Cecile Richards stepped into the lion's den Tuesday, going before a House committee to defend Planned Parenthood, as Republicans in Congress kicked off another effort to cut the group's federal funding. The organization's president defended her group's work and tissue-donation practices. She said lawmakers are targeting the organization because of "deceptively edited videos released by a group that is dedicated to making abortion illegal." Haven't I heard about these videos before? Yep. Videos surfaced this summer that showed Planned Parenthood officials discussing the fees charged to research groups for fetal tissue — and a firestorm of debate followed. Now Republican lawmakers are holding a bunch of hearings. Despite outrage by congressional conservatives, a nationwide USA TODAY/Suffolk University Poll finds Americans back government support for Planned Parenthood by more than 2-1. Two-thirds of those surveyed, 65%, say funding should continue for the group, which provides contraception, cancer screening and other health services to women; 29% say it should be cut off. And an even bigger majority opposes shutting down the government as a tactic to deny funds for the group. Could that really happen? Yep. But Congress is now expected to pass a short-term budget bill that would fund Planned Parenthood and the rest of the government to avert an Oct. 1 shutdown. But it's possible that showdown has only been delayed until the next fiscal deadline in December.
Appearing on Capitol Hill for the first time since the release of a
series of secretly recorded videos, Planned Parenthood Pres. Cecile
Richards defended her organization as Republicans raised concerns about
how the group spends funds. (Sept. 29)
AP
#Breaking: Edward Snowden has joined the Twittersphere. Here's a 140ish-character recap: First tweet, we're guessing directed at the NSA with love: "Can you hear me now?" Then a Mars joke. (Asking for a friend.) Requisite cat reference. Then he got real. "Hero, traitor — I'm just a citizen with a voice," he tweeted in response to famed astrophysicist Neil deGrasse Tyson, who welcomed him to the platform, geek-to-geek. So who's Snowden following?@NSAGov — who, ironically, hasn't followed him back. If he sticks around, he may be able one day to wax poetic beyond 140 characters.
That Facebook privacy notice is a hoax — but you already knew that, you student of the Internet, you
Your Facebook feed for the past 24 hours has been full of two kinds of people: those who post the fake Facebook privacy/copyright notice "just in case," and those who decry it and threaten to unfriend those who do. (No, there's no middle ground. None. Nope.) Just to be clear: It is, in fact, a hoax — and this is not the first time it's made the rounds. So here's a good rule of thumb: No good can ever come of copy-and-paste statuses. Write your own words — they're yours and yours alone, and they're copyrighted. Like.
Sound the alarms: Facebook is about to start charging a monthly fee
to keep your data private! But that hasn't stopped everyone from sharing
statuses that warn people to post a declaration about privacy, pay up,
or do nothing.
USA TODAY
The Mars news Monday had us talking about actor Matt Damon. Damon's comments about sexuality also have us talking about him, and not in that "we love your ponytail" kind of way. In a recent interview with The Guardian, The Martian star seemed to imply that gay actors were better off staying in the closet. Yowza. Twitter went nuts, and Damon explained (can we call it that?) himself Monday on The Ellen DeGeneres Show. Earlier this month, Damon apologized for mansplaining himself on diversity.
Matt Damon's comments on sexuality landed him in hot water. In a new
interview with the Guardian , The Martian star seemed to imply that gay
actors were better off staying in the closet.
USA TODAY
Marco Rubio has overtaken Donald Trump and secured second place for the first time in USA TODAY's GOP Power Rankings. It hadn't seemed possible — until last week. After a strong debate performance, Carly Fiorina knocked Trump from first place — where he had dominated for the first couple of weeks, and then this week Rubio has knocked him out of second, based in part on the fading of other candidates. Speaking of other candidates, the underdogs are ready to duke it out for a spot on the next debate stage. For the latest on all the things 2016, we've got you covered.
If your eyes need a rest, try our audio version of "The Short List":
If you read only one thing tonight, check out Thomas Frank's investigation on how the U.S. government has way understated the number of people killed in high-speed police car chases.
Stories you're clicking on today:
Bundle of marijuana falls from the sky, crashes through family's carport
Jim Carrey's ex dies of apparent suicide
The 31 tallest buildings in the USA
NCAA bans SMU from postseason, suspends Larry Brown
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Extra bites:
Our amazing reader photo gallery has photos from all over the world. Today's top photo is a stunner from Milwaukee. Swipe through to see more amazing images.
Azealia Banks isn't keep quiet after using a gay slur against a flight attendant. On Twitter, the rapper said gay white men have taken over the LGBT (which she now calls GGGG) conversation. She compared them to the KKK, saying they should get "pink hoods and unicorns."
Have you seen it? Elk selfies are also on the list of bad ideas.
After a bull elk tossed a man into the air for getting too close
this weekend, officials in Estes Park, Colo., are asking visitors to
keep their distance from the town's resident elk herd, Trevor Hughes
explains.
TREVOR HUGHES, USA TODAY
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| USA TODAY | - |
Always
efficient and effective, Congress approaches Oct. 1 with no budget but
oodles of hearings. Cecile Richards stepped into the lion's den Tuesday,
going before a House committee to defend Planned Parenthood, as
Republicans in Congress kicked off ...
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