CLEVELAND, Ohio—After watching the earlier GOP presidential primary debate Thursday where seven GOP presidential contenders took the stage, Concerned Women for America’s President and CEO Penny Nance exclusively told Breitbart News, “Carly would destroy Hillary Clinton in a debate.”
“I think that almost every candidate had a good moment. Certainly, I think that there was some really solid punches landed by Carly Fiorina,” Nance told Breitbart News following the 5 PM debate in the media spin room.
She said she thinks people are going to take a better look at Fiorina after her strong performance.
“I think she’s going to create buzz, and apparently, she already is – I thought she had some really great moments,” Nance said, responding to the fact Fiorina was trending above GOP frontrunner Donald Trump on social media at one point during the debate.
Nance also highlighted former Pennsylvania Sen. Rick Santorum’s performance, who shared the stage with Fiorina.
“I thought Rick Santorum had some really solid moments talking about the First Amendment Defense Act and religious liberty for Americans,” she explained. “Of the group, I thought the real break out two were Rick Santorum and Carly Fiorina.”
Nance responded to the topic of defunding Planned Parenthood, which was unanimously agreed to by all seven candidates – even former New York Gov. George Pataki, who is the only GOP contender who is pro-choice.
“I think it is crystal clear at this pint that the Republican Party is the party of life, and even George Pataki, who would say he is a pro-choice candidate, recognizes that at least at 20 weeks, we need to defend life and understands the importance of defunding Planned Parenthood,” she said.
Nance went on to say the $500 million a year is taxpayer money that goes “to fund an organization who’s essentially soulless,” adding that Planned Parenthood has promoted a culture of death.
“Profiting… from little lungs, and little hearts, and little livers and callously are able to have lunch and discuss it,” Fiorina said, referring to the undercover videos which have gone viral showing Planned Parenthood officials selling aborted baby body parts. “It’s time,” she said, to defund Planned Parenthood.
On GOP presidential candidate Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-SC), who also shared the stage with Fiorina and Santorum, Nance said, “I would have rather Lindsey Graham had been there.”
Nance was referring to the fact that Graham went to New Hampshire for a candidate forum hosted by C-SPAN earlier this week, but fellow GOP contenders, Sen. Rand Paul (R-KY), Sen. Ted Cruz (R-TX) and Sen. Marco Rubio (R-FL) all stayed to vote to defund Planned Parenthood and appeared via satellite instead of in person at the candidate forum.
Nance said she believes if Graham’s vote had made a difference, he would have been there because she thinks he’s committed to this issue.
“At the end of the day, it wouldn’t have changed anything.”
Nance said the push to defund Planned Parenthood starts in the Senate but must be completed in the White House.
“We are not going to be able to change the culture of death in America until we have a pro-life president – that is game, set, it,” she explained. “You know, we have got to make sure the person occupying the White House will not veto the bill.”
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