President Obama will speak at an annual fundraiser for Planned Parenthood in Washington, D.C., on Friday.
The president of the organization—the nation’s largest abortion provider—applauded Obama’s pro-abortion stance.
“President Obama has done more than any president in history for women’s health and rights,” Planned Parenthood President Cecile Richards says. “We are honored to have President Obama join us at our ‘Time for Care’ gala at this pivotal moment for women’s health.”
Obama was initially scheduled to deliver the keynote address at Thursday night’s gala but canceled the engagement so he can attend a memorial service for the victims of last week’s fertilizer plant explosion in Texas.
The shift from a keynote address at the annual gala to a lower-profile speech at a low-key morning event is significant, The Washington Times reports.
Pro-life proponents urged Obama earlier this week to drop out of his speaking engagement altogether, considering the gruesome trial of abortionist Dr. Kermit Gosnell currently taking place.
“It is incumbent upon the president to reconsider his support for the abortion industry and Planned Parenthood, which last year profited from abortion $87 million, committing over 300,000 abortions,” says Lila Rose, who heads pro-life group Live Action, on Tuesday.
When asked about Gosnell’s trial, Obama said he agreed with former President Bill Clinton that abortion should be “safe, legal and rare.”
During his 2012 re-election campaign, the president taped a video message in which he praised Planned Parenthood and promised members that he would fight Republican efforts to cut their federal funding.
