March for Life

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Transparent Trap: Abortion in Obamacare

 

Yesterday, Republican Leadership in the House of Representatives introduced their massive end of year spending bill, called by some a “CROmnibus.”  The bill is a disappointment in that it doesn’t give teeth to any pro-life issues that need immediate attention, such as states like California forcing Christian entities to pay for abortions.  However, it does offer instructions to the Obama Administration on issues of transparency in regards to abortion within the health law commonly known as Obamacare.

>>>>> Watch the March for Life Google Hangout with Pro-Life Caucus Chairman, Congressman Chris Smith, Are You Subsidizing Abortion Coverage?

This legislation is a prime opportunity to draw attention to the taxpayer-funded abortion coverage in the ACA; specifically, the lack of transparency regarding abortion coverage.  It has become evident that it is very difficult for consumers seeking exchange plans to identify which, if any plans, on their state exchange exclude abortion. This is vital information for pro-life consumers in the 27 states that have not passed laws to exclude abortion coverage in their state exchange.  Since there is a mandatory monthly abortion surcharge included in the premiums for any plan that includes elective abortion, pro-life consumers will want to identify plans that exclude abortion.  However, the exchange websites do not indicate whether abortion coverage is included in each plan and the pricing information does not specify when the price includes the abortion surcharge.

The CROmnibus includes the following language concerning Obamacare abortion transparency provision:

  1. 81, Division G Joint Explanatory Statement:

Transparency in Health Plans.-The agreement directs the Secretary to provide

additional clarification to qualified health plans, based upon relevant and related

GAO findings, to ensure greater consistency and full transparency of coverage

options included in health insurance plans prior to plan purchase in the

marketplace enrollment process. The agreement requests a timeline for such

clarifying guidance to be submitted to the House and Senate Committees on

Appropriations within 30 days after enactment of this act.

If the CROmnibus passes this week, it will likely be months (if ever) before the Obama Administration actually complies with the request.  However, thanks to the work of the Charlotte Lozier Institute and Family Research Council, consumers don’t have to wait as long.  Last month, the groups launched a new website to expose which health insurance plans on the Obamacare exchanges cover and do not cover elective abortion for the 2015 enrollment period.

obamacare abortionThe website, ObamacareAbortion.com, is a joint effort between the two groups. Researchers have examined new plan documents, contacted insurance carriers and the exchanges seeking plan information.  They also reference the 2014 Government Accountability Office report that provided a list of 1,036 plans that covered abortion on demand and were eligible for federal tax subsidies in 2014. This new online tool will aid Americans who want to make fully informed healthcare decisions and avoid inadvertently purchasing a plan covering abortion on demand.  Be sure to check it out.

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Real Pro-life Victories Happened on the State Level

 

Republicans will have full control of at least 29 state legislatures, the party’s largest total since 1928, perhaps earlier. Republicans also will hold at least 32 governorships, including newly won offices in traditionally Democratic Illinois, Maryland, and Massachusetts.

How important is this to those in Washington, D.C.?  The National Council of State Legislatures points out that the state legislature is where a high number of Federal legislators cut their teeth:

Half of the congressional freshman class will bring with them state legislative experience when the 114th Congress begins in mid-January. Tuesday’s results saw 29 current or former state legislators elected to the House of Representatives and six newly elected senators with backgrounds serving in their respective state capitals. While a number of elections around the country are either too close to call, not yet official, or face runoffs, the upcoming Congress will consist of 219 and 45 members in the House and Senate, respectively, with state legislative credentials, an increase over the previous two election cycles. When the dust settles, about half of the members in the 114th Congress will have served in state legislatures.

NCLS also points out that it was good election for Republicans, as they took the majority in 11 legislative chambers previously held by Democrats. Those chambers were:

  • Colorado Senate
  • Maine Senate
  • Minnesota House
  • Nevada Assembly
  • Nevada Senate
  • New Hampshire House
  • New York Senate
  • New Mexico House
  • Washington Senate
  • West Virginia House.
  • West Virginia Senate (after Democratic Senator Daniel Hall switched his party affiliation to Republican).

