Undaunted by a day of ridicule from the leader of his own party, an Indiana state lawmaker said yesterday he's standing by his allegations that the Girl Scouts is a radical organization that promotes abortions and homosexuality. Both the scouts and Planned Parenthood dismissed Rep. Bob Morris' comments as absurd, as did Republican House Speaker Brian Bosma. But the Fort Wayne Republican told WRTV in Indianapolis that people need to scrutinize the 100-year-old scouting organization. "What I suggest and urge parents to do is do their own research. That’s what my wife I did. Do your own research in regards to the Girl Scouts," he said. Morris' comments were the butt of jokes inside the House on Tuesday, with Bosma spending much of the day handing out Thin Mints to lawmakers. He joked that Morris' comments led him to buy hundreds of cases of the famous Girl Scout cookies. Morris' comments about the Girl Scouts came in a letter he sent to House Republicans on Saturday that accused the scouts of being a ``tactical arm'' of Planned Parenthood. The Girl Scouts flatly denied Morris' charges, and Planned Parenthood of Indiana issued a separate statement calling Morris' charges ``woefully inaccurate.'' (Information for this story came from the Associated Press)
Rick Howlett was midday host and the host of LPM's weekly talk show, "In Conversation." He was with LPM from 2001-2023 and held many different titles, including Morning Edition host, Assignment Editor and Interim News Director. He died in August 2023. Read a remembrance of Rick here.
