Former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush said Wednesday "Congress has every right" to dig deeper into Planned Parenthood after videos have come to light that show officials allegedly discussing the sale of tissue from fetuses that have been aborted.
"It just troubles me that you would sell body parts. It just makes no sense to me," Bush said during a campaign stop in Spartanburg, South Carolina,
reports Politico.
"That is not a compassionate situation. Congress has every right to investigate these abuses, because [Planned Parenthood] receives $500 million dollars from the federal government."
Bush made the comments after visiting the Carolina Pregnancy Center, a non-denominational, faith-based center that advises pregnant women in need of counseling.
Bush, one of 16 Republicans running for president, did not call for the government to stop funding Planned Parenthood, but he did say Washington should investigate its funding to the organization.
"There should be a thorough review of spending in Washington, D.C., particularly organizations that have a very deep political agenda," Bush said.
Bush also Tweeted about his visit to the pregnancy center:
Last week, Bush reacted to the Planned Parenthood video on Twitter, the only other time he had referenced the story before Wednesday:
Two of Bush's competitors in the race for the GOP's presidential nomination, Kentucky Sen. Rand Paul and former Pennsylvania Sen. Rick Santorum,
both called for Planned Parenthood to be defunded by the government in the wake of the videos.
"This is about a baby, about selling baby parts," Paul told the Boston Herald Tuesday. "I think even pro-choice people are aghast at this."
Added Santorum, "I think Planned Parenthood is a cancer in this country and something the federal government should not have anything to do with."
The revealing videos have
pro-choice advocates worried about Planned Parenthood's future.