Thursday, May 7, 2009

FROM LIFENEWS.COM: TODAY'S PRO-LIFE HEADLINES

President Obama's New Budget Calls for Tax-Funded Abortions in Nation's Capital
Washington, DC (LifeNews.com) -- President Barack Obama's new federal budget calls for taxpayer funded abortions in the nation's capital. Although Obama has promised Americans he wants to reduce the number of abortions, one pro-life group says he is violating that promise by calling for taxpayer-financed abortions in the District of Columbia. The budget Obama submitted to Congress urges the House and Senate to repeal a law sometimes called the Dornan amendment that has prevented tax-funded abortion in the District of Columbia for many years. Congress, as authorized by the U.S. Constitution, holds complete legislative authority over the District of Columbia and, therefore, determines whether taxpayer dollars will be used to fund abortions for poor women there. Although Congress has banned taxpayer-funded abortions in D.C. for years, the budget Obama released today, on Appendix page 1209 asks Congress to repeal the ban. Douglas Johnson, the legislative director of the National Right to Life Committee, told LifeNews.com on Thursday that the Obama budget makes it clear that the president has little interest in reducing abortions. "In reality, President Obama is pursuing a step-by-step strategy to expand access to abortion, and today's step is to urge Congress to authorize the funding of abortion on demand in the nation's capital, with funds appropriated by Congress," he said. Full story at LifeNews.com
House GOP Demands Probe of Obama Admin Report Saying Pro-Lifers Extremists
Washington, DC (LifeNews.com) -- House Republicans have used a rare Congressional procedure to force a potential probe of documents the Obama administration released calling pro-life people "right-wing extremists." The move forces a Congressional panel to vote on a resolution calling for an investigation. The Obama administration is under fire for two different documents that have placed the majority of Americans who are pro-life in a bad light. The first, a security document sent to police and sheriffs' offices nationwide, including people "who oppose abortion" in a list of groups and people who may be likely to engage in terrorism. The second document, known as the "Domestic Extremism Lexicon," calls pro-life advocates violent and claims they employ racist overtones in engaging in criminal actions. Upset with the documents, Republican members of the House Homeland Security Committee, along with pro-life Minority Whip Eric Cantor of Virginia and pro-life Rep. Mike Pence of Indiana, have filed a resolution demanding that Congress ask Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano to detail how and why the report was compiled. According to a Washington Times report, House Republicans filed a request under a special "resolution of inquiry" clause of the House rules that forces the committee to vote on the resolution within 14 days. Full story at LifeNews.com
 
Democrats for Life of America will hold their annual conference and Hall of Fame dinner on June 17 at the Phoenix Hotel in Washington. Meet pro-life Democrats! See http://www.DemocratsForLife.org for more information on the conference and dinner.

New Probe Shows Obama's Funding UNFPA Supports Kidnapping Babies, Abortion
by Steven Mosher
Our own Colin Mason is back from China. His week-long undercover investigation of revealed fresh abuses in China's One-Child policy and new proof of the U.N. Population Fund's complicity in these abuses. Remember that the UNFPA has been in China since 1979 helping the Beijing authorities to implement their program. Colin visited three counties where the U.N. Population Fund claims to run "voluntary" family planning programs, and found that they were anything but. What struck me about his investigation, as someone who has been following the policy for three decades, was how the fines for "illegal" children have been increased in recent years. The fines for having an illegal child are now three to five times the family's income. The equivalent fine in the U.S. would be $150 to $250 thousand dollars. Couples have to mortgage their future for decades "literally" in order to be able to borrow enough money to pay off these fines. The government insists on calling this extortion "social compensation fees" as if the parents were simply defraying the cost to society of another child but in reality they are heavily punitive. Faced with the prospect of such a fine, many couples "voluntarily" submit to an abortion and sterilization. What happens if you don't pay the fine? In Guangxi province, what reportedly happens is that illegal newborns are taken into custody by government officials, who hold the infants until the parents are able to scrape together enough money to pay the huge fine. In other words, the babies are kidnapped and held for ransom!
Full story at LifeNews.com
New Poll: Catholics and Public Oppose Notre Dame Awarding President Obama
South Bend, IN (LifeNews.com) -- A new poll conducted by respected polling firm Rasmussen Reports finds a majority of Catholics and the American public oppose the University of Notre Dame's decision to give an honorary law degree to pro-abortion President Barack Obama. The Catholic college has come under intense criticism for awarding Obama and allowing him to give its commencement address. The Rasmussen Reports telephone survey found that, by a 60-25 percent margin, Catholics say Notre Dame should obey guidelines issued by the U.S. bishops and refrain from awarding an honorary degree to the president. Among all Americans, 52 percent oppose the honor and just 25 percent support it. “Faithful Catholics are sick to the heart over this scandal, which reflects decades of such scandals in our Catholic institutions,” Patrick Reilly, the president of the Cardinal Newman Society, told LifeNews.com. Full story at LifeNews.com

