First daughter and presidential adviser Ivanka Trump reportedly held a secret meeting with Planned Parenthood President Cecile Richards in January in an outreach effort with the women's health organization.
Politico first reported that Trump requested a meeting with Richards to try and find common ground between President Donald Trump's policies and the organization. A Planned Parenthood spokeswoman has confirmed the get together.
"The purpose of the meeting, from Cecile's point of view, was to make sure Ivanka fully understood what Planned Parenthood does, how it is funded, and why it would be a terrible idea for Planned Parenthood to be removed from being able to see Medicaid patients," spokeswoman Dawn Laguens said, according to news outlets.
“The main thing that Cecile Richards was doing was explaining that the money doesn’t actually go to abortions. We get reimbursed the same way a hospital does. We were clearing up misinformation about how this works,” she said.
Laguens said Ivanka Trump wanted to learn more about Planned Parenthood and called it “an explainer meeting.”
But there’s been no other contact between the two since the January meeting, and Richards has even publicly criticized Ivanka Trump for not speaking up about some of the president’s policy decisions.
Planned Parenthood has been targeted for defunding by Republicans, because the organization provides abortions, among many other healthcare needs for low-income women.
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