USA Today: Obama’s contraception mandate ‘foolish,’ ‘suspect’

At least one government watchdog is learning to bark again.

USA Today’s Opinion section dedicated “Today’s Debate” to religious freedom – or the fight over Obamacare’s contraception mandate. In a January 13 piece entitled, “Obamacare Overreach Tramples Little Sisters of the Poor,” USA Today rebelled against its own (media) kind to call out the Obama administration for having “picked a fight with Catholics and other religious groups.” Among other faults, the article found the administration’s “position” on the mandate “constitutionally suspect, politically foolish and ultimately unproductive.”

The Supreme Court recently consented to hear appeals challenging the contraception mandate, which would force employers to provide or consent to free contraception and abortion-inducing drugs for employees.

As a prime target of the mandate, USA Today cited the Little Sisters of the Poor: a group of nuns who care for the poor and elderly, and who refuse to comply with the mandate due to religious belief. Their case, USA Today argued, makes the administration look a “political loser.”

In her “Opposing View,” also published in USA Today, Cecile Richards, president of the Planned Parenthood Federation of America, argued, “No one’s freedom to practice religion is compromised.” The administration, she said, “is bending over backward to ensure” freedom of religion. How gracious of it!

The Little Sisters are not included in the 350,000 or so churches exempted from the mandate. But, Richards asserted, “the only thing the Little Sisters must do is fill out a one-page form stating that it objects to providing contraception” to avoid millions in fines. Ah, the so-called “compromise” that isn’t – an accounting trick that moves money around in a way that allows the administration to pretend the contraception coverage isn’t actually coming from the nuns. (In somewhat the same way Planned Parenthood pretends that the hundreds of thousands of abortions it performs aren’t subsidized tax dollars.) 

USA Today, however, wasn’t having it, explaining that the Sisters must “sign a certification that allows their insurance companies to provide it [birth control] instead” that arguably “makes them complicit in an act that violates a tenant of their faith.” 

But for Richards, phony “women’s health issues” trump the actual religious convictions protected in the First Amendment. “The real issues on the table are health care, financial security and,” Richards concluded, “basic fairness for women.”

Tell that to the Little Sisters.

USA Today stands alone among major media outlets in bashing the Obama administration’s contraception mandate, with “ABC warning “Your Employer Might Be Pro-Life!” and The Washington Post misleading on public opinion in regards to the mandate.

Learn More:

http://www.lifesitenews.com/blog/usa-today-obamas-contraception-mandate-foolish-suspect

Be Inspired This Week in your Pro-life Commitment!

January 20, 2014

Dear Brothers and Sisters,

What a great week has begun! Pro-life activities are everywhere. Take a look at this video http://youtu.be/nJhAVvtmg0o to see some of the things our Priests for Life team is doing!

You can also get an idea by looking at Priestsforlife.org/MarchForLife.

Along with the key rallies and prayer events, summarized below, we are also asking pro-life people, whether they are marching or not, to communicate with Congress about several important pro-life bills that have been introduced. See  Priestsforlife.org/Legislation for the details.

It is a week of prayer and action, and we ask you to say the special Prayer of Reparation for Roe vs Wade (see PrayerCampaign.org) and also utilize the other pro-life prayers that are there. Bring them to your pastors and group leaders, as they may want to use some of these prayers for this week’s events.

And, to give you an idea of things to come, we are preparing a new website, with a great domain name indicating the unity of the pro-life movement! This website will be a key educational tool for us — and you — to use throughout the year to equip people to protect the unborn.

So there is much to do, whether you are going to special pro-life events this week or not!

The main events in DC that we have organized are:

a) The official Youth Rally on Tuesday from 2 to 5pm. If you can’t make it, connect with our Youth Outreach at StandTrue.com and let as many young people as possible know about it!

b) The nation’s premier pro-life prayer service on Wednesday morning at 8:30am at Constitution Hall (see NationalPrayerService.com). If you can’t join us, please spread the prayers and videos that are on that site!

c) The gathering of the Silent No More Awareness Campaign at the steps of the Supreme Court at the conclusion of the March for Life. If you can’t be there (from about 2:30 on…) then please read, watch, and share the powerful testimonies of those who have had abortions. See SilentNoMore.com.

