Pelosi Challenger Rep. Tim Ryan Threatens ‘Youngstown Street Fight’ If Planned Parenthood Defunded

The Ohio Democrat who is challenging Rep. Nancy Pelosi’s House minority leadership seat is threatening a “Youngstown street fight” if Planned Parenthood is defunded and President-elect Donald Trump follows through with other campaign promises that run counter to the progressive agenda.

On CNN’s State of the Union Sunday, Rep. Tim Ryan discussed how Democrats will deal with the incoming Trump administration.

“If he tries to defund Planned Parenthood, if he tries to kick people off their health insurance, if he tries to privatize Medicare and cut taxes for the wealthy, we are going to have a ‘Youngstown street fight’ in the Capitol,” the congressman said.

Ryan, whose district includes Youngstown, Ohio, said Democrats in the House need a leader who will take the party in a different direction.

“I know in my heart we cannot win the House back under current leadership,” he said. “We’ve got to move in another direction.”

Despite Ryan’s shout-out of support for Planned Parenthood, the abortion business’ president and CEO Cecile Richards tweeted her support for Pelosi:

Thanks @NancyPelosi for helping 55mill folks access no-copay birth control – Need your leadership to protect that progress! #ThxBirthControl https://t.co/IZwJJFEsgs

— Cecile Richards (@CecileRichards) November 18, 2016

Planned Parenthood may actually be able to remain open without taxpayer funding. Since the election of Trump and Vice President-elect Mike Pence – which Planned Parenthood fought with some $30 million – the chain that touts its offerings of birth control, abortion, and transgender hormone treatments has raked in private contributions from some 20,000 people who have donated in pro-life Pence’s name, reports Reuters. Pence reportedly is receiving official acknowledgments of his “gifts” to Planned Parenthood, the group said.

In addition to the donations falsely made in Pence’s name, an additional 140,000 people have donated money to Planned Parenthood, including celebrities such as Amy Schumer, Ashley Hinshaw, Katy Perry and Amber Tamblyn. Though the organization stated in its most recent annual report that about 40 percent of its funding is from taxpayers, the surge in private donations could help it remain afloat if Trump follows through on his promise to defund it.

“This is exactly how Planned Parenthood should be funded – through private sources, not by taxpayer dollars,” Rep. Diane Black (R-TN), who has recently authored legislation to defund the abortion business, tells Breitbart News. “Those who have donated to Planned Parenthood in the wake of this election cycle may be trying to spite pro-lifers like Vice-President Elect Pence and myself, but instead they are proving our point: that Planned Parenthood doesn’t need another dime of federal funding to get by.”

Black is serving as co-chair of Trump’s pro-life coalition.

“While we long for the day when Planned Parenthood shuts its doors for good, we must at least prevent taxpayers from being forced participants in their depravity,” Black continued. “The unified Republican government can do that by passing my bill to defund Planned Parenthood without delay upon its reintroduction in the new Congress.”

Black says she has faith in the Trump-Pence team when it comes to the dignity of human life.

“As a national co-chair of President-Elect Trump’s pro-life coalition and as someone who labored alongside Vice President-Elect Pence in every major pro-life battle while we served together in Congress, I know that we can count on them to help us in this effort,” she said.

Dr. Grazie Pozo Christie, policy advisor with The Catholic Association, says Planned Parenthood has consistently deceived American taxpayers.

“America’s healthcare funding should go to authentic, caring providers and not de facto abortion referral services,” she explains in a statement:

Planned Parenthood has repeatedly misled the American people about their operations. Last year, 323,999 unborn lives were lost at Planned Parenthoods across the nation – still they received more than half a billion in American tax dollars. And despite the fact that Planned Parenthood invested $30 million this election toward advancing their pro-abortion agenda and electing Hillary Clinton, the American people have had the last word. Congress should respond quickly to the millions of Americans who expressed by their votes the desire to defund the nation’s largest abortion provider.

Jeanne Mancini, president of the March for Life, says that she hopes the move to defund Planned Parenthood will encourage the organization to stop performing abortions. 

“Planned Parenthood has an annual budget of over a billion dollars with roughly 42% of support coming from taxpayer dollars through government funding,” she explains to Breitbart News. “Included in the president-elect’s four pro-life campaign promises is defunding Planned Parenthood if they continue to do abortions. Planned Parenthood has claimed that abortion is only 3% of their services.”

“My hope is that Planned Parenthood will realize that abortion isn’t empowering or good for women, get out of abortion business, and join the national pro-life consensus,” Mancini said.