All the Ways the New 'Planned Parenthood Sting' Tape Is Bullshit

The CMP video shows a quick, out of context clip from the March 2 hearing of the Select Panel on Infant Lives—a Republican-chaired committee that was created last year in reaction to other heavily-edited (and since debunked) CMP videos about Planned Parenthood's role in providing researchers with fetal tissue.

The consent form at issue is one purported to have been used at some Planned Parenthood clinics, telling women who are considering abortion that fetal tissue "has been used to treat and find a cure for such diseases as diabetes, Parkinson's disease, Alzheimer's disease, cancer, and AIDS."

Some members on the committee took this to mean that Planned Parenthood is telling women that cures to these diseases have already been found.

When Bonnie Watson Coleman (D-NJ) asks Lawrence Goldstein, director of the UC San Diego Stem Cell Program, if the form is misleading, he answers that if the form explicitly "says that therapies for diseases such as Alzheimer's and all the rest have already been found, I agree, that's an inappropriate form."

But the form doesn't explicitly come out and say that.

Goldstein, a distinguished scientist for over 40 years, makes his position clear during the hearing. "My message is simple: fetal tissue and cells that would otherwise be discarded play a vital role in modern cutting edge medical research," he says.

Goldstein has participated in groundbreaking research that includes studying brain cells with Alzheimer's disease, FDA-approved clinical trials for spinal cord injuries, and National Institute of Health clinical trials around the country for ALS.

Goldstein also leads a group of NIH-funded scientists who are working to see if it's possible to build new kidneys from stem cells. "93,000 Americans are on waiting lists for a kidney transplant," Goldstein says. "It is only by examining this fetal tissue that it will be possible to determine the earliest biochemical signals that cells use to tell some cells to make kidneys and other cells to make other organs."

Watson Colman then asks if any industry was getting rich off of dealing in fetal body parts.

"Not to my knowledge," responds Goldstein.

"It's clear to me today that the question before us is really nothing more than a proxy for [attacking] women's right to… a safe abortion in this country," says Watson Coleman. "It just concerns me that we would have a panel of legislators sharing misinformation and sharing information that isn't document that isn't documented in any shape or form… and leaving it out there as truth."

Planned Parenthood director of health media Elizabeth Clark tells Broadly that the committee "has consistently ignored all facts or reason in a relentless witch hunt against Planned Parenthood and scientific research more broadly." She adds, "Make no mistake, these blind attacks result in dangerous outcomes for women and families when health care access is denied. Harassment against health care providers and those seeking safe, legal abortion has no place in the halls of Congress—or anywhere else."

The committee has not asked anyone from Planned Parenthood to testify or provide any documentation. In addition, investigations in twelve states have found no wrongdoing by the reproductive healthcare organization.

Planned Parenthood filed a federal lawsuit against CMP back in January. Two weeks ago, that suit was expanded to included Colorado and Texas affiliates. Just this week, the mastermind behind these fraudulent videos, David Daleiden, had his home raided by authorities from the California Attorney General's office. A Houston grand jury also indicted Daleiden earlier this year in connection with fraudulent ID's he had used to gain access to Planned Parenthood.