LifeNews.com Pro-Life News Report
Tuesday, February 23, 2010
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Current Headlines
• Obama Unveils Health Care Plan, Violates Pledge by Keeping Abortion Funding
• Analysis: Obama Plan Increases Abortion Funding Via Community Health Centers
• White House Joins Pelosi, Reid in Supporting Reconciliation on Health Care Bill
• Pro-Life Groups Blast Obama for Funding Abortions in His Health Care Plan
• Health Care Rationing for Seniors is Another Problem in New Obama Plan
• Latest 40 Days for Life Campaign Spares 45 Unborn Children From Abortions
• Trial Starts Tuesday for Michigan Man Accused of Killing Pro-Life Advocate
• University of Wisconsin Accused of Illegally Funding Students at Abortion Centers
• Idaho Senate Passes Bill to Protect Conscience Rights of Pro-Life Workers
• Mexico Poll Shows People Split on Abortion as 35K Abortions Done in Mexico City
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Washington, DC (LifeNews.com) -- President Barack Obama has proposed changes he thinks should be included in the changes made to the Senate health care bill as Democrats move ahead with their plan to railroad the bill thorough Congress via reconciliation. However, Obama does not propose any changes to the massive abortion funding.In fact, analysis from one pro-life organization finds Obama's plan actually increases the total potential abortion funding.
The current Senate bill contains massive abortion funding that could force taxpayers to fund hundreds of thousands of abortions and it has other pro-abortion problems. But the new Obama health care proposal, unveiled today in advance of the White House health care summit, leaves intact that Senate language funding abortions.
It opens the door for Rep. Bart Stupak, whose amendment stopped abortion funding in the House version of the bill that will be tossed aside, to gather a group of 10-12 pro-life Democrats who voted for the House bill to oppose the Senate version.
The Obama plan also violates his pledge to Congress and the American people that his version of health care reform would not force taxpayers to fund abortions.
In a September nationally-televised speech to Congress, Obama sought to clear up projections from pro-life advocates that his health care plan would fund abortions. "One more misunderstanding I want to clear up -- under our plan, no federal dollars will be used to fund abortions," Obama claimed. Full story at LifeNews.com
Analysis: Obama Plan Increases Abortion Funding Via Community Health Centers
Washington, DC (LifeNews.com) -- The initial analysis of the new health care plan President Barack Obama released finds it does nothing to stop the massive abortion funding under the Senate health care bill. Now, a leading pro-life group has released additional research showing the Obama plan actually increases abortion funding.
In the manager's amendment Senate Leader Harry Reid added to the Senate health care bill, HR 3590, a little noticed provision allowed $7 billion in funding for Community Health Centers buried deep in Section 10503 of the 383-page amendment.
Pro-life groups already condemned the provision because the money could be funneled to abortion businesses to pay for abortions and will not be subject to provisions like the Hyde Amendment that stops abortion funding.
Now, officials at the National Right to Life Committee say Obama "actually proposes to increase the funds that would be available to directly subsidize abortion procedures (through Community Health Centers)."
Douglas Johnson, the legislative director of the National Right to Life Committee, explains that Obama's plan would also "subsidize private health insurance that covers abortion (through the premium-subsidy tax credits program)."
"If all of the President's changes were made, the resulting legislation would allow direct federal funding of abortion on demand through Community Health Centers, would institute federal subsidies for private health plans that cover abortion on demand (including some federally administered plans), and would authorize federal mandates that would require even non-subsidized private plans to cover elective abortion," he tells LifeNews.com today. Full story at LifeNews.com
White House Joins Pelosi, Reid in Supporting Reconciliation on Health Care Bill
Washington, DC (LifeNews.com) -- The Obama administration has joined House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and Senate Leader Harry Reid in pushing to use the controversial reconciliation tactic to railroad the pro-abortion Senate health care bill through Congress by refusing to allow opponents to filibuster the bill.
In the course of unveiling the changes President Barack Obama believes should be made to the Senate bill -- none of which stop the massive abortion funding in it -- White House officials announced support for reconciliation.
The President expects and believes the American people deserve an up or down vote on health reform, White House communications director Dan Pfeiffer said in a conference call with reporters. This package is designed to provide us the flexibility to achieve that if the Republicans decide to filibuster.
