LifeNews.com Pro-Life News Report
Monday, March 8, 2010
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Current Headlines
• HHS Secretary Kathleen Sebelius Misleads on Abortion Funding in Health Care Bill
• Polls: Majority Oppose Pro-Abortion Health Care Bill, Obama's Job Performance
• Obama, Democrats Struggling for Votes for Pro-Abortion Senate Health Care Bill
• Pro-Life Democrats Still Standing Firm, May Defeat Pro-Abortion Health Care Bill
• Gallup Polling Shows Republicans Now Strongly Pro-Life, Democrats Back Abortion
• Sarah Palin Tells Pro-Life Ohio Rally Disabled Son Reaffirmed Abortion View
• Unless Abortion Funding Is Removed, There's No Way Health Care Bill Will Pass
• Congressman Who Noted How Abortion Hurts Blacks to Speak to Pro-Life Students
• Virginia Senate Committee Accidentally Kills Planned Parenthood License Plate Bill
• Thousands of Pro-Life Advocates in Spain Rally Against Law Expanding Abortions
• Charges Dismissed Against Man Who Challenged Patrick Kennedy on Abortion
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HHS Secretary Kathleen Sebelius Misleads on Abortion Funding in Health Care Bill
Washington, DC (LifeNews.com) -- Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius contradicted herself on abortion funding in the Senate health care bill in a Sunday interview on NBC's "Meet the Press." Sebelius applauded the Senate language before and talked about mandatory abortion fees, but now she claims there is no funding.
Sebelius also appeared to contradict herself within the interview, saying at one point that abortion funding is a part of the government-run health care bill.
Sebelius was asked whether the Senate bill would be fixed to top the massive abortion funding it contains and other pro-abortion problems.
"There is no federal money paying for abortions," President Barack Obama's top health care spokeswoman maintained. "That's just not my statement, it is what, you know, a legal analyst who has looked at the Senate bill, it's what the fact checkers who look at the statements say."
Yet, when she spoke with ABC's "This Week" program yesterday, she said "Yes, abortion services are provided" under the Senate health care bill.
She tried to qualify her answer by adding, "people will pay out of their own pockets, in both the Senate and the House, but they do it in slightly different ways." Full story at LifeNews.com
Polls: Majority Oppose Pro-Abortion Health Care Bill, Obama's Job Performance
Washington, DC (LifeNews.com) -- New polls from Rasmussen Reports show opposition to the pro-abortion health care bill increasing with a renewed focus on the final battles in Congress. Meanwhile, a majority of Americans say they are opposed to President Barack Obama's job performance.
Rasmussen had Americans opposed in late February to the pro-abortion health care bill on a 52-44 percentage point margin.
Now, that opposition to the Senate bill that funds abortions has increased to 53-42 percent, an 11 percentage point margin against the bill. That begins to erase some of the bounce Obama and top Democrats received from the White House health care summit.
The Rasmussen poll notes just 20% Strongly Favor the government-run health care plan while 41% are Strongly Opposed.
"Last week, support for the health care plan inched up to 44% following the president s televised health care summit. However, that mild bounce has faded, and support is back to where it was for months. With the exception of last week s results, overall support for the president s health care plan has stayed in a very narrow range from 38% to 42% since Thanksgiving," Rasmussen explains.
As has been the case for months, Democrats overwhelmingly favor the plan, and Republicans are overwhelmingly opposed. As for those not affiliated with either major party, 32% favor the plan, and 64% are opposed. Full story at LifeNews.com
Obama, Democrats Struggling for Votes for Pro-Abortion Senate Health Care Bill
Washington, DC (LifeNews.com) -- President Barack Obama and top Democrats are struggling to find enough votes in the House for the Senate health care bill. As Democrats twist arms in the House, Obama left Washington for flyover country to try to sell the bill that funds and promotes abortions.
Backers of the legislation have set a date of March 18 for a vote on the legislation and, this week, they are overcoming a numbers game that shows them likely not having enough support for the bill because of abortion.
Democrats are furiously working on the reconciliation bill to make changes, other than stopping abortion funding, that they hope will pacify House Democrats on other political issues.
In a CNN interview on Sunday, Maryland Rep. Chris Van Hollen, one of the Democratic leaders in the House, talked about the difficulty in getting enough votes.
I believe it will pass. Do we have a mortal lock? No. Because people are still looking at some of the changes that are being made, he said.
This is going to be a discussion and we are going to be engaged in that dialogue for some time until we get it done, Van Hollen added, suggesting the March 18 date may be passed up. Full story at LifeNews.com
Pro-Life Democrats Still Standing Firm, May Defeat Pro-Abortion Health Care Bill
Washington, DC (LifeNews.com) -- The pro-life Democrats in the House are still standing firm against the Senate health care bill and its abortion funding. If they hold their ground until the end and put pro-life principles ahead of partisan politics or threats from President Barack Obama or Speaker Nancy Pelosi, they could find themselves heroes.
