Komen Executive Karen Handel Quits After Planned Parenthood Controversy

A top executive at the Susan G. Komen for the Cure foundation resigned today just days after the group reversed its controversial decision to defund Planned Parenthood.

Karen Handel resigned on Tuesday; she was the group’s vice president for public policy. Handel was a Republican candidate in the Georgia gubernatorial race in 2010, when she made her anti-abortion sentiments clear, and condemned Planned Parenthood’s mission. In her resignation letter, Handel claims that a discussion about cutting funding from Planned Parenthood was already in the works when she joined Komen, noting the final decision was one that was “fully vetted by every appropriate level within the organization.”

“I am deeply disappointed by the gross mischaracterizations of the strategy, its rationale, and my involvement in it,” Handel wrote. “I openly acknowledge my role in the matter and continue to believe our decision was the best one for Komen’s future and the women we serve. … Neither the decision nor the changes themselves were based on anyone’s political beliefs or ideology.”

According to the Associated Press, an anonymous source with direct knowledge of the decision-making process at Komen said Handel was a driving force behind the granting strategy overhaul. The source told the AP that the new rubric used when making the funding decision was crafted with Planned Parenthood’s exclusion in mind. Information on how the new granting changes impacted Planned Parenthood was also highlighted, the source told the AP.

Handel declined to take a severance package from Komen. She’s slated to speak with reporters in Atlanta this afternoon.

Naima Ramos-Chapman is an associate editor at Campus Progress.

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