Bentley terminates Alabama’s Medicaid contract with Planned Parenthood

MONTGOMERY, Ala. — Alabama Governor Robert Bentley (R) Thursday terminated the state’s Medicaid contract with Planned Parenthood after the legitimacy of using any taxpayer dollars to fund the abortion provider was once again called into question following the release of several videos describing its harvest and sale of aborted baby organs and body parts.

“The deplorable practices at Planned Parenthood have been exposed to Americans, and I have decided to stop any association with the organization in Alabama,” said Governor Bentley. “As a doctor and Alabama’s Governor, the issue of human life, from conception to birth and beyond, is extremely important to me. I respect human life, and I do not want Alabama to be associated with an organization that does not.”

Yellowhammer has obtained a copy of the letter sent to Planned Parenthood CEO Staci Fox Thursday afternoon.

Planned Parenthood currently receives more than $500 million annually in federal funding, mostly through Medicaid reimbursements.

It is through the mechanism of Medicaid—whose funding is controlled through the states—that some red state governors, now including Governor Bentley, have begun their own efforts to defund abortion providers.

Louisiana Governor Bobby Jindal, who is also a 2016 presidential hopeful, announced Monday his state was terminating their contract with Planned Parenthood’s clinics.

Eight other states besides Alabama ban all state family planning money from going to clinics which provide abortions, including Arizona, Arkansas, Colorado, Indiana, Louisiana, Ohio, Texas, and Wisconsin.

Today a committee in the Alabama Senate voted to advance legislation making it a Class B felony to offer or accept money for aborted babies or parts of aborted babies.

“The nation is shocked by videos depicting Planned Parenthood employees callously discussing the dismemberment of babies and the sale of baby body parts for profit. This is like a story out of Nazi Germany,” said Sen. Bill Hightower (R-Mobile) during the committee hearing. “The federal authorities may allow this type of thing, but Alabama won’t – and upon final passage, Alabama will have a law that reflects Alabama’s values.”

Via: Yellowhammer

Continue Reading....

Alabama Governor Quietly Orders Removal of Confederate Flag from Capitol

Less than 24 hours after a flag company in Huntsville, Alabama said it would keep selling the much-debated Confederate flag, Gov. Robert Bentley ordered it be removed from the state Capitol grounds.

According to AL.com, two workers exited the Capitol building at 8:20 a.m. on Wednesday morning and removed the flag from the nearby Confederate memorial.

Not too long after that, Bentley himself departed the grounds for another meeting. When asked whether or not he’d ordered the flag to be taken down, the governor said yes. He then explained his reasoning:

Partially this is about [the church shootings in Charleston]. This is the right thing to do. We are facing some major issues in this state regarding the budget and other matters that we need to deal with. This had the potential to become a major distraction as we go forward. I have taxes to raise, we have work to do. And it was my decision that the flag needed to come down.

Bentley quickly noted that he and his staff had checked the law to determine whether or not any legal impediments barred him from simply ordering that the flag be taken down. None did, so he gave the order — not just for the lone Confederate flag at the memorial, but as reporters later witnessed, for the rest of the flags on display.

Wait, so the governor of a southern state just up and removed the Confederate flag from the Capitol grounds? Just like that? And to make matters worse, he’s currently in the process of raising taxes? He’s affiliated with the GOP, but methinks the taxes may be his undoing.

Via: Mediaite.com

Continue Reading....