By Peter Urban
Stephens Washington Bureau
WASHINGTON — High-level negotiations to avert a government shutdown at midnight seem to hinge on one of the most divisive issues in American politics – abortion.
Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev., said today that a budget deal would be at hand if Republicans dropped their ideological war with Planned Parenthood.
“We have an agreement about cuts,” Reid said. “Now the Tea Party, among others, is trying to move this extreme social agenda over issues that have nothing to do with funding government.”
Anti-abortion lawmakers want to strip Planned Parenthood of federal funding it now receives to provide community health care services to women. The federal government already does not fund abortion services.
Rep. Jeff Flake, R-Ariz., said today that the additional restriction is needed because money is “fungible” and Planned Parenthood is the nation’s largest provider of abortion services.
House Speaker John Boehner, R-Ohio, flatly denied that the issue was holding up a budget deal, saying today that the only reason the federal government faces a shutdown at midnight is spending.
“When will the White House and when will the Senate Democrats get serious about cutting spending?” he said.
House Republicans have approved a bill that would have reduced 2011 spending by $61 billion. Reid said they’ve agreed to $38 billion in the latest negotiations.
Murry Newbern, a spokesperson for Planned Parenthood of Arkansas and Eastern Oklahoma, said it would be “outrageous” for the government to shut down over a proposal that would deny millions of women Pap tests, breast cancer screenings and birth control.
“In Arkansas, we would be forced to close our doors if we did not receive Medicaid reimbursements for the preventive services we provide,” Newbern said.
Rep. Mike Ross, D-Prescott, told Fox News today that the debate over Planned Parenthood does not belong in the negotiations over a 2011 budget.
“If that is what is standing in the way of us being able to fund our troops in harm’s way, then I think it is a mistake,” Ross said. “We have an entire session of Congress to have that debate rather than have it on the backs of our troops who are in harm’s way.”
Nationally, Planned Parenthood provided nearly 1 million screenings for cervical cancer, 830,000 breast exams, and nearly 4 million tests and treatments for sexually transmitted infections.
The White House and congressional leaders, working through the night, have fallen short of an agreement that would fund the government through the remainder of the fiscal year that began last Oct. 1.
Unless Congress acts, non-essential government services will shutter at midnight when the latest short-term budget bill expires.
The shutdown would include closure of National Park Service facilities across the country. Gates and facilities would be locked, regional National Park Service spokeswoman Patty Rooney.
Buffalo National River Superintendent Kevin Cheri said Friday he remained hopeful a shutdown could be averted, but if not, all 393 units of the National Park Service would close, including the seven units in Arkansas.
The Buffalo River’s entire watershed is on federal land, with the lower 135 miles under the park service.
“We will close gates, put up barricades and signs telling people they are not to enter the park,” Cheri said.
If people were found in the park during a shutdown, they could be cited for trespassing, Cheri said. Those camping or renting cabins would be given 48 hours to exit the park upon notice that it was closed, he said.
“We’re asking for people patience and hope they will not take out their frustration on the park,” he said. “We hope they will be good stewards of this resource we all love.”
Arkansas’ other units include Arkansas Post National Memorial, Central High School National Historic Site, the Fort Smith National Historic Site, Hot Springs National Park, Pea Ridge National Military Park and the President William Jefferson Clinton Birthplace Home.
Also, a prolonged shutdown would cause delays in federal medical payments, said Lisa Rowland, spokesman for Jefferson Regional Medical Center in Pine Bluff.
“A prolonged delay in processing Medicare payments could significantly impact both hospitals and physicians. It could challenge our ability to meet payroll, vendor and other obligations,” Roland said. “JMRC has sufficient cash reserves to withstand a short-term delay in Medicare payments. However, many physicians are not in a similar position and could be very adversely affected.”
About half of the hospital’s revenues come from Medicare payments, she said.
She said hospital employee furloughs would be unlikely due to a government shutdown.
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Little Rock bureau reporters Rob Moritz and Lewis Delavan contributed to this report.