Amnesty International Twists Intl Law in Dominican Republic Abortion Debate
by Piero A. Tozzi, J.D.
New York, NY (LifeNews.com/CFAM) -- The politicized human rights organization Amnesty International has again taken a pro-abortion position in a nation's internal debate over abortion, coming out against the Dominican Republic's proposed protections for unborn life in its draft constitution and in the country's penal law. In so doing, Amnesty pits the rights of the mother against those of the unborn child while misrepresenting what international law says  or doesn't say  about abortion. In a statement issued a few weeks ago, Amnesty International claims that the country's constitutional and legal reforms "could lead to violations of women's human rights" and further claims that laws penalizing abortion would lead to increased maternal mortality. It also argued that the proposed protections of the unborn were inconsistent with the Dominican Republic's "obligations under international human rights law." According to Amnesty, the penal law revisions "would increase penalties for persons involved in carrying out an abortion." Amnesty criticized the proposed revisions for allowing criminal prosecution of abortionists "for providing abortion services that are safe." Critics point out, however, that in addition to being fatal to the child in utero, maternal health risks from abortion outweigh those associated with childbirth, particularly where the level of obstetric care is low. Full story at LifeNews.com


 
Intl Planned Parenthood UN Petition For Making Sex Rights Equal Abortion Lagging
New York, NY (LifeNews.com/CFAM) -- The International Planned Parenthood Federation (IPPF) recently launched a new petition campaign that aims to pressure governments to "promote, protect and fulfill their promise to provide better access to sexual and reproductive health services" for all young people "regardless of age." The petition was launched in commemoration of the fifteenth anniversary of the International Conference on Population and Development (Cairo, 1994). The petition promotes the message "Count Me In: Sexual Rights For All." "Sexual rights" are not included in the ICPD program of action that the IPPF petition campaign is centered around. According to the official conference report, not only is the term not included in the ICPD program of action, but it only appears as part of reservations from countries objecting to any inclusion in the text. To date, the term "sexual rights" has never appeared in any binding, negotiated UN document  attributable to controversy over attempts by some to include abortion within its definition. Full story at LifeNews.com
 
Our goal is to remember each victim of today’s holocaust by granting them their own unique name. Please adopt a child into your family and grant them your last name. By naming each child we clothe them with the human dignity they deserve. Be a voice for the voiceless. http//www.supportpersonhood.com

North Carolina Families Tell State Legislature to Approve New Unborn Victims Bill
Raleigh, NC (LifeNews.com) -- Three families of murder victims told members of the North Carolina legislature on Wednesday that they support HB 890, the Unborn Victims of Violence Act. The families said the bill is needed to bring them justice when their loved ones -- a pregnant woman and her unborn child -- are killed or injured in violent crimes. North Carolina, unlike 36 other states, does not have a law on the books allowing prosecutors to charge defendants with killing or injuring the unborn child when they attack a pregnant woman. Although the culprit may serve jail time for the death of or injury to the mother, there is no punishment and no justice for the crime committed against the baby. Michele Dye, Kevin Blaine, and Effie Steele were among those urging the legislature to support the bill. Dye, whose daughter and the unborn child she was carrying were both brutally murdered in Gaston County, called upon House Judiciary Chair Deborah Ross and Speaker Joe Hackney to allow the Unborn Victims Bill 890 a proper hearing in the Judiciary committee, followed by a debate and recorded vote on the House floor. Full story at LifeNews.com


 
Kansas Supreme Court to Hold Hearing Wednesday in Planned Parenthood Case
Topeka, KS (LifeNews.com) -- The Kansas Supreme Court will hold a hearing next Wednesday in a case involving an Overland Park Planned Parenthood center under investigation for allegedly doing illegal abortions and falsifying medical records. The abortion business has been feuding with former state attorney general Phill Kline. The court will determine whether subpoenas Kline issued for medical records from the Planned Parenthood facility can be enforced. Kline, also the former Johnson County District Attorney, filed 107 charges against the abortion business for allegedly violating state law. Planned Parenthood has been trying to get back copies of the abortion records Kline obtained. Two judges have determined that the files show "probable cause" that the abortion business violated state abortion laws and falsified medical records. Kline legally received the records during his investigation of Planned Parenthood and transferred them to his new office when he became the county attorney. The state high court will also hear about four subpoenas Klline filed and a Johnson County district judge quashed for four witnesses to testify in the case. Full story at LifeNews.com
 


