LifeNews.com Pro-Life News Report
Friday, April 16, 2010
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Current Headlines
• Poll Shows Opposition to Pro-Abortion Health Care Bill Increasing After Obama Signed It
• Sarah Palin Opens Door to Running With Mitt Romney Against Obama in 2012
• Scientists Under Fire for Creating Designer Embryo, Unborn Child With Three Parents
• World Health Organization: Obama Makes U.S. Better Than Canada Promoting Abortion
• With Pro-Abortion Obama as President, Stevens' Retirement is Pro-Life Opportunity Lost
• Lancet Study Shows Abortion Advocates Wrong on Worldwide Maternal Mortality Claims
• Babies Pay on Tax Day With Obama Promoting Abortion, Embryonic Research Funding
• Louisiana House Moves Bill Ahead to Opt Out of Abortion Funding Under Health Care
• Missouri Senate Backs Bill for Pre-Abortion Ultrasound, Waiting Period, Info on Baby
• Kansas Governor Mark Parkinson Vetoes Pro-Life Bill to Stop Late-Term Abortions
• CEDAW Electing New Members in June, Pro-Abortion Groups Lobbying for Activists
• Pro-Life News: Canada, Abortion, California, North Dakota, England, Abortion Drug
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Poll Shows Opposition to Pro-Abortion Health Care Bill Increasing After Obama Signed It
Washington, DC (LifeNews.com) -- A new national poll conducted by the Associated Press finds opposition to the pro-abortion health care bill has increased in the weeks following President Barack Obama's signing it. Meanwhile, a Rasmussen survey shows more Americans say President Barack Obama is doing a poor job as president.
In what political observers say is an indication Democrats may have a tough road in the coming November congressional elections, AP shows Americans are strongly opposed to their government-run health care bill that funds and promotes abortions.
The new Associated Press-GfK poll has Americans opposing the health care remake 50 percent to 39 percent with another 10 percent saying they have no opinion.
That is significant because although other polling firms showed opposition to the pro-abortion health care bill before its passage and Obama's signature, AP had Americans split -- meaning the opposition has sprung up in the weeks since.
AP also showed that disapproval for Obama's handling of health care also increased from 46 percent in early March before he signed the bill, to 52 percent currently -- a level not seen in AP polls since last year.
Seniors, who are more likely to head to the polls in November, strongly oppose the bill.
The Associated Press survey also shows Democrats support the overhaul by 68 percent to 18 percent, while Republicans oppose it 85 percent to 9 percent. Independents lean against it with 44 percent opposed and 40 percent in favor. Full story at LifeNews.com
Sarah Palin Opens Door to Running With Mitt Romney Against Obama in 2012
Washington, DC (LifeNews.com) -- Sarah Palin, the pro-life superstar who was John McCain's running mate in 2008, opened the door yesterday at a Tea Party event appearance to running with potential 2012 presidential candidate Mitt Romney. Palin has been keeping herself in the limelight since the last election by writing a book and appearing on television and numerous events.
Palin is highly regarded by pro-life advocates for her pro-life stance and putting her money where her mouth is by having a disabled baby at a time when 90 percent of pregnancies featuring children with Down syndrome end in abortion.
With President Barack Obama aggressively promoting abortion and signing a pro-abortion health care bill into law, numerous Republicans are looking at the opportunity to run against him in 2012, including Palin and Romney.
But yesterday, according to the Boston Herald, Palin appeared willing to join a ticket with Romney, though she didn't say if she would prefer to be on the top or bottom of it.
Sounds pretty good, Palin said when asked about the possibility, adding she was "serious" about the idea.
I have a lot of respect for Mitt, she told the Herald. Ha! I haven t even thought that far ahead yet," the former Alaska governor added when asked about whether she or Romney would lead the ticket against Obama. Full story at LifeNews.com
Scientists Under Fire for Creating Designer Embryo, Unborn Child With Three Parents
London, England (LifeNews.com) -- Scientists in England are under fire for creating a "designer embryo" -- an unborn child with the DNA of one man and two women. The idea is to be able to offer a way to cerate unborn children for families concerned about giving birth to a child with physical or mental disabilities.