Several news sources indicate Pfeiffer said that if Republicans continue to filibuster the health care bill, Obama and his pro-abortion Democratic allies will move forward with reconciliation.
He said Obama s proposal is designed to have maximum flexibility to ensure that we can get an up or down vote if the opposition decides to take the extraordinary step of filibustering health reform.
The new Obama plan comes days before a scheduled White House health care summit, which Republicans and pro-life advocates are viewing as a publicity stunt designed to show an appearance of bipartisanship and to sell the pro-abortion health care bill to the media and the public. Full story at LifeNews.com
Washington, DC (LifeNews.com) -- Saying this was President Barack Obama's last chance to make good on his promise that his health care plan would not fund abortions, pro-life groups are blasting his new health care proposal. They say Obama has confirmed what many in the pro-life movement have all suspected all along: funding abortions is more important to him than health care reform.
"In a last gasp to save his top domestic priority, President Obama is taking a new approach to health care: bipartisanship. Yet his proposal released today missed the mark on the most significant area of bipartisan agreement: limiting public funds for abortion," Susan B. Anthony List president Marjorie Dannenfelser told LifeNews.com.
The pro-life women's group leader says Obama continues to ignore polling data showing a strong, bipartisan majority of Americans don't want abortion funding.
A recent Quinnipiac poll found 67% of Americans oppose the inclusion of taxpayer-funded abortion in health care reform legislation.
"Over seventy percent of Americans oppose funding abortion through health care reform legislation. And last fall, one quarter of the President s own party joined Republicans to support the consensus Stupak-Pitts Amendment to exclude abortion coverage in the House," Dannenfelser said. Full story at LifeNews.com
Health Care Rationing for Seniors is Another Problem in New Obama Plan
Washington, DC (LifeNews.com) -- The new health care plan President Barack Obama released today contains massive abortion funding, but a top pro-life attorney who monitors bioethics issues says it presents other concerns. The changes Obama proposes to the Senate health care bill also promote rationing.
Burke Balch, an attorney who is the director of the Robert Powell Center for Medical Ethics at the National Right to Life Committee, explained the problems to LifeNews.com.
"The Obama health care proposal issued this morning would take away from America s senior citizens their current right to add their own money on top of the government Medicare contribution to get health insurance less likely to deny treatment through tightly controlled managed care," Balch said.
"It would do so even as it cuts the government contribution to Medicare by hundreds of billions of dollars," he adds.
Under Title III . . . Guaranteeing Benefits for Seniors by Ending Overpayments to Insurance Companies, Balch notes that the Obama proposal talks about Medicare Advantage plans -- the alternative that now allows older Americans, if they wish, to pay more to get insurance less likely to ration treatment. Full story at LifeNews.com
Latest 40 Days for Life Campaign Spares 45 Unborn Children From Abortions
Washington, DC (LifeNews.com) -- The latest 40 Days for Life pro-life prayer campaign is only six days along, but organizers say reports from local pro-life advocates show it has already saved the lives of 45 unborn children from abortions. The campaign has thousands of pro-life advocates helping women at abortion centers nationwide.
"Thus far during this 40 Days for life campaign, 45 lives have already been saved from abortion," national coordinator David Bereit told LifeNews.com.
He said the news was an excellent way for pro-life advocates to start their week.
Bereit pointed to examples of lives saved locally and noted that pro-life advocates in Louisville, Kentucky helped three women change their minds about abortion.
"One woman had been given a coupon for a free ultrasound at the pro-life pregnancy center across the street. She went inside the abortion facility -- but only stayed five minutes before leaving and going to the pro-life center, where she used that coupon," he said.
A pro-life advocate named Tammy indicated abortion center staffers "were so mad they came out and started yelling at us." Full story at LifeNews.com
Trial Starts Tuesday for Michigan Man Accused of Killing Pro-Life Advocate
Owosso, MI (LifeNews.com) -- The trial of Harlan Drake, the Michigan man who stands accused of killing pro-life advocate James Pouillon as he protested abortion outside a local high school, begins on Tuesday. Prosecutors say it may be difficult to get a fair jury to consider the case because local people knew both men involved.
