MSNBC "Hardball with Chris Matthews" - Transcript

Interview

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Congresswoman Schwartz, give us a layout on exactly what just happened, because a lot of people were completely caught off guard by what seemed to be a good relationship between the Susan G. Komen Foundation and Planned Parenthood, that`s just come apart here.

REP. ALLYSON SCHWARTZ (D), PENNSYLVANIA: Yes. Well, I can tell you, many of us are very disappointed and pretty outraged that the action that was just taken. But the Komen Foundation made a decision and announced a decision to no longer give funding that they do and have apparently doing for years to Planned Parenthood. What they fund are breast exams to help detect cancer and do wonderful work in terms of breast cancer screenings.

And they`ve said because -- the reason they gave is because Planned Parenthood is under investigation by a subcommittee in Congress, they are not going to fund Planned Parenthood to do this very important women`s health work.

And, you know, nothing has been found. We don`t even know if what happens with the investigation, but the Komen Foundation has made the decision. And a lot of women in this country are pretty outraged about it.

MATTHEWS: It seems like a bogus case, Congresswoman Sanchez because an investigation by Congress. Congress investigates all the time. And they are not investigating for real criminal behavior. They`re
investigating them over questions of going over the border, they`re dealing with, or giving abortions or whatever.

I mean, it seems to me using money for abortions, this seems to me this under investigation thing has a very dirty sound to it, when in fact it`s hardly a reason to cut the funding here.

REP. LORETTA SANCHEZ (D), CALIFORNIA: Well, Planned Parenthood, of course, has always been very strict about how it spends the money that it receives from the federal government. And it is, you know, one of the most sought-after resources by -- especially young women because, you know, so many women do not have health care. It`s sort of their primary doctor in the sense that they`ll go into a Planned Parenthood clinic and get their yearly exam, et cetera.

And so, to cut this off -- for the Komen Foundation to cut these moneys off I think is really sad because what you`re talking about is not just finding the cure, which is a great reason to be. There`s been a lot
of money raised on that and a lot matched from the federal government to help try to find a cure for breast cancer. But when you do to make sure that you never even get to that spot, make sure that you have annual exams.

MATTHEWS: Right.

SANCHEZ: So these went hand in hand and it seems a shame that out of nowhere -- well, most of us think it was because of this new vice president that started over at the foundation, the Komen Foundation, who is very, of course, anti-Planned Parenthood and vowed when she ran for the governorship of Georgia -- of course, she lost -- saying that she would shut -- that she would stop all funding, all of these types of grants to Planned Parenthood if she were in office.

MATTHEWS: Well, one thing I think the men out there aren`t aware of this ought to know right now. Or maybe you two can tell them, I`ll tell them what I`ve learned today is that it`s an inexpensive way to get a
breast examination. If you don`t get it early, you`re gong to have problems, horrible problems in some cases.

So, you want to get a breast exam very early in this game and hopefully you are safe. But if you have to deal with it, you deal with it. And anybody doesn`t think that`s good for the country must not be paying
attention.

Here`s an interview with Andrea Mitchell today, the head of the women foundation, Ambassador Nancy Brinker. Here she is talking on the Hill about the investigation as being the only factor in their decision to stop funding Planned Parenthood.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

NANCY BRINKER, SUSAN G. KOMEN FOUNDATION: Investigation isn`t the only issue. In 2010, we set about creating excellence in our grants, not just in our community grants but in our science grants, putting metrics, outcomes and measures to them, so that we can translate all of the science we funded over 30 years. Many of the grants we were doing with Planned Parenthood do not meet new standards of criteria for how we can measure our results and effectiveness in communities.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

MATTHEWS: Well, that seemed like gobbledygook, Congresswoman Schwartz. I mean, it didn`t seem like the way you communicate a thought because it didn`t communicate a thought.

SCHWARTZ: Yes. I mean, really, what we all know and I hope we agree is that making sure that women, young women, women of all ages, have access to the kind of health screenings, the health care that we need. And as Congresswoman Sanchez pointed out, that many women, thousands of women in our communities, go to Planned Parenthood for regular health screenings.

And cancer is a worry for everyone. But certainly breast cancer is a worry for just about every woman in this country. And making sure that they have access to the proper screenings and information and knowing how
best to take care of themselves is so important and has been a part of what Planned Parenthood has done in our communities across this country.

So, the Komen Foundation has been funding these breast cancer screenings at Planned Parenthood. I understand it was a great relationship. And all of a sudden, this afternoon they said the reason was
because of this investigation, which is a pretty scary thought that any member of Congress can call for an investigation, start an investigation, and that somehow snowballs just because of a false accusation.

Look, there are members of Congress who were willing to shut down the government over the discussion about Planned Parenthood and we didn`t let that happen. And Americans, really millions of Americans spoke up about how outrageous it was, because they want to see access to women`s health care across this country and Planned Parenthood is a part of that.

SANCHEZ: You know, Chris --

MATTHEWS: Well, I think -- go ahead. We only have 10 to 15 seconds here. Go ahead, Congresswoman.

SANCHEZ: Well, you know, in some cases, the Planned Parenthood clinic is the only medical clinic available for people who don`t have the means, who don`t have a doctor, who don`t have health insurance in so many areas, where places have closed down. So, it`s very important to keep them open and to have those screenings happen because the sooner we detect, the easier it is -- the more life there is left to a person.

MATTHEWS: And I`ve been hearing that people are very comfortable with women going into the Planned Parenthood organization, institutions and facilities. It`s a very popular organization. This is a sad story for
everybody.

Anyway, thank you, Congresswoman Loretta Sanchez.

SANCHEZ: Thank you, Chris.

SCHWARTZ: Thank you.

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