In an interview with Fusion's Jorge Ramos, Planned Parenthood president Cecile Richards was asked, "When does life start? When does a human being become a human being?"
After meandering for a bit, Richards replied, "Every woman has to make her own decision." Pressed again to say when she thinks life begins, Richards said, "I'm a mother of three children. For me, life began when I delivered them. They've probably been the most important thing in my life ever since. But that's my own personal decision, right?"
According to science, conception marks the creation of a distinct human being, and, according to polls, strong majorities of American voters think that abortion should be illegal after the first three months of pregnancy. Planned Parenthood is currently leading a campaign to ensure that the United States remains one of seven countries in the world where elective abortions are legal later than five months into pregnancy.
Although Richards is a prominent political operative--her organization will spend $18 million on elections this year-- Democratic candidates are rarely asked if they share Planned Parenthood's extreme positions on abortion.