LifeNews.com Pro-Life News Report
Wednesday, December 16, 2009
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Current Headlines
• Obama Has Only 59 Votes for Pro-Abortion Health Care as He Meets Democrats
• Bob Casey Will Likely Back Senate Health Care Bill Despite Abortion Funding
• Roland Burris May Put Kink in Democrats' Plan for 60 Votes on Health Care
• Nebraska Sen. Nelson Says He Does Not Back Pro-Abortion Health Care Bill
• Catholic Bishops Send Another Letter to Senate to Cut Abortion From Bill
• Police Find Body of Unborn Baby Killed in Abortion in Christmas Gift Box
• Pro-Life Group Behind Planned Parenthood Abortion Expose' Wants Probe
• Settlement in Botched Abortion Shows Horrid Condition of Abortion Centers
• Pro-Life Group to Go Christmas Caroling at Chicago-Area Abortion Facilities
• District of Columbia Officials Ready to Pay for Abortions Once Obama Signs Bill
• Texas Gov Hopeful Kay Bailey Hutchison Under Fire for Missing Pro-Life Vote
• Minnesota Marks 14 Years of Court-Mandated Taxpayer-Funded Abortions
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Obama Has Only 59 Votes for Pro-Abortion Health Care Bill as He Meets Democrats
Washington, DC (LifeNews.com) -- President Barack Obama today met with Senate Democrats in a last-ditch effort to corral his caucus together behind a health care bill that contains massive abortion funding. As they gathered, it appeared from public statements that Obama has just 59 votes for the bill, but needing 60 to pass it.
Obama told lawmakers today at the White House meeting that "it's clear" Congress is "on the precipice" of passing the pro-abortion health care bill.
"There are some differences that still have to be worked on," he said at the White House, but "there is broad consensus around reforms." "There's too much at stake," Obama warned Democrats and he reportedly told them, according to CNN that they "simply cannot let differences" on some parts of the bill derail the entire bill. "I'm feeling cautiously optimistic we can get this done," he added in remarks shortly after meeting with the Democrats.
The day started with what political observers see as a turnaround by pro-abortion independent Connecticut Sen. Joe Lieberman.
At one point, Lieberman appeared to be a potential no vote on the bill because of his opposition to the government-run public option and Medicare expansion. With Obama and Senate Leader Harry Reid pledging to water down the public option and keep the Medicare expansion out of the bill, Lieberman made several comments today making it appear he would likely support it. Full story at LifeNews.com
Bob Casey Will Likely Back Senate Health Care Bill Despite Abortion Funding
Washington, DC (LifeNews.com) -- Pennsylvania Sen. Bob Casey, who claims to be one of two pro-life Democrats in the Senate, made it appear today that he will likely vote for the Senate's government-run health care bill. He would do so despite the massive abortion funding found in the bill that could result in tax-funding of hundreds of thousands of abortions.
Casey voted for the Nelson amendment to remove the abortion funding, but said today after a White House meeting with President Barack Obama and Senate Democrats that the process needs to move forward.
Casey did not directly say he would vote for the bill, but his comments were the most forward-looking yet in terms of him giving an indication of how he will vote.
Casey told The Hill that, during the meeting with Obama, Senate Democrats appeared to agree on the notion that "we have to get it done." He said the caucus agreed that "we've got to act" and "move as quickly as we can in a matter of days" to pass a bill, he told reporters after the meeting.
"There were a number of people, several people, who I won't name to protect their identities, who said, 'I don't like this about this bill... but we need the vote and I'm going to support it,'" Casey said. "That kind of sentiment is important, and sometimes people don't get to that until you're at the end of the process," he added.
Casey said the debate over abortion funding never came up. Full story at LifeNews.com
Roland Burris May Put Kink in Obama-Democrats' Plan for 60 Votes on Health Care
Washington, DC (LifeNews.com) -- On a day when Democrats emerged triumphantly from a meeting with President Barack Obama appearing to have won the vote of Joe Lieberman for their pro-abortion health care bill, they may not be ready to celebrate yet. The Lieberman vote appeared to allow Democrats and Obama to secure 59 votes.
The only holdout left appeared to be pro-life Sen. Ben Nelson of Nebraska who says he won't vote for the bill because it funds abortions.
Political observers need to hang on to their hats because pro-abortion Sen. Rolland Burris of Illinois, ironically the lawmakers appointed to take Obama's seat until the next election, may throw the Senate for a loop.
Burris says that now that the public option has been emaciated to get Lieberman's support, he may very well vote no on the bill.
The black Democrat is beholden to no one and is already something of a rebel because Senate Democrats didn't want him to be in the chamber after he was named by embattled pro-abortion Gov. Rod Blagojevich to replace Obama.