With a lopsided majority in Congress, Pelosi should have no problem railroading the Senate bill through the House.
But, led by Rep. Bart Stupak of Michigan, a stalwart group of pro-life Democrats is giving Pelosi fits by threatening to vote no because the Senate bill contains massive abortion funding and other problems.
"Some people are saying we have to vote for the Senate bill. That ain't going to happen," Stupak said last week.
The strategy to win over Stupak and his colleagues has, so far, centered on two ideas: deny and negotiate.
Pelosi has gone out of her way to deny that abortion funding is in the Senate health care bill while she and her top lieutenants talk about a companion bill that could be passed alongside the Senate bill and reconciliation measure to pacify Stupak.
The denial is undermined by abortion advocates like Rep. Diana DeGette -- who said "The good news is that the Senate bill does allow" abortion coverage -- and by the fact that the Senate will not likely accept the companion abortion funding ban. Full story at LifeNews.com
Gallup Polling Shows Republicans Now Strongly Pro-Life, Democrats Back Abortion
Washington, DC (LifeNews.com) -- The Gallup polling firm released a new report today looking back at its abortion polling from 1975-2009. It found that, over the last several years, Republicans and Democrats have become more polarized as Republicans move to a pro-life direction and Democrat embrace abortion.
"The underlying trend by party shows that Republicans' and Democrats' views on the contentious issue have become increasingly polarized,' Gallup abortion poll analyst Lydia Saad explained.
Gallup's long-term abortion question -- instituted two years after the landmark 1973 Roe v. Wade decision that legalized abortion on demand has resulted in 52 millions of abortions -- asks Americans to say whether they believe abortion should be legal "under any circumstances," legal "only under certain circumstances, or "illegal in all circumstances."
The question has always been derided by pro-life advocates for not reflecting an accurate picture of where Americans stand on abortion -- as the undefined "only under certain circumstances" includes many pro-life advocates who accept the life of the mother or rape and incest exceptions but also abortion advocates who want late-term abortions made illegal.
But what has changed is that more Republicans now say that all abortions should be illegal while more Democrats say abortions should be legal for any reason -- even in the latter parts of pregnancy. Full story at LifeNews.com
Sarah Palin Tells Pro-Life Ohio Rally Disabled Son Reaffirmed Abortion View
Columbus, OH (LifeNews.com) -- Potential 2012 presidential candidate Sarah Palin told a pro-life rally of more than 3,000 people in central Ohio on Friday that the birth of her disabled son reaffirmed her commitment against abortion. Palin also shared with the audience a Bible verse speaking to the recent criticism of writing notes on her hand.
Palin spoke before an event sponsored by Ohio Right to Life in Columbus. Saying challenges can lead to "the greatest blessings" in life, she shared her story of how the birth of her son Trig, who has Down Syndrome, changed her life.
She thanked God for the opportunity to parent a special needs child. "God, are you going to ask me to walk the walk and not just talk the talk of being a pro-life advocate," Palin said she asked in prayer. There is no accident. Every child has purpose.
She said she and her family learned "that what seems like life's greatest challenges in the moment are the greatest blessings in the end."
The former Alaska governor also demonstrated her pro-life commitment by saying she would donate her speaking fee back to Ohio Right to Life to use to continue fighting pro-life battles in the state. Full story at LifeNews.com
40 Days for Life Prayer Campaign Reaches 209 Babies Saved From Abortions
by David Bereit
I just returned home from Oklahoma. Early tomorrow morning I'll be back on a plane, this time heading to California, where I'll get to visit several more 40 Days for Life campaigns.
In between flights, praying at vigils, speaking at events, long road trips, and short nights of sleep, whenever I check e-mail, my in box is overflowing with more reports of lives saved.
I still think it's a miracle any time 40 Days for Life prayer vigil participants are blessed with the knowledge that a mother has changed her mind about aborting a child.
And today, as we reach the halfway point of this campaign -- it's already happened ... 209 times that we know of! That's 102 more lives spared -- over the last week.
Here are just a few of those miracles... Full story at LifeNews.com
Unless Abortion Funding Is Removed, There's No Way Health Care Bill Will Pass
by Penny Young Nance
How exactly would creating the largest expansion of federally-funded abortion in this country since Roe v. Wade lower health care costs for all Americans and give them better access to health care?
