Senate Blocks Bill to Defund P. Parenthood

The Senate has blocked a bill to defund the nation's largest abortion provider, setting up a possible showdown this fall.

The 53-46 vote was mostly long party lines as Democrats succeeded in derailing the bill to halt all federal funding of Planned Parenthood. It came seven votes shy of the 60 Republicans needed.

Planned Parenthood gets about half a billion dollars from taxpayers each year, about 40 percent of the group's funding.

*Jay Sekulow, chief councel with the American Center for Law and Justice, talked more about the case on The 700 Club, August 3. Click play to watch the interview following George Thomas' report from earlier today.

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The drive to defund them came after four undercover videos were released showing Planned Parenthood doctors haggling over the price of unborn baby parts.

"I think most Americans don't want their tax dollars going to this," Sen. Rand Paul, R-Ky., said.

Sen. Paul and 23 other lawmakers introduced the legislation to stop funding Planned Parenthood.

"You know, manipulating the baby, turning the baby around to get to body parts and then selling the liver, the doctors cavalierly saying, 'Oh well, yeah, liver is popular right now for sale,'" Paul said. "So I think when something is so morally repugnant to so many people, why should tax dollars go to this?"

The vote sets the stage for a bigger showdown this fall. The issue could come up again during budget talks in October when some Republicans are threatening a government shutdown if Planned Parenthood isn't defunded.

Meanwhile, the group behind the undercover recordings, Center for Medical Progress, said it has eight to 10 more videos to release, including a segment that reportedly shows that babies were born alive before their parts were sold.

But a federal judge issued a temporary restraining order preventing the prolife group from releasing further videos.