LifeNews.com Pro-Life News Report
Thursday, May 19, 2011
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Current Headlines
Top Stories
• Obama Selects Ex-Planned Parenthood Board Member as Appeals Judge
• Senate Backs Filibuster of Pro-Abortion Nominee Goodwin Liu
• If Obamcare is So Great, Why Are So Many Waivers Approved?
• Documents Show Kagan May Have Helped Craft Obamacare Defense
More Pro-Life News
• WHA Told Maternal Mortality Not Improved by Legalizing Abortion
• Heartbeat International Conference Marks 40th Anniversary
• Assisted Suicide Crusader Jack Kevorkian Hospitalized
• Lawsuit on Obama s Embryonic Stem Cell Research Funding Continues
• The Myth and Manipulation of Brain Death (Part I)
• Texas Should Cut Planned Parenthood From Women s Health Program
• Nebraska Lawmakers Approve Webcam Abortion Ban, Consent Bill
• North Carolina Debate: Kill Children in Abortion or Save Money
• Iowa House Won t Pass Weak Abortion Bill Senate Democrats OKd
• West Virginia: Manchin Defends Pro-Planned Parenthood Vote
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Obama Selects Ex-Planned Parenthood Board Member as Appeals Judge
President Barack Obama named a current Alaska Supreme Court justice who is a former Planned Parenthood board member as a nominee to a federal appeals court, in what is his latest pro-abortion judicial selection.
Yesterday, the White House announced Obama has named Justice Morgan Christen to the 9th Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals. She has served as an Anchorage Superior Court Judge for seven years before pro-life former Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin named her to the state Supreme Court having to choose between two pro-abortion candidate given to her by a judicial selection panel.
When she submitted her application to become a state Supreme Court justice, Christen made no mention of the fact that she is a former board member of Planned Parenthood and served the pro-abortion group in the mid 1990s. Knowing that information, Jim Minnery, the director of the Alaska Family Council, a pro-life group, opposed her nomination because she would become another activist on the Court.
In his statement announcing Christen s nomination, Obama said, I am proud to nominate this outstanding candidate to serve on the United States Court of Appeals. I am confident Justice Morgan Christen will serve the American people with integrity and distinction.
Christen s appointment will come before the U.S. Senate, where Republicans will likely oppose her nomination, but they will have to do so without the support of Republican Sen. Lisa Murkowski, who told the Alaska Daily News that Obama s selection of the abortion proponent is an outstanding choice to fill Alaska s sole seat on the 9th Circuit. http://www.lifenews.com/2011/05/19/obama-selects-ex-planned-parenthood-board-member-as-appeals-judge/
Senate Backs Filibuster of Pro-Abortion Nominee Goodwin Liu
The Senate votes today against a motion by Senate Democrats to cut off debate on Goodwin Lui, a pro-abortion law professor President Barack Obama selected to become a judge on a federal appeal court.
The Senate Judiciary Committee approved Liu s nomination for the federal appeals court in the western United States in April on a 10-8 party line vote. Liu, a liberal University of California law professor, faced opposition from Republicans while getting support from each of the Democrats on the committee and Republican lawmakers have filibustered his nomination, calling him too extreme to be approved.
Today s vote saw Senate Republicans uphold their filibuster 52-43 with Republican senators Lindsay Graham, Dick Lugar, John McCain, Olympia Snowe, Susan Collins and Scott Brown all voting to stop the nomination from moving forward. Democratic Sen. Ben Nelson of Nebraska joined them while pro-life Democrats Bob Casey and Joe Manchin voted to allow the nomination of the abortion activist to move ahead.
Lisa Murkowski, a pro-abortion Republican, was the lone GOP vote for ending the filibuster.
During the debate leading up to the vote, Senator Orrin Hatch of Utah, a member of the committee, outlined his strong opposition, saying Liu has activist judicial philosophy is fundamentally at odds with the principles on which our system of government is based.
When I look at Professor Liu s record, I see that he consistently and strongly advocates an approach that allows judges to find the meaning of the Constitution virtually anywhere they want to look, Hatch said. That is the opposite of the defined, limited role that judges properly have in our system of government. I cannot support someone for appointment to the federal bench, especially to what is already the most activist circuit in the country, who believes judges have that much power. http://www.lifenews.com/2011/05/19/senate-backs-filibuster-of-pro-abortion-nominee-goodwin-liu/
If Obamcare is So Great, Why Are So Many Waivers Approved?
