Biden names pro-abortion HHS secretary

California Attorney General Xavier Becerra in 2017 filed 15 felony charges against pro-life activists for their undercover investigation of Planned Parenthood. On Monday, President-elect Joe Biden picked him to lead the Health and Human Services Department (HHS).

Who is Becerra? He, along with Vice President-elect Kamala Harris, spearheaded the prosecution of David Daleiden and Sandra Merritt, alleging they illegally recorded conversations during their 2015 investigation of Planned Parenthood and the sale of aborted babies’ body parts. Becerra did not investigate Planned Parenthood over the sales. The long-running court case against the pair of activists included raids on Daleiden’s home, possible jail time, and thousands of dollars in fines. Under Becerra, HHS could work to undo pro-life regulations the Trump administration instituted such as cutting off Title X family planning funding to facilities that provide or refer for abortion.

Dig deeper: From the WORLD archives, read Jamie Dean’s report about why even some secular news outlets balked at Becerra’s campaign against Daleiden and Merritt.