The procedure is referred to as three person in-vitro fertilization and researchers at Newcastle University hope the IVF technique will prevent damaged DNA in mitochondria from getting passed along to offspring.
The process involves the removal of sperm and egg from the affected couples and leaving the mitochondria behind. The scientists put the nuclei into one of the fertilized eggs left over after the in-vitro techniques of other women that have their nuclei removed but their mitochondria retained.
The process draws strong opposition from pro-life groups because scientists created 80 unborn children who were destroyed in the process to obtain the one healthy embryo who would then be implanted for the remainder of the pregnancy to continue.
Lead researcher Professor Doug Turnbull told the Sun newspaper, "What we've done is like changing the battery on a laptop."
Josephine Quintavalle, a British pro-life advocate who heads the group CORE, told the newspaper she opposes the destructive process, saying, ""They are creating a child with two mothers. We have to find better ways to cure diseases." Full story at LifeNews.com
World Health Organization: Obama Makes U.S. Better Than Canada Promoting Abortion
Washington, DC (LifeNews.com) -- The head of the World Health Organization said yesterday that President Barack Obama has the United States doing a better job than Canada at promoting abortion abroad. Dr. Margaret Chan said more abortion promotion is needed to improve maternal health numbers even though a report shows they're already improving.
Chan joined other United Nations officials yesterday at a press conference announcing more initiatives to reduce maternal mortality.
Beforehand, according to the Vancouver Sun newspaper, she praised Obama for promoting abortion, saying Canadian officials need to follow his lead.
"I am very pleased to see the change in President Obama this is really wonderful; sometimes . . . it is not easy for outside people to tell them what to do," she said. "In the case of Canada, I think I respect the government and its people to decide what is their right investment and I am sure that this is the discussion that is going on," she added.
Last year, Obama moved during his first week in office to overturn the Mexico City Policy and force Americans to fund groups that promote and perform abortions abroad.
He then reversed a Bush administration decision to revoke $34 million in funding from the UN Population Fund after it was found to promote abortions and work hand-in-hand with Chinese officials who rigorously enforce Chinas' one-child policy with forced abortions and other human rights abuses. Obama restored the funding and increased it to $50 million.
And last month, Secretary of State Hillary Clinton said in Canada that any effort to boost maternal health must include promoting abortion. Full story at LifeNews.com
With Pro-Abortion Obama as President, Stevens' Retirement is Pro-Life Opportunity Lost
by Joshua Mercer
Just eleven days prior to turning 90 years old, Supreme Court Justice John Paul Stevens announced his intention to retire at the end of the Court s term this June.
Because Stevens is a liberal justice who will be likely be replaced by another liberal justice, some observers have said it will have little ideological impact on the High Court.
But this omits the obvious. Stevens will be replaced by a liberal judge 30 or even 40 years his junior. President Obama s nominee might serve on the bench for three decades. And this individual will support legal abortion and the dubious court case Roe v. Wade that allows it.
There were several reasons that Democrats were hoping to defeat President George W. Bush in 2004. But one reason was clear: they wanted to stop the gradual conservative trajectory of the Supreme Court made possible from several Republican administrations. (Perhaps some people forget, there were only two votes for the unborn when Roe v. Wade was decided in 1973.)
After a few good nominees but also some major setbacks, the Supreme Court had only mustered some modest regulations on the horrible practice of abortion. By the 2004 election there hadn t been a vacancy to the Court in 10 years. But many justices were considered probable to retire or leave.
As fate would have it, Chief Justice William Rehnquist died in 2005. Had John Kerry squeaked out a win in Ohio, a much different president would have nominated Rehnquist s replacement. A Kerry nomination would have been someone like liberal Laurence Tribe of Harvard University instead of John Roberts, whom George W. Bush nominated to replace Rehnquist in 2005.
