Santorum knocks Romney for flubbing answer about Blunt amendment

via news.yahoo.com

Rick Santorum criticized Mitt Romney Thursday for flubbing an answer to a question about a bill in Congress that would grant a conscience exemption to President Barack Obama's federal health care law.

Initially, Romney said he opposed the amendment, but he later issued a statement that he misunderstood the question and that he supported it.
Santorum seized on Romney's apparent reversal and suggested that he changed his mind only when his "consultants" advised him to for political reasons.

Read more here: http://news.yahoo.com/blogs/ticket/santorum-knocks-romney-flubbing-answer-blu...

Faces of the American Holocaust

Who’s behind the public policies that have led to millions dead from abortion?

By R.J. Grace

When the killing of human beings becomes a pre-meditated methodical policy -- put forward as a public good -- massive slaughter results, and can be called a “holocaust.”

History puts a face on leaders who considered mass murder a political “good” -- leaders like Adolph Hitler of Germany, Mehmet Talaat of Turkey, Pol Pot of Cambodia, Mao of China and Joseph Stalin of Russia.

But what about American leaders responsible for our own ongoing holocaust: abortion? History has yet to put a face to them, but those who value the sanctity of human life are obligated to ferret them out and hold them responsible.

This is the fourth in California Catholic Daily’s ongoing series, “Faces of the American Holocaust,” in which we put faces to those behind the mass murder of innocents in the U.S.

NANCY PELOSI

Nancy Patricia Pelosi (née D’Alessandro) was born in Baltimore, Maryland, on March 26, 1940, the last child of six and the only daughter. She grew up in a Roman Catholic neighborhood and attended the Institute of Notre Dame, an all-girls Catholic high school, and Trinity College, a liberal arts Catholic college for women. Her parents were strict Catholics. In an interview with the National Catholic Reporter, Pelosi said that her mother would have loved for her to become a nun -- but she wasn’t interested. She would have rather become a priest: “I didn’t think I wanted to be a nun, but I thought I might want to be a priest because there seemed to be a little more power there, a little more discretion over what was going on in the parish.”

While working in Washington, D.C., she married a Georgetown graduate, California native Paul Frank Pelosi, whom she had met while in college. They eventually moved, along with their five children, first to New York, and then, in 1969, to San Francisco. She was first elected to the U.S. House of Representatives from California’s 5th (now 8th) congressional district on June 02, 1987 -- a seat she has held since.

Currently Pelosi serves as the Democratic House Minority Leader. She has a 100% approval rating from the radical pro-abortion group NARAL, and is well known for her consistently antagonistic stance against the pro-life movement. While her pro-abortion activities have intensified over the past year or two, she has a long history of fighting to defeat pro-life measures and to advance abortion as a good thing.

2012

In a Feb. 22 interview with Rachel Maddow on MSNBC, Pelosi characterized opposition from religious leaders to the Obama Administration’s contraception mandate as nothing more than a group of men who oppose women’s healthcare interfering in a family’s “…important decisions [which should be made] together with their doctor, with their God.”

In a Feb. 20 speech at Texas A&M University, Pelosi made the convoluted claim that the Catholic Church has not enforced its teaching on birth control, but now wants the federal government and private insurance companies to enforce the teaching for it.

On Feb. 16, The Weekly Standard reported, in answer to a reporter’s question, “Should the Catholic Church… be required to pay for morning-after pills and birth control if they find them morally objectionable?” Pelosi replied, “Yes.”

2011

In a Nov. 17, 2011 interview with The Washington Post, Pelosi dismissed the protection of the freedom of religion guaranteed by the first amendment by referring to objections by the Catholic Church to abortion as “this conscience thing.” She adamantly opposed a bill that allowed health providers to refuse to provide abortions on conscience grounds, claiming that the measure would allow Catholic healthcare providers to “let women die on the floor.”

In February of 2011, Pelosi began a campaign to rally the public against two bills before the House Subcommittee on the Constitution of the House Judiciary Committee, H.R. 3 (No Tax Payer Funding for Abortion Act) and H.R. 358 (the Protect Life Act). She opposed the bills even though U.S. bishops expressed strong support for them.

Also in February of 2011, the House passed an amendment that prohibited the use of federal funds for Planned Parenthood. Pelosi voted against the amendment.

2010

On April 29, 2010, Pelosi was a featured speaker at the 25th anniversary celebration of the pro- abortion political action committee Emily’s List. The purpose of Emily’s List is to elect “pro-choice” women candidates to political office.

