Could Planned Parenthood Cause Another Government Shutdown?

This week, Democrats in the Senate

a bill that would have cut funding for Planned Parenthood after the organization came under fire due to a controversial video. Republicans have used the video, which accused Planned Parenthood of selling tissue from aborted fetuses for research, as a platform to defund the organization but their efforts fell 7 votes short of the 60 needed to advance the bill.

Although the vote put the issue to bed for the moment, Republicans in Washington say

. The debate over whether or not government money should be used to run Planned Parenthood is likely to resurface this fall when Congress reconvenes to discuss the nation's budget.

Although Planned Parenthood does perform abortions, taxpayer dollars aren't used for those procedures. Instead, the organization uses federal funds for things like cancer screenings, annual exams and birth control. The clinics have been praised by Democrats who say it gives women a safe, affordable way to make choices about their bodies. Republicans claim government money shouldn't be spent this way, especially after a video surfaced of Planned Parenthood officials discussing what the organization should do with the tissue of aborted fetuses.

Despite the vote, Republicans aren't expected to let the issue go easily. Many have threatened to attach a bill that defunds Planned Parenthood to a necessary bill that funds the government in upcoming budget talks. Doing that could cause another government shutdown as Democrats are unlikely to agree to pass the funding bill with the Planned Parenthood bill attached.