The Senate health care bill, which President Obama is now insisting Congress should examine in an up-or-down vote, is supposed to bring costs down and guarantee access to affordable health care to Americans those are its primary directives. But the bill allows for what is essentially a federal bailout of the abortion industry. That constitutes an unnecessary increase in costs to American taxpayers.
More than a year after Congress began work on health care legislation the bill is still in doubt because congressional leaders simply haven't been honest with the American people and each other about several of its components. But the most striking example contradiction by Democrats in Congress comes over the bill s funding of abortion.
Buried deep in the bill is a provision of $11 billion (with a b ) for community health centers or CHCs. An analysis by the National Right to Life Committee explains. Full story at LifeNews.com
Congressman Who Noted How Abortion Hurts Blacks to Speak to Pro-Life Students
Washington, DC (LifeNews.com) -- An Arizona congressman who drew national attention recently for his comments focusing on how abortion has been detrimental to the black community will speak at an upcoming banquet for the national pro-life college group. Rep. Trent Franks will headline the event for Students for Life of America.
On Thursday, Franks will present the keynote speech at the 1st Annual Students for Life of America Spring Banquet at the Top of Town Banquet Hall in Arlington, Virginia.
I am honored to have the opportunity to speak to Students for Life about the importance of working toward the eventual overturn of the travesty that is Roe v. Wade," Franks said in a statement SFLA sent LifeNews.com.
"Today's college students understand that it is their generation that has been devastated by abortion on demand; they look around their classrooms and see dozens of empty desks that represent classmates and peers who were never even given a chance," he said. "I am encouraged to see so many young, passionate students getting involved in the pro-life movement, and I look forward to supporting the worthy efforts of Students for Life at this banquet. Full story at LifeNews.com
Virginia Senate Committee Accidentally Kills Planned Parenthood License Plate Bill
Richmond, VA (LifeNews.com) -- In the world of state legislative politics, pro-life advocates know to expect the unexpected -- and they got just that in the Virginia legislature. A Senate committee wound up voting down a bill that would establish a license plate for the Planned Parenthood abortion business.
Last Thursday, members of the Democrat-controlled Senate Transportation Committee considered HB 1108 establishing the license plate with the Trust Women, Respect Choice" slogan.
In the House, lawmakers approved the bill but not before stripping funding from the plates and sending the sales proceeds to a state program providing pregnant women with legitimate help and support.
As Family Foundation president Victoria Cobb tells LifeNews.com, the Senate finished its floor business Thursday earlier than the House and committee chair Yvonne Miller went ahead with the hearing on the bill even though its sponsor, Delegate Robert Brink, wasn't in attendance. Also, senators Edd Houck and Harry Blevins were absent. Full story at LifeNews.com
| Looking for a pro-life speaker for your next banquet, conference or convention? LifeNews.com editor Steven Ertelt is a low-cost speaker who can entertain and educate your audience as well as help you with a fundraising pitch if necessary. He can also speak on any pro-life topic. For more information, email news@LifeNews.com. |
Thousands of Pro-Life Advocates in Spain Rally Against Law Expanding Abortions
Madrid, Spain (LifeNews.com) -- Tens of thousands of pro-life advocates rallied in Spain yesterday to protest changes to Spanish law that expands legalized abortions. The Spain Parliament last month approved the final version of a new law that expands abortions and provides no parental consent for teenagers wanting abortions.
Under the bill, abortions are allowed for any reason to 14 weeks, they are allowed up to 22 weeks if an abortion practitioner certifies a serious threat to the health of the mother, or says the unborn child is disabled.
Beyond 22 weeks, abortions are only allowed in serious cases of fetal disability and in cases where the pregnancy threatens the mother's life.
Thousands of pro-life advocates with heart-shaped balloons marched for the second time in six months against the Socialist government in the nation's parliament that approved abortion expansion. The previous march in October drew tens of thousands in one of the largest demonstrations in Europe in years. Full story at LifeNews.com
Charges Dismissed Against Man Who Challenged Patrick Kennedy on Abortion
Providence, RI (LifeNews.com) -- A man who was charged for disorderly conducted after he publicly challenged pro-abortion Rep. Patrick Kennedy on abortion will face no charges for doing so. A pro-life legal group worked to ensure perennial local government candidate Christopher Young would not face punishment.
As LifeNews.com reported, Young accused Kennedy of supporting a health care bill that would fund abortions.
At the December 1 forum, Kennedy made his first public appearance after he came under fire from his bishop for questioning the pro-life credentials of the Catholic Church.
He also had disclosed a private letter he had received in 2007 urging him not to receive communion.
Young attempted to give Kennedy a pro-life DVD to watch, but was escorted from the event by police when he tried to do so.
You're not Catholic if you force Catholics into funding abortion, he said before police led him away from the forum. Full story at LifeNews.com
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