Hillary Clinton goes on the attack against Jeb Bush and Scott Walker
REUTERS/Shannon Stapleton
The Democratic presidential front-runner's campaign released a video on Monday that blasted three of her potential Republican foes on women's rights: former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush (R), Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker (R), and former Texas Gov. Rick Perry (R).
And unlike last week, when Clinton's attacks against Bush were more subtle, she went after all three of them by name.
"Republicans like Scott Walker and Jeb Bush are calling to defund Planned Parenthood, the country's leading provider of reproductive healthcare," Clinton says in the video. "If this feels like a full-on assault on women's health, that's because it is."
Planned Parenthood has been at the center of the national spotlight since last month, when the conservative group Center for Medical Progress started releasing a series of undercover videos purportedly showing representatives from the women's healthcare provider discussing the sale of fetal tissue. Last week, Clinton labeled the videos "disturbing" but maintained that Planned Parenthood provides important healthcare services.
Cecile Richards, president of Planned Parenthood Federation of America, apologized last month for the unconcerned tone of an official featured in one of the videos. However, the nonprofit organization fiercely denies conservatives' allegations that Planned Parenthood profits from selling fetal body parts.
In response to the videos, a wide swath of Republicans have called on Congress through upcoming budget negotiations to cease giving taxpayer dollars to Planned Parenthood, which by law cannot use federal money for abortions.
Though other White House hopefuls, including Sen. Rand Paul (R-Kentucky), have backed the push to defund Planned Parenthood in Congress, Clinton only targeted Walker, Bush, and Perry in her video.
"They're talking about cutting people off from the healthcare provider they know and trust. Unfortunately, these attacks aren't new," Clinton said. "Gov. Walker defunded Planned Parenthood and left women across the state stranded with nowhere else to turn. We've seen them in Florida, where Jeb Bush funneled millions of taxpayer dollars into abstinence-only programs while gutting funds for crucial family-planning programs. And we've seen them in Texas, where Gov. Perry drastically cut funding for breast and cervical cancer screenings."
Clinton concluded by presenting herself as a fighter on the issue.
"When they attack women's health, they attack America's health. And it's wrong. And we're not going to let them get away with it. We're not going back. We're going to fight back," she said. "I'm proud to stand with Planned Parenthood."
Watch below:
Perry released the following statement in response:
Secretary Clinton should explain to the American people why she supports an organization that rips apart and sells the body parts of aborted babies. I am proud to have defunded Planned Parenthood in Texas, and support Congressional efforts to defund them at the federal level. I have also called for the revocation of Planned Parenthood's federal non-profit status. My policies in Texas have proven that you can protect women's health while also protecting human life.
Updated (3:59 p.m.): With Perry's statement.
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