Week ahead: Abortion fight could slow highway bill

The multibillion-dollar fight to fund the nation’s highway systems could be facing a new hurdle: abortion politics.

Sen. Rand Paul (R-Ky.) vowed Friday that he would force a vote on defunding Planned Parenthood in the wake of a viral video that showed its top doctor discussing fetal organs.

Paul could seek to attach a measure defunding the group to a highway funding bill the Senate must pass by a July 31 deadline. The House has already passed a short-term fix, and the upper chamber is working to draft and move legislation quickly.

{mosads}In his statement, Paul did not specifically point to the transit bill, but said he would “use all legislative vehicles at his disposal.”

The Planned Parenthood video, which has exceeded 2 million views, has prompted investigations by two House committees.

It’s also spurring Senate Republicans to push up the timeline for a bill that would ban nearly all late-term abortions, which was approved by the House this spring. A markup of that bill is slated for September, according to a GOP aide.

Sparks are also likely fly in the House next week as an oversight panel of the House Energy and Commerce Committee takes on ObamaCare state exchanges.

Rep. Tim Murphy (R-Pa.), has scheduled a hearing Friday to investigate the $4.5 billion that was given to help states launch ObamaCare marketplaces, which he said was done “without seemingly any oversight and management from the administration.”

But there’ll be some bipartisanship on healthcare, as Alzheimer’s advocates flock to D.C. for an annual conference.

Sens. Susan Collins (R-Maine) and Dick Durbin (D-Ill.) and Reps. Tom Cole (R-Oka.) and Fred Upton (R-Mich.) are all scheduled to speak at the Alzheimer’s Association International Conference, which kicks off Saturday.

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