"I am committed to voting for a bill that achieves the goals of a public option: competition, cost savings and accountability," he said Monday night on the Senate floor. "I will not be able to vote for lesser legislation that ignores those fundamentals." "My colleagues may have forged a compromise bill that can achieve the 60 votes that will be needed for it to pass. But until this bill addresses cost, competition and accountability in a meaningful way, it will not win mine," he added. Full story at LifeNews.com
Nebraska Sen. Ben Nelson Says He Does Not Back Pro-Abortion Health Care Bill
Washington, DC (LifeNews.com) -- Nebraska Sen. Ben Nelson is holding out against the Senate health care bill because it funds abortions.
Nelson has pledged to filibuster the bill if his demand to remove the massive abortion funding, which could lead to tax-funding of hundreds of thousands of abortions, is not removed from the bill. He sponsored an amendment to do that, but the Senate defeated it.
In recent comments, Nelson remains firm on wanting the abortion funding removed and his commitment to filibuster if that doesn't happen.
"I'm not blockheaded and I'm not stubborn," Nelson said in an interview on Monday with the Associated Press. "I've carved out what I can live with and what I can't live with." "I can't get there [to vote for the bill without the abortion funding ban]," he said.
"I still have the unique issue of abortion," Nelson said on Sunday's Face the Nation. "I've said I can't support the bill with the abortion language that's there." Nelson said some of his Senate colleagues are working on a compromise, but he didn't think there was a way to satisfy both his and pro-life concerns as well as finding language that abortion advocates would accept. Full story at LifeNews.com
Catholic Bishops Send Another Letter to Senate to Cut Abortion From Health Care
Washington, DC (LifeNews.com) -- The nation's Catholic bishops are back with another letter to members of the Senate asking them to remove the language from the government-run health care bill that could pave the way for taxpayer funding of hundreds of thousands of abortions every year.
The bishops again urged senators to place Hyde Amendment-type language into proposed health care reform legislation. They said the move would then place the health care bill in line with policies now governing all other federal health programs.
They made their request in a December 14 letter from Cardinal Daniel DiNardo of Galveston-Houston, chair of the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops' (USCCB) Committee on Pro-Life Activities.
A major problem with the current health care reform legislation in the Senate , Cardinal DiNardo said, is that "it explicitly authorizes the use of federal funds to subsidize health plans covering elective abortions for the first time in history." Full story at LifeNews.com
Police Find Body of Unborn Baby Killed in Abortion in Christmas Gift Box
Mission, TX (LifeNews.com) -- In a bizarre case that is beginning to draw national attention, police in a city in south Texas say they have found the remains of an unborn baby victimized by abortion placed in a Christmas gift box. The incident took place in this city near McAllen, on the Texas side of the Mexican border.
Officials say Ruby Lee Medina and her boyfriend Javier Gonzalez placed the remains of a seven-month-old unborn child neatly in a box and, as some reports indicate, set the box under their Christmas tree.
Medina, 31, and Gonzalez, 37, both of whom reside in Mission, have been charged with abuse of a corpse and tampering with evidence. Police official told the Associated Press they found the baby's remains last Thursday after getting a tip, San Juan Police Chief Juan Gonzalez said.
A detective investigating the case went to the couple's mobile home and found blood throughout the place. Gonzalez says Medina reportedly used pills to cause an abortion. The mifepristone abortion drug was made to be used at approximately seven weeks into pregnancy to kill an unborn child, but the second part of the two-drug process, misoprostol, can be used to cause contractions. Full story at LifeNews.com
Pro-Life Group Behind Planned Parenthood Abortion Expose' Video Wants Probe
Appleton, WI (LifeNews.com) -- The pro-life group behind the new video exposing Planned Parenthood staff misleading women about abortion and fetal development is pressing for an investigation. Live Action's latest video has an abortion practitioner and staffer saying abortion does not kill a human being.
The video also shows the staff misleading two women posing as potential abortion customers by telling them that the heart of the unborn child doesn't begin to beat until late in pregnancy -- instead of at about 22 days as is the case.
Today, Lila Rose, the president of the group, told LifeNews.com that it has sent the full unedited footage to Attorney General J.B. Van Hollen and Outagamie County District Attorney Carrie Schneider for review.
"Planned Parenthood poses as a mainstream health provider but their actions reflect just the opposite: they hide the scientific facts of fetal development so they can sell more abortions to more women," she told LifeNews.com. "An abortion is not a mere surgery. Instead, abortion determines whether a woman's unborn son or daughter will live or die," Rose added. Full story at LifeNews.com
Settlement in Botched Abortion Case Shows Horrid Condition of Abortion Centers
Englewood, NJ (LifeNews.com) -- The $1.9 million payout in a New Jersey botched abortion case is prompting one pro-life leader to point out how the conditions at abortion centers are horrid. The case shows how abortions hurt women, even after legalization, and how abortion centers don't necessarily place women's welfare as a priority.
The Metropolitan Medical Associates abortion business, based in Englewood, New Jersey, did an abortion in January 2007 on Newark resident Rasheedah Dinkins that went horribly wrong.