Those of us who practice punditry, or who are serious students of politics, are familiar with the term wave election. We have just experienced three of these in a row.
In 2006, Democrats and Independents rose up and smacked the majority Republicans in Congress, reducing them to a minority in both houses. In 2008, Democrats and Independents united again to produce a strong wave for President Barack Obama and his Democratic allies on the Hill. So strong was this wave that states like Indiana and Virginia, which had not gone for the Democrats in decades, were swept into the winner s column.
The 54 percent of the popular vote won by Barack Obama was not as impressive as the 59 percent that backed Ronald Reagan in 1984 or the 61 percent that gave Richard Nixon forty-nine states, but in governing terms it was truly a wave. That s because it gave the incoming new president an historic opportunity to govern with strong liberal majorities in both houses of Congress.
Now, it s becoming clear that 2008 was also a waive election, our first. That s because the strong liberal majorities that came in with President Obama swept opposition before them in passing the historic health care takeover in March, 2010. It was the first time in modern history that a Congress ignored public opinion polls that had shown consistently for a year that the American people were opposed to the step they were about to take. http://www.lifenews.com/2011/05/19/if-obamcare-is-so-great-why-are-so-many-waivers-approved/
Documents Show Kagan May Have Helped Craft Obamacare Defense
New documents produced by a national judicial watchdog group show pro-abortion Supreme Court Justice Elana Kagan may have helped the Obama administration craft its legal defense of the Obamacare law. The documents are providing another argument among conservatives who are demanding that Kagan recuse herself when the lawsuits challenging Obamacare reach the high court next year.
Judicial Watch announced yesterday that it has obtained documents suggesting Kagan helped coordinate the Obama administration s legal defense of Obamacare while she served as Solicitor General, prior to the Senate confirming her for the nation s highest court.
Kagan has said she was not involved in Department of Justice (DOJ) preparations for legal challenges to Obamacare and she did not recuse herself from the High Court decision in April 2011 not to fast-track for Supreme Court review Virginia s lawsuit challenging the law that presents abortion-funding and rationing concerns for pro-life advocates.
Judicial Watch obtained documents via a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) lawsuit filed on February 24 that has been combined with a FOIA lawsuit filed by the Media Research Center, a conservative media watchdog group. The lawsuits are now both before the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia and the new documents come from the MRC litigation. http://www.lifenews.com/2011/05/19/documents-show-kagan-may-have-helped-craft-obamacare-defense/
WHA Told Maternal Mortality Not Improved by Legalizing Abortion
Attendees of a global health conference in Geneva, Switzerland were given information today showing legalizing abortion does nothing to improve maternal mortality for women living in developing nations that lack access to improved medical care which is the best method of reducing such rates.
A new analysis of research from the World Health Organization, United Nations, The Lancet and other resources was released today at the World Health Assembly (WHA) in Geneva by two pro-life organizations, the National Right to Life Committee and Minnesota Citizens Concerned for Life Global Outreach. Leaders of both organizations called for a renewed emphasis on improving health care for women as the only sure means of reducing maternal mortality.
We have known for decades that most maternal deaths can be prevented with adequate nutrition, basic health care, and good obstetric care throughout pregnancy, at delivery, and postpartum, said Jeanne Head, R.N., National Right to Life vice-president for international affairs and UN representative. Yet some in the international community have focused their resources primarily on legalizing abortion at the expense of women s lives.
MCCL Global Outreach Executive Director Scott Fischbach added, Our analysis presents clear, factual evidence to repudiate the claim that legalized abortion reduces maternal mortality.
The analysis, Why Legalized Abortion Is Not Good for Women s Health, compares the impact of improved medical care and legalized abortion on maternal mortality rates in several countries. Maternal deaths declined sharply in the United States, England and Wales through the 1930s and 1940s, for example, coinciding with advancements in maternal health care, obstetric techniques, antibiotics and in the general health status of women. This occurred long before the widespread legalization of abortion. http://www.lifenews.com/2011/05/19/wha-told-maternal-mortality-not-improved-by-legalizing-abortion/
Heartbeat International Conference Marks 40th Anniversary
Bringing together over 1000 attendees from all over the world, the Heartbeat International 40th Annual Conference kicked off in Columbus, Ohio.
