JEFFERSON CITY - Gov. Matt Blunt's health director is using private attorneys to defend against a lawsuit challenging Missouri's new, more stringent requirements for abortion clinics.
State agencies typically are defended in court by the attorney general's office.
But health Director Jane Drummond says she does not trust Attorney General Jay Nixon to defend the department against Planned Parenthood's lawsuit. Drummond claims Nixon is a supporter of ``abortion on demand and a political ally of Planned Parenthood.''
A Nixon spokesman had no immediate comment.
Blunt is a Republican. Nixon is a Democrat who also is running for governor.
The lawsuit seeks an injunction blocking the abortion law from taking effect next Tuesday.