In October of 2010, the House passed the Partial Birth Abortion Ban Act. Pelosi voted against it.

2009

Pelosi is the mother of five children and has five grandchildren, yet in a Jan. 25, 2009 interview on ABC's This Week with George Stephanopolus, she made the argument that contraception and abortion stimulates the economy by reducing the number of children who will need education, healthcare and other state and federal services.

On Feb. 8, 2009, Pelosi had a meeting with San Francisco Archbishop George Niederauer to discuss her pro-abortion politics. The archbishop requested the meeting following a firestorm of criticism of Pelosi, who, describing herself as “an ardent, practicing Catholic,” told an audience of millions on a nationally televised Aug. 24, 2008 news program that Church teaching on when human life begins is unclear.

Pelosi spokesman Brendan Daly confirmed that the meeting took place, but noted that Pelosi was not changing her pro-abortion stance as a result.

2008

The August 2008 interview that led to the request from Pelosi’s archbishop for a private meeting was with Tom Brokaw on Meet The Press. At that time she made the claim that the doctors of the Church had been unable to determine that life begins at conception.

The same year, on Aug. 3, in an interview with Brian Lamb at CSPAN’s “Q&A” program, Pelosi was asked if her Church was giving her any difficulties about receiving communion, given that she had such a history of promoting abortion and contraception. “Not really”, she replied. “It depends on the bishop in a certain region.”

2006

Pelosi voted against the Unborn Child Pain Awareness Act of 2006, which was meant to require abortion providers who perform an abortion of a 20-week or older child to tell the mother how old the child is and obtain her signature.

2003

In June of 2003, the House passed the Partial Born Abortion Ban Act, which contained an exception in cases where it was necessary to save the life of the mother. Pelosi voted against it, but it never reached the Senate for a vote.

2002

In September of 2002, the House passed the Abortion Non-Discrimination Act of 2002, which was to prohibit the federal government and any state or local government receiving federal funds, to discriminate against any healthcare agency that refused to administer any abortion inducing drugs or procedures. Pelosi voted against the bill.

via calcatholic.com

 

Interesting article by Joseph Farah: Judgment day for Barack Obama

March 1, 2012

Judgment day for Barack Obama

JOSEPH FARAH — "My son, fear thou the LORD and the king: and meddle not with them that are given to change: For their calamity shall rise suddenly; and who knoweth the ruin of them both?" - - Proverbs 24:21-22. "Woe unto them that call evil good, and good evil; that put darkness for light, and light for darkness; that put bitter for sweet, and sweet for bitter!" - - Isaiah 5:20... (more)

Read more here: http://www.wnd.com/2012/02/judgment-day-for-barack-obama/

 

DAY 9: Voices for the innocent

Dear Deacon,

Today our national director, David Bereit, and I leave
home at 4 a.m. to fly to Iowa, where not one but TWO
Planned Parenthood sites are CLOSING after one or more
40 Days for Life campaigns!

Their last day of business is TODAY and -- all of the
40 Days for Life locations invited us to speak at the
celebration events.

(Look for the exciting details about these closures
and more from our trip in an e-mail in the days ahead.)

We often talk about heroes. To be a hero, you don’t
have to do a big thing, or a great thing, or even
something that gets a lot of attention. You just have
to do the RIGHT thing.

And today, we have examples of 40 Days for Life heroes.

------------------------------------------------------
ORANGE COUNTY, CALIFORNIA
------------------------------------------------------

Connie in Orange County shared the story of a man who
lives about 10 miles from the 40 Days for Life vigil
site outside of Planned Parenthood. He rides his
bicycle to the vigil -- every day -- and remains in
silent prayer for 4 to 5 hours.

"What impressed me the most was that he comes on his
old bicycle that is giving him problems and sometimes
he has to stop several times to check on it," she said.
"And he does this every day!"

To see a picture from the vigil in Orange County,
please go to:

http://40daysforlife.com/blog/?p=2793

------------------------------------------------------
SPRING VALLEY, NEW YORK
------------------------------------------------------

At the 40 Days for Life vigil in Spring Valley,
volunteers are faithfully praying across from a
Planned Parenthood facility in weather that has been
cold and windy ("freezing for life," said one of the
vigil participants).

A man approached one of the prayer volunteers, wanting
to know why they were there. She told him it was their
calling to pray and be present for those in difficult
situations -- crisis pregnancies. The man thanked her
for what she was doing.

Another passer-by then asked for directions to a medical
office -- and also wanted to know what they were doing.
He was given the same answer -- and invited to join the
vigil for an hour.

