In the run-up to tonight’s budget agreement that will keep the federal government from shutting down, the last remaining point of contention was about federal funding for Planned Parenthood.
Sen. Jon Kyl (R-AZ), Republican Whip, opposed the funding because, he said, Planned Parenthood’s main business is abortions:
“Everybody goes to clinics, to hospitals, to doctors, and so on. Some people go to Planned Parenthood. But you don’t have to go to Planned Parenthood to get your cholesterol or your blood pressure checked. If you want an abortion, you go to Planned Parenthood, and that’s well over 90 percent of what Planned Parenthood does.”
When a PP spokesperson responded that only three per cent of its services are abortions, Sen. Kyl’s office backtracked…sort of. Here’s the entire statement:
“His remark was not intended to be a factual statement, but rather to illustrate that Planned Parenthood, a organization that receives millions of dollars in taxpayer funding, does subsidize abortions.”
We can’t say that Sen. Kyl lied, because a lie is a deliberately false statement made with intent to deceive. Sen. Kyl only meant to “illustrate.” So whether or not he’s a liar, best not to assume anything he says is true.
Ethics Bob 