New Zealand Health Commissioner: Women Should See Ultrasound Before Abortion
Wellington, New Zealand (LifeNews.com) -- The Health and Disability Commissioner has responded to a complaint from New Zealand Right to Life saying some district health boards are not allowing women a chance to seen an ultrasound before an abortion. When used in pregnancy centers ultrasounds, more than 80 percent of women decide not to have one. Right to Life conducted a survey of the 13 district health boards and found that those in Auckland, Waikato, Wairarapa and Canterbury did not offer the ultraounds. Waikato DHB told the pro-life group that it was an "infringement of the patient's rights" to allow women the right to see images of their unborn child before an abortion so they are fully informed. Right to Life spokesman Ken Orr says allowing women a chance to receive informed consent by seeing the ultrasounds will help lower the number of abortions. According to the Dominion Post, health commissioner Commissioner Ron Paterson has written a letter to Waikato District Health board chief executive Craig Climo saying women should have the choice to see an ultraound.
"She needs the information that she has the ability to view the scan to make this choice," he wrote. Full story at LifeNews.com


 
Kansas Budget Heads to Gov Without Funding Pro-Abortion Planned Parenthood
Topeka, KS (LifeNews.com) -- The Kansas state budget is heading soon to new Kansas Gov. Mark Parkinson and when he signs or vetoes it, he will be determining whether Kansans are forced to send their tax dollars to Planned Parenthood. Should Parkinson sign the bill, Kansas will become just the seventh state to zero out funding for the abortion business. Although state tax dollars don't pay directly for abortions, state legislators cut out funding because Planned Parenthood does abortions -- including late-term abortions at its Overland Park facility. That center is embroiled in a case involving charges that will head to the Kansas Supreme Court next week alleging that some of the late-term abortions were illegal and that it falsified medical records to cover up that fact. Knowing the allegations, State Senator Tim Huelskamp announced an effort last December to end taxpayer funding of Planned Parenthood in Kansas.
"Planned Parenthood, the largest abortion provider in the nation, has come under increasing scrutiny for alleged criminal violations, including illegal late-term abortions and failure to report sexual abuse of young girls," he told LifeNews.com. Full story at LifeNews.com





George Washington University Honors Group That Vandalized Pro-Life Display
Washington, DC (LifeNews.com) -- Officials at George Washington University have finally taken action in response to a February incident, which saw members of the College Democrats group vandalize a pro-life display. Instead of disciplining the students involved, GWU has honored the political group. A campus affiliate of the pro-life conservative group Young America's Foundation erected the pro-life display in January featuring crosses to remember babies killed in abortions. However, members of the College Republican group, which shares a student office with the Democrats, found some of the crosses in the office. The crosses were scattered throughout the joint office and some of them were pinned upside down on a bulletin board and anti-Christian messages were scrawled on them. Others had condoms affixed to them. Instead of stating whether or not any students have been reprimanded and apparently refusing to investigate the vandalism, GWO has instead honored the College Democrats group as the "Most Outstanding Student Organization of The Year." Rob Lockwood, the president of GW Young America's Foundation talked with LifeNews.com about the news. He called the GWU award "appalling for a group who did relatively little positive on this campus, and sponsored the most hateful thing this campus has seen in a while."
Full story at LifeNews.com



Arkansas Man Faces July Trial for Nearly Hitting Pro-Life Advocates With Car
Fayetville, AR (LifeNews.com) -- An Arkansas man faces a January trial in connection with an incident that saw him nearly hit a group of pro-life people outside an abortion business last October. Jason Bryant Shireman was apprehended by police and charged with three counts of aggravated assault following the altercation. The pro-life advocates were standing on the curb just off of College Avenue in front of the Fayetteville Women's Clinic abortion business. According to the Northwest Arkansas Times, witnesses at the scene say Shireman purposefully drove his suburban onto the curb in an attempt to hit or scare the sidewalk counselors outside the abortion center. Shireman told police that he drove onto the sidewalk to show the pro-life students "what he thought about them" but denied trying to hit them with the vehicle. The charges include a class D felony with a prison sentence of up to six years and a $10,000 fine if convicted. Now, a bench trial has been set for July 29 before 4th Judicial Circuit Judge William Storey. It had been set for Wednesday but a police officer in the case was recently called up to Army reserves and will not be able to testify.
Full story at LifeNews.com