"We are called to be a voice for the most innocent
among us," Eileen said. "For 40 days, we will be hope
for those who feel they have no choice. For nothing is
impossible with God!"

To see photos of the Spring Valley vigil, please go to:

http://40daysforlife.com/blog/?p=2793

------------------------------------------------------
COLORADO SPRINGS, COLORADO
------------------------------------------------------

A man, perhaps in his 70s, came to the sidewalk to join
the prayer vigil in Colorado Springs. One of the other
volunteers watched as he walked slowly back and forth
along the sidewalk, praying silently.

Finally, the volunteer asked how long he’s been doing
this. He said he's been coming for an hour every day
so far -- and will be back for an hour every day each
of these 40 days.

"I told him he was a hero," the volunteer said, "and
the man started to cry."

He simply responded, "I believe in this," as he turned
and continued to walk and pray.

"I prayed," the volunteer said, "Lord, give us men
like this!"

Today's devotional is from Carmen Pate, a member of
the 40 Days for Life board of directors.

------------------------------------------------------
DAY 9 INTENTION
------------------------------------------------------

Pray that the post-abortive woman would be repentant,
accept forgiveness, be healed and restored, and bring
glory to God with her new life.

------------------------------------------------------
SCRIPTURE
------------------------------------------------------

I acknowledged my sin to You, and my iniquity I have
not hidden. I said, "I will confess my transgressions
to the Lord," and You forgave the iniquity of my sin.

-- Psalm 32:5

------------------------------------------------------
REFLECTION by Carmen Pate, 40 Days for Life
------------------------------------------------------

Because abortion is legal in America, many have
justified their choice. "If it's legal, it can't be
wrong, right?"

We now have an entire generation of men and women who
have never known abortion to be illegal; a generation
of people who have never been broken over their sin of
abortion.

As a result, the consequences of unconfessed sin weigh
on their souls, yet they have never connected the dots
as to why their hearts are heavy. No wonder we have
millions of women who are struggling with depression,
addictions, eating disorders and more.

Post abortion syndrome is very real but recovery
begins when the individual agrees with God as David
confessed in Psalm 51:3-4, 14, "Against You, You only,
have I sinned, and done this evil in Your sight --
that You may be found just when You speak, and
blameless when you Judge. Deliver me from the guilt of
bloodshed, O God, the God of my salvation."

Brokenness is the key to accessing God's glorious
mercy and healing. Christ came to heal the broken
hearted and He is waiting with open arms to take the
post-abortive woman on a glorious journey of healing
and restoration if she will only run to Him.

God will not waste any sin we lay at His feet. Imagine
millions of healed and restored post-abortive women
like myself singing aloud of His righteousness and
giving testimony of His love and forgiveness.

What a day of rejoicing that will be!

------------------------------------------------------
PRAYER
------------------------------------------------------

Heavenly Father, we have turned our backs on you and
your principles in your Word. We have allowed man to
usurp Your role as God over life and the number of our
days.

But we come to you in brokenness and repentance over
our sin.

We cry out for Your mercy and ask you to remove the
scourge of abortion from our land. Use us as your
vessels, Lord, to bring the light of Your Truth to our
nation once again. Because of Christ we pray, Amen.

------------------------------------------------------
PRINTABLE DEVOTIONAL
------------------------------------------------------

To download today's devotional as a formatted,
printable PDF to share with friends:

http://40daysforlife.com/docs/spring2012day09print.pdf

------------------------------------------------------

Yours for Life,

Shawn Carney
Campaign Director
40 Days for Life

PS: If you have stories to share about the 40 Days
for Life campaign in your town, please leave a
comment on today's blog entry at:

http://40daysforlife.com/blog/?p=2793

40 Days for Life

10908 Courthouse Road
Suite 102229
Fredericksburg, VA
22408
US

A Picture is Worth a Thousand Words. an Ultrasound Image May Save a Life

Check out this website I found at al4life.org

MONTGOMERY, Ala., March 1, 2012 /Christian Newswire/ -- The following is submitted by Cheryl Ciamarra of Alabama Citizens for Life:

"I was 16 years old when I had an abortion. I never saw an ultrasound of my baby, nor did the clinic give me any type of information concerning the procedure. If I would have known what my child looked like or how the procedure was performed, I would have chosen to keep my baby. Abortion not only kills unborn children, it forever scars the parents of those children. I have been forgiven by my Savior, but I still live with the knowledge and heartache that I killed an innocent child. I believe that if more women were shown the ultrasound, it would help them realize the reality of the child. It's the same as holding your child for the first time when it's born or feeling it kick for the first time while still in the womb. Until you see your child for the first time, it can seem like it's not real. Ultrasounds show you that it is real. Also, women should know exactly how an abortion is performed beforehand. They should be told the risks to themselves as well. I wish I would have been given all of this information BEFORE my abortion. " A. A.

