Komen VP at center of Planned Parenthood debate quits
By dallasnews Administrator
4:26 PM on Feb 7, 2012
The dispute over who injected abortion politics into other women's health issues — the Susan G. Komen for the Cure foundation or the Planned Parenthood organization — showed no signs of abating Tuesday.
The day began with the resignation of Karen Handel, Komen's senior vice president for public policy and a prominent anti-abortion Republican who ran unsuccessfully for Georgia governor in 2010 and then took the post with Komen last April.
"I really felt I should step aside so they [the Komen foundation] could focus on their mission," Handel said Tuesday during an interview on Fox News Channel. She praised Komen and its goal of eradicating breast cancer, adding, "The only group that has made this political is Planned Parenthood."
The resignation is the latest development in the furor that erupted last week when Komen acknowledged new grant policies that would have defunded Planned Parenthood, a nationwide provider of women's medical services and abortions.
Planned Parenthood has said the Komen grants totaled nearly $700,000 last year.
The resulting uproar caught Komen by surprise. Nancy Brinker, Komen's founder, announced an about-face Friday and said her group would continue funding for Planned Parenthood.
The dispute centered around a new policy prohibiting Komen grants to any organization under investigation at federal, state or local levels. The policy seemed to single out Planned Parenthood, whose use of government funding is under investigation by a congressional subcommittee led by conservative Republicans.
Brinker denied that the decision was driven by politics or pressure from anti-abortion groups, and she has denied that Handel had a significant role in the policy change.
The Associated Press quoted an unidentified source inside the Komen organization as saying that the new policy was aimed directly at defunding Planned Parenthood and that Handel had been the driving force behind it since she arrived at Komen last April.
John Hammarley, a former spokesman for Komen, has also said the momentum to defund Planned Parenthood sped up when Handel came on board.
"All I know is internal debate and review of this issue ramped up significantly after she was hired," said Hammarley, who was laid off last summer. He described himself as a supporter of Komen's anti-cancer goals, not a disgruntled former employee.
Planned Parenthood officials declined to publicly comment on Handel's resignation.
Handel said in her resignation letter that Komen had been listening to the drumbeat against Planned Parenthood, driven by anti-abortion forces, long before she arrived at Komen. Board members had been thoroughly briefed on the new funding policy in November, she said.
"No objections were made to moving forward," her letter said.
Handel's resignation raised suspicions among abortion foes that Brinker and Komen had tossed her overboard to appease critics.
"Karen Handel goes out with a tremendous amount of support from people of principle," said Cathie Adams, president of the Texas Eagle Forum, a conservative advocacy group. Adams served as chairman of the Texas Republican party in 2009-10. "The Komen foundation is no longer above the fray. They don't come down on the side of life."
Shortly after news of Handel's resignation became public, more than a dozen women delivered petitions with 832,000 online signatures to Komen's national headquarters in Farmers Branch, demanding that the charity continue funding breast health services.
Most of the women represented organizations MoveOn.org, CREDO Action and UltraViolet, but at least two showed up on their own for what they thought might be a bigger demonstration.
"I'm here for myself. I wanted to represent women — all women," said Kris Martin, a public relations and marketing professional who was toting a white sign that read: "No Politics w/My Body! Komen; Austin or DC."
Leaders of the groups met with two top executives for about a half-hour Tuesday.
"It was a very cordial meeting," said Athena S. Chavez, a regional organizer with MoveOn.org, a liberal grassroots organization that is often criticized by conservative Republicans.
Chavez said she and the two Komen officials did not discuss Handel's resignation, but Chavez applauded the decision.
"We see it as a positive move on their part because she is somebody that we believe was a driving force behind the funding cuts," she said.
The protesters said that even though Komen reversed its decision to cut off funding to Planned Parenthood, the agency has not said whether it will continue grants beyond 2012.
Several women said they were worried about the charity "flip-flopping" again.
"We will continue to apply pressure to Susan G. Komen to see that they give Planned Parenthood a fair chance in the funding process," Chavez said.
Planned Parenthood and Komen operate as tax-exempt charities. Under federal tax laws, they are supposed to be nonpartisan. But the leaders of both organizations are steeped in politics.
Nancy Brinker, 65, who founded Komen, is a prominent Republican who supported George W. Bush for president. Later, Bush named her ambassador to Hungary.
Cecile Richards, president of Planned Parenthood, is the daughter of the late Texas Gov. Ann Richards, a prominent Democrat. Over the years, Cecile Richards has been active in many organizations aligned with the Democratic Party.
Handel's job at Komen was to promote the organization to state and federal lawmakers and other prominent policymakers. During her run for Georgia governor in 2010, she snagged endorsements from Sarah Palin, Mitt Romney and Arizona Gov. Jan Brewer. She lost the GOP nomination by about 2,500 votes in a runoff with Nathan Deal, who went on to win in the general election.
Handel, 49, made no secret of her anti-abortion politics and her long-standing opposition to Planned Parenthood. In 2002, she was named deputy chief of staff for Gov. Sonny Perdue, a Georgia Republican.
In 2006, running as a Republican, she was elected Georgia secretary of state. Handel's biography on the Komen website makes no mention of her recent race for governor. Although it describes some of her past political jobs, the biography never uses the word "Republican."
Staff writer James Ragland contributed to this report.
Komen senior VP's resignation letter
The text of Karen Handel's resignation letter to Komen founder and chief executive Nancy Brinker:
"Susan G. Komen for the Cure has been the recognized leader for more 30 years in the fight against breast cancer here in the US — and increasingly around the world.
"As you know, I have always kept Komen's mission and the women we serve as my highest priority — as they have been for the entire organization, the Komen Affiliates, our many supporters and donors, and the entire community of breast cancer survivors. I have carried out my responsibilities faithfully and in line with the Board's objectives and the direction provided by you …
"We can all agree that this is a challenging and deeply unsettling situation for all involved in the fight against breast cancer. However, Komen's decision to change its granting strategy and exit the controversy surrounding Planned Parenthood and its grants was fully vetted by every appropriate level within the organization. At the November Board meeting, the Board received a detailed review of the new model and related criteria. As you will recall, the Board specifically discussed various issues, including the need to protect our mission by ensuring we were not distracted or negatively affected by any other organization's real or perceived challenges. No objections were made to moving forward.
"I am deeply disappointed by the gross mischaracterizations of the strategy, its rationale, and my involvement in it. I openly acknowledge my role in the matter and continue to believe our decision was the best one for Komen's future and the women we serve. However, the decision to update our granting model was made before I joined Komen, and the controversy related to Planned Parenthood has long been a concern to the organization. Neither the decision nor the changes themselves were based on anyone's political beliefs or ideology. Rather, both were based on Komen's mission and how to better serve women, as well as a realization of the need to distance Komen from controversy. I believe that Komen, like any other nonprofit organization, has the right and the responsibility to set criteria and highest standards for how and to whom it grants.
"What was a thoughtful and thoroughly reviewed decision — one that would have indeed enabled Komen to deliver even greater community impact — has unfortunately been turned into something about politics. This is entirely untrue. This development should sadden us all greatly.
"Just as Komen's best interests and the fight against breast cancer have always been foremost in every aspect of my work, so too are these my priorities in coming to the decision to resign effective immediately. While I appreciate your raising a possible severance package, I respectfully decline. It is my most sincere hope that Komen is allowed to now refocus its attention and energies on its mission."
dallasnews Administrator
newsfeedback@dallasnews.com