Jury selection begins tomorrow, but in this small Michigan town everyone knows everyone else.
As a result, there may not be a way to get a fair-minded jury that either doesn't love or hate abortion and James Pouillon's frequent protests of it.
However, Judge Gerald Lostracco, according to an AP report, says he will not move the trial unless he becomes convinced a jury pool will not be impartial.
Drake, a 33-year-old truck driver, is charged with double homicide in the case that saw him kill a local businessman with whom he had a feud and then Pouillon, who he reportedly didn't like because he would sometimes use graphic pictures to oppose abortion.
In what has become an interesting twist to the case, the prosecution has asked to move the case to another county to find impartial jurors. Full story at LifeNews.com
University of Wisconsin Accused of Illegally Funding Students at Abortion Centers
Madison, WI (LifeNews.com) -- A Wisconsin pro-life group says it has uncovered documents showing the University of Wisconsin may be illegally funding internships for medical students at abortion centers. State law prohibits the use of taxpayer funds to pay for election abortions or to abortion centers.
The Alliance Defense Fund pro-life legal group, in conjunction with Pro-Life Wisconsin, used an open records request to gather the information.
The documents reveal the University of Wisconsin Hospital and Clinics (UWHC) has been funding medical students rotations at Planned Parenthood, training medical students in abortion procedures.
Peggy Hamill, state director of Pro-Life Wisconsin, notes that state law prohibits taxpayer funding of elective abortions.
The mountain of evidence continues to build showing UW s deceit, she said in a statement LifeNews.com received. I challenge UW and UWHC officials to prove they have not violated state law. Full story at LifeNews.com
 Got $1? Help a pro-life activist take on a pro-choice Blue-Dog! Scott Folkens is a pro-life activist! Pregnancy Center Board Chairman, local coordinator for Life Chain and 40 Days for Life events and coordinator for Roe v. Wade Prayer vigil. Box 2102 San Bernardino, CA 92406. http://www.folkens4congress.com |
Idaho Senate Passes Bill to Protect Conscience Rights of Pro-Life Medical Workers
Boise, ID (LifeNews.com) -- An Idaho state Senate committee approved a bill today that would create statutory protections for health care professionals in specific areas of medical practice. The Senate State Affairs committee voted 6-3 to send SB 1353 to the Senate floor with a recommendation that the Senate pass it.
The legislation makes it so pro-life health care workers don't have to fear for their jobs if they decide they don't want to dispense drugs that could be used to cause abortions or kill patients at the end of their life.
David Ripley, the director of Idaho Chooses Life, talked more about the passage of the pro-life bill.
"Opposition to the bill came largely from the abortion lobby because of their fears that it will create impediments to easy distribution of so-called emergency contraception," he said. "Much of the morning debate was taken up with a debate of how the drug works."
"Oddly enough, the debate was settled by the closing testimony of retired abortionist Duane St. Clair, who acknowledged that emergency contraception can sometimes cause the destruction of an embryo by making the uterine wall inhospitable to the new human life," he added.
Idaho Right to Life and the Catholic Diocese of Boise supported the legislation along with ICL and Dr. Will Rainford, representing Bishop Driscoll, emphasized the spiritual gravity of forcing Christian medical personnel to participate in medical procedures they know to be wrong. Full story at LifeNews.com
Mexico Poll Shows People Split on Abortion as 35K Abortions Done in Mexico City
Mexico City, Mexico (LifeNews.com) -- new poll of residents of Mexico finds them split on abortion while a new report from the Mexico City government finds there have been 34,660 abortions done in the first two-and-a-half years since the nation's capital city legalized abortion.
Consulta Mitofsky conducted the survey, which asks a poorly-worded question about abortion -- which is allowed in Mexico City but prohibited in the rest of the country.
The survey found 48.8 percent of Mexicans "agree with allowing women to have an abortion if they so desire" while 45.3 percent disagree and 5.9 percent are unsure.
But the polling question didn't ask when Mexicans thought abortion should be allowed -- as most Mexicans are pro-life would likely oppose most abortions except those in rare circumstances.
Asked if "abortion should be considered a crime," 41.1 percent said yes while 45.7 percent of Mexicans said no. Another 13.2 percent were unsure. Full story at LifeNews.com
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