That is the actual testimony of a young lady who experienced abortion in AL. The majority of women experiencing abortion in Alabama are under 25 years of age. Most have never been pregnant before and do not understand fetal development or even what an abortion entails. Can you hear her regret and emotional pain? Alabama Citizens for Life hopes other women will avoid abortion, an unnecessary elective procedure, when given accurate information.

Abortion providers are afraid of ultrasound images because it is the most objective, accurate information that can be provided to a mother, a visual image of her child within her womb. Studies show women who view their ultrasounds often choose life for their child because the visual image helps them to realize it is a tiny human.

Women who have asked to see their ultrasounds have been told by ultrasound technician staff to "ask the doctor." However they do not see the doctor until after they have been medicated and prepped for surgery on the table. Some mothers may be in emotional crisis and not even think to ask. The burden should not be on the vulnerable patient. This law places the responsibility to provide accurate medical information on the physician who is being paid to perform the surgery. The law clearly states the woman may choose to avert her eyes.

Alabama has a vital interest in both the health of mothers and the lives of unborn babies which is why we need SB12.

AL State Legislators are receiving email petitions such as the one below filled with multiple factual errors spread by pro abortion lobby. Secular media are propagating the lies. My replies to the false accusations are in parenthesis. This is an attempt to stop SB12 Women's Right to Know and See Ultrasound Display Bill in Alabama

"Withdraw SB12 from Legislative Debate, Consideration, and Vote This procedure is not medically necessary (ultrasound is medically necessary to confirm uterine pregnancy and rule out ectopic pregnancy [100% undetected ectopic pregnancies are fatal to women] according to the National Abortion Federation 2003 report 99% of abortion clinics are performing ultrasounds routinely {113 in this survey report} for health of women which is why it was made a law in Al in 2002) and is instead merely a political tactic to undermine women's reproductive options (there is NOTHING in SB12 that takes away a woman's right to choose to have an abortion ) and a blatant attempt to legislate morality (the main focus of the bill is to give mothers objective accurate medical information - visual image of their baby, visual facts are neither moral or immoral they are truth and reality) and emotionally damage women. (It is well documented that abortion providers in AL are not providing accurate medical information to women, 6 of 7 AL abortion providers have violation discrepancy reports online. Planned Parenthood staff in Birmingham is even recorded on tape stating they can "bend the rules" i.e. not report parental notification or obtain consent and cover up statutory rape of a minor - 9 of 9 minor records no parental consent form signed, getting facts to women BEFORE an abortion is most humane) It seeks to make ultrasound (trans-vaginal or abdominal) a requirement (ultrasound has been a requirement in AL law since 2002) and requires the practitioner to share the images with the woman receiving abortion services (standard medical informed consent is the responsibility of the paid medical provider), even if it is necessary to remove a miscarried fetus (law only applies to living fetus, if the child has already died it clearly does NOT apply) or ectopic pregnancy. (medical emergency exceptions insure this bill does NOT apply to ectopic pregnancies) Should physicians not comply, they could be charged with a Class C felony (this is the same penalty for lack of informed consent as current law - no change , no increase in penalty) and/or fined up to $15,000 (Not sure where they came up with this figure - not in this bill? another inaccuracy). In the US, we are given the right to refuse certain medical services and this legislation attempts to violate and remove those rights because of the moral objections of others who are not receiving the service. (the state of Alabama has a vital interest in the life of the unborn child, because of the serious nature of terminating that life as well as potential risks to the mother's own health, as women are shown videos prior to birth by law in AL this is reasonable to insure mothers who choose abortion are fully informed prior to that irreversible decision.) This legislation is unconstitutional and therefore violates the Fourth Amendment." (Ultrasound display laws have passed in 5 states and not been struck down in ANY, upheld twice by the 5th circuit court of appeals in Texas)

As you can see multiple inaccuracies are being spread by a liberal pro-abortion media campaign driven by the well funded pro-abortion lobby, Abortion is BUSINESS and they are afraid of loosing profits if women see the truth about what is growing inside of them.
Alabama Citizens for Life's mission is to spare women and their children from abortion. Getting the visual ultrasound image in the line of sight of the mother will save lives, as she is the only person who can make a decision to save the life. SB12 is highly effective, which is why there is such a fierce, ruthless smear campaign underway against this bill.