Having Roberts replace Rehnquist might not have changed the ideological mix of the High Court. But it kept a seat from being replaced by a supporter of abortion for possibly decades. What s more, liberal Sandra Day O Connor retired and was replaced by conservative jurist Sam Alito. The court continued its gradual conservative shift. Full story at LifeNews.com
Lancet Study Shows Abortion Advocates Wrong on Worldwide Maternal Mortality Claims
by Susan Yoshihara, Ph.D., Austin Ruse
New York, NY (LifeNews.com/CFAM) -- A new study out this week by the leading British medical journal shows maternal mortality rates have been significantly overestimated by United Nations (UN) agencies. The Lancet reports that maternal deaths worldwide in 2008 totaled 342,900 rather than the 500,000+ used by the World Bank, World Health Organization (WHO) and the UN Children's Fund (UNICEF) in recent years.
The study finds both that the numbers from WHO and UNICEF were faulty due to a lack of proper reporting and also imprecise statistical modeling. But The Lancet study also finds progress has been made in preventing pregnant women from dying.
The study cites four main reasons for the improvement: declining pregnancy rates in some countries, higher per capita income, higher education rates for women, and increasing availability of basic medical care including skilled birth attendants.
The report finds that HIV/AIDS caused 60,000 maternal deaths and suggests that maternal deaths would have been significantly lower in Africa if mothers were given antiretroviral drugs. This sharply contradicts current UN and Obama administration policies, which divert funding from HIV/AIDS to family planning as a way to reduce maternal deaths.
The study shows that 50% of maternal deaths come from just six countries; India, Nigeria, Pakistan, Afghanistan, Ethiopia and the Democratic Republic of the Congo. Researchers were surprised that three of the richest countries in the world actually showed increased maternal morality; the United States, Canada and Norway three countries with the most liberal abortion laws in the world.
What was not cited anywhere in the document is abortion. Contrary to this study, the UN has promoted better maternal health through legal, or safe, abortion. At the UN-sponsored Women Deliver Conference in London two years ago, which was billed as a conference on maternal mortality, abortion advocate Frances Kissling told the Friday Fax the conference was a pro-choice conference. Full story at LifeNews.com
Babies Pay on Tax Day With Obama Promoting Abortion, Embryonic Research Funding
by Mallory Quigley
Tax Day is a somber reminder of the assault on innocent human life we've endured since President Obama took office.
In just one year, President Obama has:
* Reversed the Mexico City Policy, meaning that your tax dollars now fund abortions overseas. (1/23/09)
* Expanded taxpayer funding of Embryo-Destructive Stem Cell Research. (3/9/09)
* Sent $50 Million to the United Nations Population Fund, which has aided in China's coercive abortion and sterilization program. (3/23/09)
* Forced Americans to pay for abortions in Washington, D.C. for the first time in twenty years.(5/7/09)
What's more, Congress had the opportunity to prevent taxpayer funded abortion by putting language similar to the Hyde Amendment in the ObamaCare bill. But Congress defied the will of the American people by settling for a meaningless Executive Order. For the first time in over 30 years, American taxpayers --you and I-- will be forced to pay for abortions across the country. Full story at LifeNews.com
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Louisiana House Moves Bill Ahead to Opt Out of Abortion Funding Under Health Care
Baton Rouge, LA (LifeNews.com) -- The Louisiana state legislature is the latest to move ahead a bill that would opt the state out of paying for some of the abortion funding found under the pro-abortion health care bill President Barack Obama signed into law. Yesterday, a Louisiana state House committee joined Tennessee legislators in advancing legislation. The House Insurance committee passed HB 1247, authored by Rep. Frank Hoffman, by the margin of 8-1.
Benjamin Clapper, the executive director of Louisiana Right to Life, told LifeNews.com he's glad to see the legislation receive approval.
"Yesterday was the first step to declaring in Louisiana that abortion is not health care," he said.
