Obama reported to be ecstatic.

(Politico) — After taking flak from Planned Parenthood during the health care debate last year, President Barack Obama has returned to its good graces, garnering praise from a group whose federal funding is at stake in the heated budget debate with Republicans on Capitol Hill.

Obama has said he does not want a federal budget that includes provisions to slash funding for several organizations that social conservatives, including many Republicans, oppose. Members of the Obama administration have also had low-profile meetings with abortion rights advocates, according to sources who have knowledge of the talks. And groups like Planned Parenthood that have been targeted by conservatives largely feel reassured by the positive signals the White House has thus far shown on protecting their funding.

“We have a positive relationship with the Obama administration, and we applaud its strong commitment to reproductive health, family planning and preventive health care,” Dawn Laguens, executive vice president of public policy and advocacy for Planned Parenthood, said in a statement to POLITICO. “President Obama has reinforced this commitment by calling for an increased investment in an essential women’s health care program” in his latest budget.

The statement, issued Tuesday, is a reversal of fortune for Obama: Though he won Planned Parenthood’s endorsement for president in early 2008, the group has been frustrated with some of his decisions since taking office.

Posted by ZIP on Thursday, March 31, 2011, at 9:25 am | Tweet

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