Now is NOT the time to retreat. The truth will win out over time and a healthy debate in Alabama will bring the truth to light.

13 Catholic Senators Vote Against Religious Liberty

via catholicadvocate.com

"It is our duty as laity to hold them accountable"
WASHINGTON, March 1, 2012 /Christian Newswire/ -- Today, the U.S. Senate, by a vote of 51 - 48, defeated the effort led by Senator Roy Blunt (Missouri) to pass the Respect for Rights of Conscience Act as an amendment to pending legislation. Thirteen Catholic Senators joined the majority.

"By consenting to the disastrous HHS mandate, the U.S. Senate has taken the unprecedented step to deny our religious liberties instead of defending the Constitution," said Matt Smith, president of Catholic Advocate. "It is disappointing to witness a group of senators misled on this issue at the expense of one of our key founding principles."

The following is a list of how the 24 Catholic Senators voted on the Blunt amendment:

Senator Mark Begich (Alaska, D) - Opposed
Senator Lisa Murkowski (Alaska, R) - Supported
Senator Marco Rubio (Florida, R) - Supported
Senator Tom Harkin (Iowa, D) - Opposed
Senator James Risch (Idaho, R) - Supported
Senator Richard Durbin (Illinois, D) - Opposed
Senator Mary Landrieu (Louisiana, D) - Opposed
Senator David Vitter (Louisiana, R) - Supported
Senator John Kerry (Massachusetts, D) - Opposed
Senator Barbara Mikulski (Maryland, D) - Opposed
Senator Susan Collins (Maine, R) - Supported
Senator Claire McCaskill (Missouri, D) - Opposed
Senator John Hoeven (North Dakota, R) - Supported
Senator Mike Johanns (Nebraska, R) - Supported
Senator Kelly Ayotte (New Hampshire, R) - Supported
Senator Robert Menendez (New Jersey, D) - Opposed
Senator Kirsten Gillibrand (New York, D) - Opposed
Senator Bob Casey Jr. (Pennsylvania, D) - Supported
Senator Pat Toomey (Pennsylvania, R) - Supported
Senator Jack Reed (Rhode Island, D) - Opposed
Senator Pat Leahy (Vermont, D) - Opposed
Senator Maria Cantwell (Washington, D) - Opposed
Senator Patty Murray (Washington, D) - Opposed
Senator Joe Manchin III (West Virginia, D) - Supported

"Faithful Catholics should take the opportunity to thank those Senators supporting our religious liberties," added Smith. "It is our duty as laity to hold those who did not support our values accountable and vote our conscience when the time comes."

The full Catholic Advocate Congressional Scorecard is available at scorecard.catholicadvocate.com.

The Respect for Rights of Conscience Act amends the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act "to permit a health plan to decline coverage of specific items and services that are contrary to the religious beliefs of the sponsor, issuer, or other entity offering the plan or the purchaser or beneficiary (in the case of individual coverage) without penalty."

RELIGIOUS RIGHTS REJECTED

March 1, 2012

Catholic League president Bill Donohue comments on today’s Senate vote to table the “Respect for Rights of Conscience Act”:

 The 51-48 vote to table an amendment by Sen. Roy Blunt that would guarantee rights of conscience for the employees of religious institutions does not end the debate.

 There is a bill sponsored by Rep. Jeff Fortenberry that would also secure conscience rights for people of faith, and it has already garnered a near-majority of House members. Also available as a possible remedy are the rights encoded in the Religious Freedom Restoration Act. And, of course, the U.S. Supreme Court will hear oral arguments on the ObamaCare legislation later this month; a decision is expected in late spring.

 The Obama administration has chosen to shut out the Catholic voice (save for the dissidents). Consider the following:

• Archbishop William Lori has said that there was no discussion between administration officials and the bishops prior to the decisions of January 20 and February 10 that effectively mandated Catholic institutions to pay for abortion-inducing drugs, contraception and sterilization.

• Secretary of Health and Human Services (HHS) Kathleen Sebelius has admitted under questioning that the Justice Department was never asked to consider the religious-rights implications of her draconian directive.

• Dr. Linda Rosenstock, who served on a committee of the Institute of Medicine that was empowered to study the HHS mandate, said on Tuesday that at no time did anyone on the committee ever weigh the issue of religious rights. 

Obama does not want to dialogue—he wants to dictate. Game on.

Contact our director of communications about Donohue’s remarks:
Jeff Field
Phone: 212-371-3191
E-mail: cl@catholicleague.org