Dinkins, who is now 22, became severely ill following the abortion and was transferred to Newark Beth Israel Medical Center where she needed blood transfusions and had her uterus removed. She also suffered a stroke due to the serious blood loss and had one of her lungs collapse.
MMA has settled the $1.9 million lawsuit after Dinkins said her mother and hospital officials told her she died en route to the medical facility. She eventually spent a month in a coma before recovering. Operation Rescue president Troy Newman says the settlement raises questions about the quality and safety of abortion facilities that will be eligible for tax-funding should health care reform now under consideration in the Senate include abortion coverage. Full story at LifeNews.com
Pro-Life Group to Go Christmas Caroling at Chicago-Area Abortion Facilities
Chicago, IL (LifeNews.com) -- The Christmas story of the birth of Jesus Christ is the ultimate portrayal of a single mother with an unplanned pregnancy that ends in an overwhelming success. With that in mind, local pro-life advocates in Chicago can't think of a better place to share that story than area abortion facilities.
This Christmas, the Pro-Life Action League will hold its seventh annual "Empty Manger" Christmas Caroling Day at local abortion centers.
On Saturday, two caroling tours will head out to Planned Parenthood and other abortion centers with one tour visiting four Chicago abortion facilities and one visiting four in DuPage County.
"The Christmas story is a story of hope and joy brought into the world by a newborn baby," PLAL communications director Eric Scheidler told LifeNews.com. "We want abortion-bound mothers in Chicago and the western suburbs to know that their unborn babies are a gift, too."
The pro-life group has saved babies from abortion in past years when their mothers heard the caroling. "One mother told our counselor that hearing 'Silent Night' made her think about how Mary said yes to God -- and then she couldn't go through with the abortion," said Scheidler. Full story at LifeNews.com
District of Columbia Officials Ready to Pay for Abortions Once Obama Signs Bill
Washington, DC (LifeNews.com) -- The House and Senate have approved a bill that will overturn the 13-year-long ban on paying for abortions in the nation's capital. Once President Barack Obama signs the bill, which he is expected to do, officials in the District of Columbia say they are ready to move ahead with taxpayer-funded abortions.
The Senate approved an omnibus spending bill on Sunday that lifts the Dornan amendment that prohibited abortion funding in the District.
With local officials now making the decision to use taxpayer funds for abortions, they tell Fox News they are already making preparations. "We've already started to study the issues," a City Council staffer said.
The staffer suggested the abortion funding issue would likely come up next year and that abortion funding could be added to the D.C. Healthcare Alliance, which is the city of Washington's publicly-funded health care program for low-income residents.
FOX News indicated Council Chairman Vincent Gray called the move to allow abortion funding a "bold step" by Congress. Doxie McCoy, spokeswoman for Gray, discussed the situation and said the city council would likely support any legislation to enact the change, although it is not known if a bill is needed to make it happen. Full story at LifeNews.com
Texas Governor Hopeful Kay Bailey Hutchison Under Fire for Missing Pro-Life Vote
Austin, TX (LifeNews.com) -- Texas gubernatorial candidate Kay Bailey Hutchison is coming under fire from a prominent pro-life group for missing an important pro-life vote. Texas Right to Life is blasting Hutchison, who is taking on pro-life Gov. Rick Perry in the hotly contested Republican primary early next year.
In a new email to supporters, Texas Right to Life opens with a huge picture of pro-life leaders across the state meeting with Perry. "Pro-lifers trust Gov. Rick Perry," the headline reads. "Senator Hutchison missed the chance to oppose the promotion of the most anti-life judge in the country."
The email refers to the cloture vote on President Barack Obama's nomination of pro-abortion federal judge David Hamilton to serve on a federal appeals court.
The Senate voted on November 17 on cloture to stop the pro-life Republican filibuster, and the cloture vote succeeded 70-29. Hutchison was the only senator from either party to miss the vote.
Later, senators ultimately voted to approve the Hamilton nomination by a 59-39 margin with Hutchison voting with Republicans against it. Full story at LifeNews.com
Minnesota Marks 14 Years of Court-Mandated Taxpayer-Funded Abortions
St. Paul, MN (LifeNews.com) -- Congress is primed to approve a health care bill that could wind up as the biggest expansion of taxpayer funded abortions in the nation's history. Residents of Minnesota can sympathize with their American counterparts in other states as their state tax dollars have paid for abortions for 14 years.
More than 47,000 unborn babies have been killed in Minnesota since the December 15, 1995 Minnesota Supreme Court Doe v. Gomez ruling.
From June 1994 through 2007, state taxpayers paid more than $14 million for 47,115 abortions, according to the Minnesota Department of Human Services (MDHS).
In 2007 alone, the most recent year for which data is available, state taxpayers paid $1.58 million for 3,914 abortions
The decision established what Minnesota Citizens Concerned for Life executive director Scott Fischbach tells LifeNews.com is the most extreme abortion-on-demand policy in the nation. Full story at LifeNews.com
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