The deceptiveness and a dishonesty of the Republican Party made its mark against medical research in early October after Planned Parenthood announced it would no longer receive compensation for the storage and transfer of fetal tissue.

After months of false accusations by right-wing anti-abortionists, Planned Parenthood has finally been bullied into submission. This is not only a black mark against the medical research community, but shows exactly how powerful lies can be when backed by fear and misinformation.

Videos surfaced in June that appeared to show Planned Parenthood officials harvesting and selling fetal tissue for profit. If this had been true, the organization would have been in violation of a 1993 law that condemns such a sale.

But the videos, which were created by an extremist anti-abortion group called the Center for Medical Progress, were not only heavily edited by the media but also were disingenuous from the very beginning.

The same law passed in 1993 makes a very specific exception for medical research. Organizations that wish to donate tissue to vital medical fields are allowed to receive compensation for receiving, storing and processing.

Out of the more than 700 Planned Parenthood centers nationwide, only two participate in these perfectly legal donations — one in California, and the other in Washington. The California location is the only one that has ever been reimbursed. Additionally, the decision to donate tissue is not Planned Parenthood’s. It’s the decision of the woman who is receiving the abortion.

Using fetal tissue research, scientists have been able to replicate viruses like chickenpox, rubella, shingles, hepatitis A and rabies in order to produces vaccines for the diseases.

The vaccine for polio was also developed using fetal kidney cells. And for diseases that go uncured, fetal tissue is currently being used to study potential cures for Alzheimer’s disease, Parkinson’s disease, spinal injuries and in treatments for stroke victims because of the regenerative effects of fetal cells. This research has even helped the medical community develop a better understanding of Down syndrome, miscarriages and sudden infant death syndrome.

The Republican Party is not only attempting to hinder vital medical research by creating a higher cost for donations but also also ripping away a source of closure for many women who receive abortions. And the party has the audacity to call itself pro-life.

Presidential candidate Carley Fiorina has even thrown her share of false statements into the ever-growing atmosphere of deceit between Republicans and Planned Parenthood. During the second GOP presidential debate, Fiorina vividly described a scene from an undercover, anti-abortionist video, where a fetus’ brain was harvested as its heart continued to beat. Unfortunately for the presidential contender and her reputation, no such scene exists.

Cecile Richards, president of Planned Parenthood, was even heavily questioned for five hours last month by Republicans at a congressional hearing. The interrogation was coupled with a review of almost 22,000 pages of documents from Planned Parenthood. Despite many accusations of wrongdoing, no evidence has been discovered. 

The delusions that these lies should be the basis for legislative action are even more disturbing than the blatant lies told by conservatives. After spreading the false narrative perpetuated by the falsified and dishonest videos, the Republican Party demanded that Planned Parenthood’s federal funding be cut off entirely.

Members of the party even accused Planned Parenthood of using federal funds for abortions. This led to a borderline crisis and a near repeat of the government shutdown in 2013. Thankfully, logic and reason defeated lies and emotion as a bill was passed that allowed Planned Parenthood to keep its funding and keep the government up and running.

Republicans have shown their true colors.

They don’t seem to care about the truth. They only care about spreading their anti-abortion agenda through lies and deceit. Their anti-women, anti-medical attitude is a slap in the face to the American people.

The world should be grateful Planned Parenthood continues to provide invaluable medical research out of its own pockets, despite the disingenuous narrative weaved by Republicans.