Thanks so much for your prayers, support, and participation this week and throughout the year!

Fr. Frank Pavone
National Director, Priests for Life

Priests for Life
PO Box 141172
Staten Island, NY 10314
Phone: 888-PFL-3448
718-980-4400
Fax: 718-980-6515
Email: mail@priestsforlife.org
www.priestsforlife.org

Quick! Remind your pastor to preach pro-life this Sanctity of Life Sunday – Jan 19

Why We Will March for Life: Because It’s Time to End Abortion

by Jessica Schildt | Washington, DC | LifeNews.com | 1/17/14 1:41 PM

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January brings several key pro-life events to Washington D.C, but the largest is the March for Life.Beginning at the National Mall and ending at the Supreme Court, the March remains the largest Civil Rights event in the world, with millions of attendees over its four decades.

Originally, the March for Life began as a small demonstration observed on January 22, 1974, the anniversary of Roe v. Wade, for fear that that day would pass without any observance of the tragedy of abortion—and its fatal injustices toward children and horrific effects on women.

Founder Nellie Gray, who passed away in August 2012, is often called the “Joan of Arc of the pro-life Movement” for her tireless devotion to the protection of the pre-born. The event that she and a small group of concerned pro-life advocates created now includes much more than the original march. Keynote speakers bolster the event, and a series of connected pro-life events take place during the week. The pro-life presence in the nation’s capital around is staggering on account of these events—last year, over 650,000 people participated.

Events like the March for Life serve many significant purposes in the pro-life movement. They remind us that people all across the nation want to see the end of forty years of abortions. Pro-life leaders in all capacities—whether leading a ministry, a small church group, or a campus club—receive the training and connections they need to further their efforts. And they compel citizens to stop and consider why they support the sanctity of life.

As the week of January 20^th approaches, consider ways to get involved. Reflect upon the answers to these key questions regarding abortion: what is wrong with abortion? What are the consequences of abortion? Why should the government protect life? How can we help women facing difficult choices?

This year, share your reasons for supporting life on social media with the hashtag #WhyWeMarch on Twitter, and “like” the March for Life’s page on Facebook.

The March for Life’s theme this year is adoption. Events such as the March for Life empower us to spread the truth about alternatives to abortion to our communities—ultimately with the goal of ending abortion in America.

This march and these events are more than a mere pep rally, and they are even more than the dreams of one determined woman. They represent the population in America that refuses to stand for the culture of death. They represent the support and sacrifice of many who are dedicated to seeing the end of abortion in this nation. They represent, above all, the truth that every human has a right to life which ought to be protected.

For more information regarding the March for Life and connected events, visit their website

LEARN MORE:

http://www.lifenews.com/2014/01/17/why-we-will-march-for-life-because-its-time-to-end-abortion/

Viral Video Marks 41 Years of Abortions in 5 Minutes: “My Generation Will End Abortion”

by Steven Ertelt | Washington, DC | LifeNews.com | 1/17/14 7:26 PM

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The pro-life group Texas Alliance for Life has released an inspiring video that tallies 41 years of legalized abortion under Roe v. Wade in just five minutes. The viral has already received almost 16,000 views in just one day.

“This year marks 41 years since the U.S. Supreme Court’s tragic Roe v. Wade decision that made abortion legal in Texas and across the nation for any reason throughout all nine months of pregnancy. In the wake of Roe, legal abortion has claimed the lives of nearly 57 million unborn children and has hurt countless women and men,” says Joe Pojman of Texas Alliance for Life.

The video features 41 women and girls who confidently proclaim, “My Generation Will End Abortion.”

Watch Video & Learn More:

41 Years of Roe v Wade

 Texas Alliance for Life

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ylD7ajPflqo

http://www.lifenews.com/2014/01/17/viral-video-marks-41-years-of-abortions-in-5-minutes-my-generation-will-end-abortion/

Judge in Case of Father Trying to Kill His Unborn Child Recuses Herself

by Steven Ertelt | Fort Worth, TX | LifeNews.com | 1/17/14 2:04 PM

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The judge in the controversial case of a father who is attempting to end his pregnant wife’s life support, which would kill his unborn child, has recused herself.