"HB 1247 not only opts Louisiana out of the abortion aspects of national health care reform, but it makes it illegal for a health insurance company to offer elective abortion as a benefit in Louisiana," he explained. Full story at LifeNews.com
Missouri Senate Backs Bill for Pre-Abortion Ultrasound, Waiting Period, Info on Baby
Jefferson City, MO (LifeNews.com) -- The Missouri state Senate signed off on a bill that would provide women the ability to see an ultrasound of their unborn child before an abortion is done. The measure, less broad than a House-approved version, also gives women considering abortions 24 hours to reflect on the ultrasound and information they would receive on fetal development.
The bill received its first approval vote today and will receive its third reading vote tomorrow, although the results are expected to be similar.
The measure also contains an amendment sponsored by Sen. Scott Rupp to make is to Missouri can opt out of some of the abortion funding under the Obama-signed health care bill.
The House-approved measure is broader than the Senate's version in that it would also create the crime of coercing an abortion and would require abortion centers to inform prosecutors when a teenager is having an abortion so they can prosecute the rapist.
Sen. Joan Bray, a Democrat from University City and Sen. Jolie Justus, a Kansas City Democrat, vocally opposed the pro-life bill, SB 793, during the debate.
"This bill makes sure women are fully informed and give complete consent before undergoing an abortion," sponsoring Sen. Rob Mayer said.
The full House voted 113-37 in favor of the legislation on its side. Full story at LifeNews.com
Kansas Governor Mark Parkinson Vetoes Pro-Life Bill to Stop Late-Term Abortions
Topeka, KS (LifeNews.com) -- Like his predecessor before him, Kansas Governor Mark Parkinson has vetoed a bill that would help the state of Kansas stop late-term abortions. The legislation holds late-term abortion practitioners accountable by making them report to the state health department a precise diagnosis used to justify late-term abortions.
Previously, late-term abortion practitioners like George Tiller have been able to merely cite the law when doing abortions on unborn children later in pregnancy rather than providing medical reasons that supposedly justify the abortion.
In a statement accompanying his veto, Parkinson, a Democrat, said the current law strikes a reasonable balance on a very difficult issue.
I support the current law and believe that an annual legislative battle over the issue is not in the public s best interest, he said.
Operation Rescue president Troy Newman chastised Parkinson for his decision.
"This bill would have helped law enforcement agencies determine if late-term abortions done after viability are being done in compliance with the law. That sounds like a no-brainer, but in Kansas, governmental cover-up for abortion abuses is a way of life," he told LifeNews.com.
Kansas law currently bans post-viability abortions unless the continuation of the pregnancy would present a "substantial and irreversible impairment of a major bodily function" of the pregnant woman. Full story at LifeNews.com
CEDAW Electing New Members in June, Pro-Abortion Groups Lobbying for Activists
New York, NY (LifeNews.com) -- The controversial compliance committee for the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women (CEDAW) is preparing to hold elections to fill almost half of its seats. Pro-abortion groups like the International Women's Rights Action Watch (IWRAW) are calling on their members to start lobbying their national governments in an attempt to ensure that only those sympathetic with their views are voted in.
On June 28, States Parties to CEDAW will elect eleven members of the Committee that will serve four-year terms starting in January 2011. The IWRAW has launched a campaign urging their members to contact member states and United Nations missions to lobby for their candidates. The IWRAW campaign stresses that each CEDAW Committee member "has the potential of advocating for women's rights at many levels" including to "expand and further rights contained in the CEDAW Convention along feminist principles."
The CEDAW committee is charged with monitoring governments on their compliance with the treaty. According to the convention, committee members are elected by States Parties from among their nationals, but these members serve in their personal capacity and not as representatives of any particular State Party. Members of the committee should be "independent" and "of high moral standing and competence." Full story at LifeNews.com
Pro-Life News: Canada, Abortion, California, North Dakota, England, Abortion Drug
• Canada MP Introduces Bill to Stop Women From Being Pressured Into Abortions
• Four Hospitals in England Submit Apps for Licenses to Distribute Abortion Drugs
• North Dakota Ballot Measure Would Ban Abortions Involve Crushing the Skull
• California Judge Gives Prison Term to Man Responsible for Killing Unborn Child
Full story at LifeNews.com
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