Pregnancy Help Centers, Maternity Homes and Adoption Agencies from many locations across the United States, and from countries such as Uganda, Africa, Ghana, and Australia are receiving training and education on topics ranging from Medical Matters, Center Defense, and Sexual Integrity to Social Media and Spiritual Refreshment.
Leading African-American Pastor, Bishop Joseph Garlington, a prominent church leader who was instrumental in establishing a Pregnancy Help Centers in the neediest neighborhood of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, kicked off the Conference with a stirring address. Bishop Garlington exhorted the attendees saying It s time to challenge the church to say things. http://www.lifenews.com/2011/05/19/heartbeat-international-conference-marks-40th-anniversary/
Assisted Suicide Crusader Jack Kevorkian Hospitalized
Jack Kevorkian, the infamous assisted suicide advocate who served years in prison for killing a disabled man on national television, has been hospitalized with kidney problems and pneumonia.
His attorney informed the Detroit News that he was rushed to William Beaumont Hospital in suburban Detroit, Michigan Wednesday night after reportedly feeling weak. Mayer Morganroth, his longtime attorney, told the newspaper Kevorkian is not in grave danger, but indicated his health is poor.
He s not 100 percent, but he s getting better, Morganroth said, and told the newspaper that Kevorkian is expected to eventually return to his apartment where he lives alone.
He said Kevorkian was reluctant to go to the hospital but is suffering from kidney problems and pneumonia that comes with his advancing age, as he turns 83 next week. Morganroth said he expected to stay in the hospital for a few days. http://www.lifenews.com/2011/05/19/assisted-suicide-crusader-jack-kevorkian-hospitalized/
Lawsuit on Obama s Embryonic Stem Cell Research Funding Continues
The pro-life side in the lawsuit against the executive order President Barack Obama issued forcing taxpayers to fund embryonic stem cell research that involves the destruction of human life has filed a new motion in the case. http://www.lifenews.com/2011/05/19/lawsuit-on-obamas-embryonic-stem-cell-research-funding-continues/
The Myth and Manipulation of Brain Death (Part I)
The research for my Master of Science degree involved obtaining rat spinal cords immediately after having decapitated the live rat with a guillotine (One reason for pursuing microbiology for the Ph.D.). The first time I ever decapitated a rat, I was stunned at what I beheld as I cut away the spine and looked into the animal s cavity. http://www.lifenews.com/2011/05/19/the-myth-and-manipulation-of-%E2%80%9Cbrain-death%E2%80%9D-part-i/
Texas Should Cut Planned Parenthood From Women s Health Program
The Women s Health Program (WHP), a Medicaid reimbursement program for family planning services, was established by the Texas Legislature as a five-year demonstration project in 2005. The program is set to expire this August unless authorized by new legislation. When the 2005 bill to establish the program originally passed, language was added to restrict the program from abortion providers, but the Health and Human Services Commission was unable to implement the restrictions in the program s operations due to federal Medicaid rules. http://www.lifenews.com/2011/05/19/texas-should-cut-planned-parentood-from-womens-health-program/
Nebraska Lawmakers Approve Webcam Abortion Ban, Consent Bill
Nebraska lawmakers on Wednesday approved two pro-life bills a measure that would ban the use of webcam abortions in the state and one requiring parental consent before a minor can get an abortions. http://www.lifenews.com/2011/05/19/nebraska-lawmakers-approve-webcam-abortion-ban-consent-bill/
North Carolina Debate: Kill Children in Abortion or Save Money
Members of the North Carolina state House Appropriations Committee engaged in a jaw-dropping debate on Thursday to determine if it is better that children not be killed in an abortion or save the state money. http://www.lifenews.com/2011/05/19/north-carolina-debate-kill-children-in-abortion-or-save-money/
Iowa House Won t Pass Weak Abortion Bill Senate Democrats OKd
The Iowa state House will not pass a bill Democrats in the state Senate approved that Republicans and pro-life groups say opens a door for late-term abortion centers to open up shop throughout the state. http://www.lifenews.com/2011/05/19/iowa-house-wont-pass-weak-abortion-bill-senate-democrats-okd/
West Virginia: Manchin Defends Pro-Planned Parenthood Vote
Senator Joe Manchin, in a new interview, is defending the vote he cast earlier this year against legislation that would yank taxpayer funding from the Planned Parenthood abortion business. http://www.lifenews.com/2011/05/19/west-virginia-manchin-defends-pro-planned-parenthood-vote/
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