Marlise Munoz collapsed in her home last November from an apparent blood clot in her lungs when she was 14 weeks pregnant with her second child. Her husband and other family members have asked the John Peter Smith Hospital in Ft. Worth to remove Marlise from life support after they were told she was “brain dead.” Ending life support would also end her unborn baby’s life.

So far John Peter Smith Hospital officials have refused to follow the family’s request, citing a Texas law that prohibits hospitals from removing life support from pregnant women.

Erick Munoz, who says a doctor has told him his wife is brain dead, has filed a lawsuit against JPS Health Network but State District Judge Melody Wilkinson has recused herself from hearing it. Bud Kennedy, a reporter for the Fort Worth Star-Telegram, indicates Wilkinson’s campaign treasurer is also general counsel for JPS Health Network, the parent company of the hospital.

As the local newspaper reports:

Her husband, Erick Muñoz, sued JPS on Tuesday, asking that the hospital stop further medical procedures and remove his wife from respirators, ventilators or other “life support” and release her body.

JPS officials have refused, citing an Texas law that requires pregnant women to be kept on life support until the fetus is viable, usually at 24 to 26 weeks.

In a letter to Jeff Walker, administrative judge for this region, Wilkinson noted: “The Munoz case has time sensitive issues which require immediate attention. Thank you for your prompt attention to this matter.”

Walker said he will be out of town until Monday and state District Judge R.H. Wallace is serving as presiding judge. When Wallace’s office receives Wilkinson’s notice, the case will be reassigned, Walker said.

The Tarrant County district attorney’s office, which is representing JPS in the suit, declined through a spokeswoman to comment Thursday night on Wilkinson’s recusal.

The attorneys representing the Muñoz family did not comment on the recusal, but in an emailed statement, attorney Jessica Janicek said: “We have recently received Marlise Munoz’s medical records, and can now confirm that Mrs. Munoz is clinically brain dead, and therefore deceased under Texas law.”

Wilkinson could not be reached to comment Thursday night.

Bishop Who Escaped Abortion After Doctors Said He’d Be a “Freak” Will Lead March for Life

by Steven Ertelt | Washington, DC | LifeNews.com | 1/17/14 3:58 PM

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There are thousands, perhaps millions of people who could have become abortion victims because their parents were informed by their doctors that they would have physical or mental health issues after birth. Bravely, those parents decided not to have an abortion and, in many cases, those unborn babies before perfectly healthy people.

Bishop Andrew Cozzens is one such person. LifeNews has profiled this bishop who escaped abortion and now he’s given an interview to CatholicVote to share the rest of the story. Next week, he will lead students from Benedictine College at the March for Life.

Here’s part of that interview:

“When my mom was 20 weeks pregnant with me, her water broke and she went immediately to the hospital,” he said. “She and my father spent a night in prayer that they would not lose the baby. The next morning, the doctor came in after running some tests.”

The doctor said, “I need to tell you that your child is severely deformed and I recommend that we induce labor” — in other words, end the child’s life prematurely.

Mrs. Cozzens said, “Absolutely not.”

The doctor answered, “You don’t get it — this child is a freak.”

“I don’t care what you say,” she answered. She was determined to keep her baby — and to get a new doctor.

A second doctor was sent and he said the baby would be fine, “If you’re willing to lie in bed for the rest of this pregnancy.”

The parents were happy to do just that. But “How will we pay?” they asked. Insurance wouldn’t cover a months-long hospital stay.

The new doctor said not to worry. He had made a bet with the first doctor that she would deliver a healthy and normal child. If the baby was normal, Doctor 1 would pay for her $1,200 hospital stay. If not, Doctor 2 would pay.

“When the second doctor delivered me he told the nurse to go get the other doctor and tell him to see his ‘little freak,’” laughed Bishop Cozzens.

Learn More:

http://www.lifenews.com/2014/01/17/bishop-who-escaped-abortion-after-doctors-said-hed-be-a-freak-will-lead-march-for-life/