ICYMI: Sen. Cruz Calls on the U.S. Department of Justice to Enforce the Criminal Laws and Investigate Planned Parenthood

WASHINGTON, D.C. - U.S. Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas) today attended the Students for Life of America #WomenBetrayed Rally on the East Front of the U.S. Capitol and delivered the following remarks.

Video of Cruz's remarks is available above.

"We are here today rallying for life.

"The past several weeks we've seen a series of videos come out of Planned Parenthood that are nothing short of horrifying. These are videos of senior Planned Parenthood officials laughing, swilling chardonnay, and casually, callously, heartlessly, bartering and selling body parts of unborn children.

"I would encourage every American to watch these videos. Regardless of your views on the right to life-even if you are a supporter of abortion-I would encourage you: watch these videos. And just ask a very simple question: are these my values? To see a senior Planned Parenthood official laughing and saying she hopes that she sells enough body parts of unborn children to buy a Lamborghini.

"There is no ambiguity in what we're seeing. And when we see the truth, after a time for truth comes a times for action. Today is a time for action. Today the U.S. Department of Justice should open a criminal investigation into all of those individuals. Today the U.S. Department of Justice should open a criminal investigation into whether Planned Parenthood, nationally, is a criminal enterprise breaking the law.

"You know, I am an alumnus of the U.S. Department of Justice. I'm a former associate deputy attorney general of the United States. The Department of Justice has had a long tradition over the centuries of fairly and impartially applying criminal law; enforcing criminal law regardless of party, regardless of partisan allegiance. How sad is it that almost no media observer thinks there's any chance the U.S. Department of Justice would actually investigate whether Planned Parenthood and these senior officials have violated federal criminal laws?

"Today the Obama Justice Department is operating as little more than a partisan arm of the Democratic National Committee. When you have multiple individuals caught on tape apparently confessing to multiple felonies that carry with them long jail times, justice must be served.

"I call on the U.S. Department of Justice to enforce the criminal laws and investigate Planned Parenthood. I call upon state and local law enforcement to investigate the local affiliates of Planned Parenthood in terms of whether they have violated the criminal law. I call upon the United States Congress to hold hearings into whether Planned Parenthood is a criminal enterprise violating the federal criminal laws...

"And I call upon the United States Congress, right now, today, to stand up and lead and to defund Planned Parenthood. I have introduced legislation defunding Planned Parenthood, and I'm sorry to tell you that this weekend Congressional leadership blocked voting on defunding Planned Parenthood. When Republican and Democratic leadership stand together in unity, when we see the McConnell-Reid leadership team in the United States Senate, it is altogether unacceptable.

"Every member of the Senate and every member of the House should stand together and say: under no circumstances should federal taxpayer dollars, your money and my money, be sent today on an ongoing basis to an ongoing criminal enterprise, like Planned Parenthood. And let me be clear what we should demand. We should not demand an empty show vote, just one of the things leadership occasionally likes, to tee up a vote that is designed to fail, to then pat people on the head and say, ‘you should be happy you got a vote.'

"Leadership knows how to fight when they're fighting for corporate welfare. Leadership knows how to fight when they're fighting for cronyism. Leadership knows how to fight when they're fighting for more spending and debt and power in Washington.

"How about we see a fraction of the fight for the principles and values of the American people?

"That leadership will not come naturally from the United States Congress, but it will come from each of you. It will come from men and women across this country who are standing up saying enough is enough. Let us stand for truth, let us stand for life.

"Thank you, and God bless the United States of America!"

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