion in fiscal year 2013. A large portion – 45% – of that revenue – $540.6 million was provided by U.S. taxpayers.
The harvesting of human fetal body parts for sale is an activity which shocks the conscience. Moreover, the tragic ethical considerations, potential for criminal violations, and involvement of taxpayer subsidies raise issues of great public importance.
As a result, we request the Department of Justice to conduct an immediate and thorough investigation into the practices of PPFA regarding the sale of fetal body parts.
In the wake of the two shocking videos showing top Planned Parenthood doctors arranging the sale of body parts form aborted babies, the Senate will vote soon on legislation that would de-fund the Planned Parenthood abortion business. A total of 9 states have already launched an investigation including Massachusetts, Kansas, Missouri, Arizona, Indiana, Ohio, Georgia, Texas and Louisiana and members of Congress have launched an investigation as well.
SIGN THE PETITION! Congress Must De-Fund Planned Parenthood Immediately
As LifeNews reported, new undercover footage shows Planned Parenthood Federation of America’s Senior Director of Medical Services, Dr. Deborah Nucatola, describing how Planned Parenthood sells the body parts of aborted unborn children and admitting she uses partial-birth abortions to supply intact body parts.
In the second video, Planned Parenthood doctor Gatter discusses the pricing of aborted baby body parts — telling the biotech company officials that the prices for such things as a baby’s liver, head or heart are negotiable. She also tells the officials that she could talk with the Planned Parenthood abortion practitioners to potentially alter the abortion procedure to kill the baby in a way that would best preserve those body parts after the unborn child is killed in the abortion.
The Obama administration is connected to at least one of the Planned Parenthood doctors in the video. Nucatola is an Obama administration adviser and she also serves on the board of a pro-abortion sex ed group founded by a former Obama administration official and whose board includes current Obama administration staff.
Reacting to the video, President Barack Obama’s top spokesman Josh Earnest indicated Obama will definitely not agree with pro-life Republicans in Congress to revoke funding for the Planned Parenthood abortion business.
In the first video, planned Parenthood doctor Deborah Nucatola is at a business lunch with actors posing as buyers from a human biologics company. As head of PPFA’s Medical Services department, Nucatola has overseen medical practice at all Planned Parenthood locations since 2009. She also trains new Planned Parenthood abortion doctors and performs abortions herself at Planned Parenthood Los Angeles up to 24 weeks.
Nucatola admits that Planned Parenthood charges per-specimen for baby body parts, uses pseudo-partial-birth abortion procedures in order to get salable parts, and is aware of their own liability for doing so and takes steps to cover it up.
SIGN THE PETITION! Congress Must De-Fund Planned Parenthood Immediately
Nucatola also admits that Planned Parenthood charges per-specimen for baby body parts, uses illegal partial-birth abortion procedures in order to get salable parts, and is aware of their own liability for doing so and takes steps to cover it up.
The footage shockingly depicts the top medical official at the Planned Parenthood corporation munching on her salad while she discusses the sale of body parts of unborn children victimized by abortions. She brazenly describes how the heads of unborn babies killed in abortions command top dollar.
The buyers ask Nucatola, “How much of a difference can that actually make, if you know kind of what’s expected, or what we need?”
“It makes a huge difference,” Nucatola replies. “I’d say a lot of people want liver. And for that reason, most providers will do this case under ultrasound guidance, so they’ll know where they’re putting their forceps. The kind of rate-limiting step of the procedure is calvarium. Calvarium—the head—is basically the biggest part.”
Nucatola explains, “We’ve been very good at getting heart, lung, liver, because we know that, so I’m not gonna crush that part, I’m gonna basically crush below, I’m gonna crush above, and I’m gonna see if I can get it all intact.”
“And with the calvarium, in general, some people will actually try to change the presentation so that it’s not vertex,” she continues. “So if you do it starting from the breech presentation, there’s dilation that happens as the case goes on, and often, the last step, you can evacuate an intact calvarium at the end.”
In a video response to the heavy criticism, Planned Parenthood CEO Cecile Richards apologizes for the tone the Nucatola took but not for selling the body parts of aborted babies.
Dr. Nucatola said, “You’re just kind of cognizant of where you put your graspers, you try to intentionally go above and below the thorax, so that, you know, we’ve been very good at getting heart, lung, liver, because we know that, so I’m not gonna crush that part, I’m going to basically crush below, I’m gonna crush above, and I’m gonna see if I can get it all intact.”
The abortionist also explains that Planned Parenthood charges per-specimen for baby body parts and is aware of their own liability for doing so. When asked about a price, she said, “I would say it’s probably anywhere from $30 to $100, depending on the facility and what’s involved.” Unbelievably, she admits that some body parts, such as livers and heads, are much more popular and go for a higher price than other specimen.
