Planned Parenthood’s ‘PR Disaster’
“This could destroy your organization and us if we don’t time those conversations correctly.”
The Center for Medical Progress’ “Human Capital” series continues, with the 10th video overall in the undercover work exposing Planned Parenthood’s heinous baby-parts trafficking efforts, and this one has big picture implications. According to CMP, “The video highlights conversations with Dr. Carolyn Westhoff, Senior Medical Advisor for PPFA; Dr. Vanessa Cullins, Vice President for External Medical Affairs for PPFA; and Deborah VanDerhei, National Director for the Consortium of Abortion Providers (CAPS) at PPFA.” VanDerhei talks about “donation for remuneration” as a reference to purchasing baby tissue, which CMP notes “carries the connotation of financial reward or benefit without regard for actual expenses.” VanDerhei explains, “I have been talking to the executive director of the National Abortion Federation, [and] we’re trying to figure this out as an industry — about how we’re going to manage remuneration — because the headlines would be a disaster.” She’s not worried about a moral or ethical disaster, she just doesn’t want a public relations headache.
VanDerhei also says, “[W]e have independent colleagues who generate a fair amount of income doing this,” which is why they don’t want a paper trail via email. “It’s an issue that you might imagine we’re not really that comfortable talking about on email.”
Indeed, that’s also why Dr. Deborah Nucatola, in footage that appears to come from the first CMP video, says, “There are no guidelines” on tissue procurement. “And there will never be guidelines.” She goes on to say, “Folks will ask the national office questions, and we certainly have answers to those questions, but we don’t have a policy per se, and that is by choice.” The choice is to create distance between the national office and any affiliates who traffic baby parts. Plausible deniability in the event of a “PR disaster.”
CMP reports, “Vanessa Cullins, the Vice President of External Medical Affairs, seems fully aware of the criminal exposure that fetal body parts sales present to Planned Parenthood: ‘This is important. This could destroy your organization and us, if we don’t time those conversations correctly,’ she tells a prospective buyer.”
The big picture from this video is that even these doctors and officials know that many people are going to have major problems with what they’re doing, and that they’re at best skirting the law. But rather than make the case publicly that carving up aborted babies for research material is good practice, they hide their deeds, refuse to make official policy and speak in euphemisms, and then they blame CMP for “heavily editing” the videos. Those are all good indications something is very wrong.