Democratic-led filibuster stalls stopgap funding measure

Washington (AP) — The Senate has blocked an effort by GOP leaders to keep the government open over GOP efforts to strip Planned Parenhood of its taxpayer funding.

The measure failed on a 47-52 vote, failing to win a majority of the Senate, much less the 60 votes required to overcome a filibuster led by Democrats.

Top Senate Republican Mitch McConnell hasn't explicitly said what he'll do next to avoid a government shutdown next week. But he's widely expected to start debate on a bipartisan stopgap measure that could pass next week and be signed into law by President Barack Obama.

Planned Parenthood has long been targeted by Republicans, but their efforts have intensified after the release of secretly recorded videos that raised questions about the group's handling of fetal tissue.

By Andrew Taylor, Associated Press. Copyright 2015 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

The Gayly – September 24, 2015 @ 2:30pm.