Abortion Debate’s Polarized Rhetoric Scrutinized After Colorado Planned Parenthood Shooting
News outlets examine the contention from abortion rights groups that the recent escalation of the abortion debate may have contributed to this attack. Meanwhile, articles also look at how the shooting may add to the challenges on Capitol Hill and may lead clinics to re-examine their security measures.
The Washington Post:
Abortion Rights Groups: Political Rhetoric Contributed To Shooting
To many abortion rights advocates, it seemed only a matter of time before something like this happened. Ever since the summer, when an antiabortion group accused Planned Parenthood of illegally selling fetal tissue, threats against the organization had escalated to unprecedented levels, abortion providers say. They stepped up collaboration with the FBI and local police and stiffened security at clinics. But on Friday, their worst fears came true: A man walked into a health center in Colorado Springs and opened fire. (Somashekhar, 11/29)
The Wall Street Journal:
Planned Parenthood Shooting Escalates Abortion Debate
The shooting Friday at a Colorado Springs, Colo., Planned Parenthood clinic that left three dead reverberated among activists, lawmakers and presidential candidates already entrenched in clashes over abortion. The suspect in the attack, Robert Lewis Dear, told authorities “no more baby parts” after being apprehended, said a law-enforcement official. Antiabortion activists this year released undercover videos in which Planned Parenthood officials spoke about the group’s provision of fetal tissue from abortions for use in medical research. Abortion opponents use the phrase “baby body parts” in discussing the videos and accused Planned Parenthood affiliates of “selling” them. Planned Parenthood officials denied wrongdoing but said they would stop taking reimbursement for the cost of supplying the tissue. (Radnofsky, Karmin and Frosch, 11/29)
The New York Times:
Shooting At Planned Parenthood Adds To Challenges For Congress
Even as the authorities say they remain uncertain what precisely led a gunman to attack a Planned Parenthood facility in Colorado Springs on Friday, a comment attributed to the suspect by a senior law enforcement official — “no more baby parts” — fed directly into an already high-pitched controversy over Planned Parenthood and its practices. (Calmes, 11/29)
The Associated Press:
'No More Baby Parts': Reclusive Suspect's Words Draw Focus
Robert Lewis Dear told authorities “no more baby parts” after being arrested in the shooting at a Colorado Planned Parenthood clinic, according to a law enforcement official, part of a rambling statement that investigators are parsing to understand the reasoning behind an assault that left three dead. Colorado Springs police said Sunday they would not disclose any information on the motive for the attack, a move that guarantees further speculation over Dear’s intentions. (Gurman, 11/29)
Reuters:
Planned Parenthood To Reassess Security After Colorado Attack
Planned Parenthood was already on heightened alert against threats of violence this year after a storm of criticism from abortion opponents over how it handles the tissue of aborted fetuses used for medical research. Now some affiliates of the reproductive health organization say they will scrutinize their security measures even further after a gunman's deadly attack on one of the nonprofit's clinics in Colorado on Friday. (Jenkins, 11/29)
The Associated Press:
Planned Parenthood Under Fire Literally And Figuratively
The fatal shootings at a Colorado Planned Parenthood clinic are the latest in a long history of violence at clinics that provide abortions and doctors who perform the procedure. Police aren't saying what motivated this most recent shooting. The attack comes as the nonprofit endures criticism from anti-abortion lawmakers and renewed protests outside clinics since a group of abortion opponents released videos they claimed showed the organization negotiating fetal tissue sales. (Melley and Crary, 11/29)
The Washington Post:
It’s Not Known Why A Gunman Stormed A Planned Parenthood, But Abortion Providers Often Face Attacks
If the shooting Friday is determined to have been specifically an attack on Planned Parenthood, it would have been in a long line of attacks on abortion providers over the years. It has been six years since anyone was killed in connection with the abortion debate, but attacks on clinics and doctors are fairly regular, according to a list maintained by the National Abortion Federation, a pro-abortion rights organization. Over the past 20 years, there have been an average of 257 incidents a year directed at abortion clinics and staff, and an average of 139 over the last five years. The bulk of those incidents are vandalism and trespassing, although the total also includes shootings, bombings and assaults. (Ehrenfreund, 11/28)
The New York Times:
Siege Highlights Security Used In Abortion Clinics
As the heavily armed police entered the Planned Parenthood clinic here to hunt down the gunman and rescue those trapped inside, they had an advantage that seemed like something out of the movies. Officers in the command center outside the clinic were able to tap into security cameras throughout the complex, watch the siege unfold and give precise instructions to officers inside. ... The advanced camera system was just one sign of the increasingly elaborate security measures that abortion clinics around the country have adopted. (Healy and Eckholm, 11/28)
The New York Times:
Obama Says ‘Enough Is Enough’ After Colorado Shooting
President Obama responded angrily on Saturday to the mass shooting that took three lives, including that of a police officer, at a Planned Parenthood facility in Colorado Springs over the Thanksgiving holiday, calling the country’s recurring outbreaks of gun violence “not normal.” “We can’t let it become normal,” Mr. Obama said in a statement. “If we truly care about this — if we’re going to offer up our thoughts and prayers again, for God knows how many times, with a truly clean conscience — then we have to do something about the easy accessibility of weapons of war on our streets to people who have no business wielding them. Period. Enough is enough.” (Martin, 11/28)
USA Today:
Suspected Planned Parenthood Shooter To Face Judge
The man accused of a shooting rampage at a Planned Parenthood clinic faces a judge Monday afternoon as this community grapples with the deaths of a police officer, an Iraq War veteran and a mom. (Hughes, 11/29)