Factoring in all of those changes, here are the bottom line numbers (the Nebraska unicameral Legislature is nonpartisan):

  • Legislatures: 30 R, 11 D and 8 split
  • Chambers: 68 R, 30 D
  • Governors: 31 R, 18 D and 1 undecided (Alaska)
  • State governments: 23 R, 7 D, 18 divided and 1 undecided (Alaska)

It appears that Republicans will have a net gain of close to 350 seats and control over 4,100 of the nation’s 7,383 legislative seats. That is their highest number of legislators since 1920. Republicans gained seats in every region of the country and in all but about a dozen legislative chambers that were up this year.

This will likely open doors to more pro-life legislation in states where one chamber or both were controlled by pro-abortion politicians.

On ballot initiatives it was a mixed bag with the personhood movement failing in North Dakota and Colorado with amendments to grant the unborn constitutional rights.

However, in Tennessee voters approved a ballot initiative to amend the state constitution to say that nothing in it protects the right to an abortion or the funding of an abortion. The measure distinguished the right to privacy from the right to an abortion. With 90 percent of precincts reporting, AP said the measure was approved by a vote margin of 54 percent to 46 percent the amendment was a response to a Tennessee Supreme Court ruling in 2000 that said abortion was protected by the state constitution. The amendment was brought before the legislature four months after that decision, but it took nearly 14 years to become law because of political opposition and the state’s lengthy referendum process.

Because of the pro-life laws in surrounding states, Tennessee had become an “abortion destination” spot. Almost 19 percent of the women getting abortions in Tennessee were from out of state, according to the Tennessee Department of Health, in order to avoid pro-life laws like parental consent, in adjacent states.

More than $4 million in advertising for and against an abortion measure had flooded airwaves and mailboxes in Tennessee since the start of October, with opponents outstripping supporters by nearly a 3-1 ratio.

Republican Beth Harwell, speaker of the Tennessee House, said she is backing a trio of abortion bills that include:

  • A mandatory waiting period before a woman seeking an abortion can obtain one.
  • Inspection requirements for all facilities where abortions are performed.
  • Mandatory counseling — or “informed consent” — be provided to a woman before an abortion.

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Midterm Election Victories, Republican Majority, and Pro-Life Legislation

Hey Republicans, That’s An Awful Nice Majority You Have There. Be a Real Shame if Something Happened To It.

Without a doubt Republicans had a good night Election night.  While there are a handful of races still outstanding, House Republicans are on track to have their largest majority since they had 270 seats in the in the 71st Congress (1929-1930).

The election has a number of interesting tidbits (most from the Washington Post and other sources (noted)):

  •  Senators-elect Tom Cotton and Joni Ernst are two of the first Iraq War veterans elected to the Senate.  Former Rep. Cotton also gives Arkansas two Republican Senators for the first time since 1879.
  • For the first time ever, more than 100 female legislators will be voting in the next session of Congress. With Rep. Shelley Moore Capito’s Senate victory in West Virginia, the state has its first female senator.  Joni Ernst, who won the Iowa Senate race, will be the first woman elected to federal office in that state.
  • Elise Stefanik, who won the House race in New York’s 21st District, is the youngest woman ever elected to Congress. She is 30.
  • Mia Love, who won the House race in Utah’s 4th District, is the first black woman to be elected as a Republican representative.
  • Will Hurd, who won a House race in Texas, became the first black Republican to win a federal election in the state since Reconstruction.
  • 29 Senators who voted for Obamacare have now been booted from the Senate by voters since 2010.

A lesson from the elections is that being pro-life beats being pro-abortion.  Three high profile Republican candidates that highlighted their pro-abortion stances and also had a lot of financial support from the Republican Leadership and Establishment lost (or in one case, is March for Life 2014losing).

Senator Scott Brown (who was a Senator from Massachusetts for a little while, and this year ran for the Senate  in New Hampshire), Richard Tisei, and Carl DeMaio all were sold as “new Republicans” who embrace the culture of death.  All of them lost in what was otherwise a Republican tidal wave.

So what does this mean for the 114th Congress, which could easily be seen as a heavily pro-life House of Representatives  and a more pro-life Senate?

In the House, we should expect votes on numerous pro-life bills that have been voted on in the past, such as the No Taxpayer Funding for Abortion Act and the Pain Capable Unborn Child Protection Act, as well as legislation that was not voted on, knowing it would lie in limbo in the Senate.

