Franklin Graham, the president and CEO of the humanitarian aid mission, Samaritan’s Purse, and one of the world’s best-known Christian leaders, slammed an upcoming Planned Parenthood fundraiser that’s going to be keynoted by former president George W. Bush’s daughter, Barbara, saying raising money for the abortion provider is akin to raising money for the Nazis during World War Two.
In a Facebook post, Graham wrote: “Planned Parenthood is the #1 abortion provider in the United States. Raising funds for this organization is like raising money to fund a Nazi death camp—like Auschwitz, except for innocent babies in their mother’s wombs! Reports say they perform over 300,000 abortions per year. And this is the organization whose employees were caught on video trying to sell baby body parts over wine. Disgusting.”
His words were posted above a link to a story that highlighted how Bush’s daughter Barbara is set to deliver a speech at the Planned Parenthood fundraiser – and not just any speech, but the keynote address.
Barbara Pierce Bush is the co-founder and CEO of Global Health Corps, an organization that has in the past given high marks to Planned Parenthood. And while traveling to Fort Worth this week, Bush will stop in for Planned Parenthood’s annual fundraising lunch and deliver the main speech of the day.
As the Washington Examiner noted, the main reason for her speech is to use it to raise money for the group.
President Bush, upon leaving office, touted a high rating from Planned Parenthood for support.
As New York Magazine noted, former first lady Barbara Bush is pro-choice, and daughter Barbara has spoke out in favor of the group on several past occasions.
The organization’s meeting in Texas can be seen as a political statement. The Lone Star state, run by Republicans, has been pressing to completely defund Planned Parenthood. Lawmakers in the state who tried to strip Medicaid funding from the organization were just stopped last week, after District Judge Sam Sparks ordered a preliminary injunction to the law.
State lawmakers are now in the midst of appealing the decision.
But their attempts are likely to fall flat. After legislators passed restrictions on health clinics that led to the closure of 82 Planned Parenthood facilities in the state, the number of pregnancy-related deaths doubled, New York Magazine reported.
Though the deaths can’t be directly tied to the clinics’ closings, the statistics certainly hand Planned Parenthood a new public relations message to fight further legislative crackdowns on its operations.