The Senate though is not a lock for pro-life votes.  There are a number of Republicans in the U.S. Senate who are either pro-abortion or marginally on the side of the unborn.  Any pro-life legislation will have to be carefully crafted and eased through the Senate chamber to even reach a majority of support of 51.  Getting 60 votes to overcome any expected filibuster will be even more difficult considering there is only one Democrat, Senator Joe Manchin (D-WV), who could be considered pro-life.  However you should expect a vote on the Pain Capable bill as Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky), as well as a number of newly elected Republican Senators, ran on the platform of a vote on that specific legislation.

That of course wasn’t the only issue Republicans ran on.  This election was more about not being President Obama than it was about being Republican.  Incoming Majority Leader McConnell, in a press conference following the election, named his primary Obamacare targets: the medical device tax, the individual mandate and the 30-hour work week.

The President’s signature issue, the health care law known as Obamacare, was also a primary talking point for winning candidates.  Nearly half of voters – 47 percent – said Obamacare went too far, according to a CNN exit poll. The exit poll survey of 11,522 voters included voters from a random sample of precincts on Tuesday, as well as voters who cast their ballots early or absentee.

The “party of repeal” might now be in power in both chambers of Congress; however, they fall short of the necessary 60 votes needed to pass legislation in the Senate, let alone override a Presidential veto.

In a statement after Republicans took control of the Senate, House Speaker John Boehner did not mention health care. He said we can expect the jobs and energy bills passed by the House to be voted on in the Senate, and he talked about fixing the tax code, legal, regulatory and education systems. He mentioned nothing on Obamacare or pro-life bills.

Bottom line, if the Republicans want to keep their recently won majority they will need to be bold in the House of Representatives on pro-life issues and the Senate Republicans will need to unite on the pro-life issue, regardless of their personal view on protecting the unborn.

Days until the 2016 election: 732 days

 

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And We Will Be Heard

Guest Blog by Angela Kim

I breathe in and out, watching my breath condense in the chill air. Stretched above like a sheet of ice, the sky shimmers as the sun struggles against the suppressing cold. Its heat warms the crowd only a little, beaten away by relentless winds. It is cold. And yet, despite the numbness in my fingertips, the shiver running through my body in an uncomfortable tremor, I cherish every moment, willing this day to last forever. After all, I dreamed of attending the March for Life for years now, and I finally made it.

Getting here has not been easy. For most people, it is a simple matter of piling in a car and driving to Washing D.C for the day, but I am limited. I do not have a car or a license, and I also do not have enough money to afford the $150 tickets offered by local pro-life groups. I had to find another way.

In the end, I traveled with a friend named Emily. We took a bus from Michigan to Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania where a friend let us stay the night. Then we joined a homeschool co-op’s bus that drove six hours to Washington, D.C, only to stay three to four hours and drive all the way back.

It was quite a long way to travel. But it was so worth it. As soon as we stepped off the bus and into the cold, chill air, I knew it was worth it.

zzzzangelakimI am standing in a crowd of people, smiling people wrapped warmly in jackets and scarves and hats. For a moment, I wonder how vast the crowd is, so I make my way to one side and stand on a three-foot wall, looking out. I cannot see the end of the crowd. It is a sea of people. Colorful signs and flags soar through the air. Music blares in the background, whispered prayers filling in any moment of near silence. I look around, and that’s when it hits me.

Everyone in this crowd is here for the same reason. Everyone here believes, more or less, the same thing. For years and years, I have been passionately against the injustice of abortion, and during these years, I felt so alone. But here I am, and here they are, in numbers greater than I could possibly imagine.

We march.

And we make a sound. This sound is a song, a cry, a chant, a speech, and a prayer. It is thousands of voices speaking at once, speaking the same thought, the same belief. We make this sound for those who cannot make such a sound themselves. We make this sound and every political person in Washington D.C cannot avoid hearing it. President Barack Obama himself cannot but hear our voice. And it doesn’t stop there. Our shouts and our cries for justice then continue to roll across the nation and across the world.

We make this sound for the unborn. And we will be heard.

I would like to take a moment and encourage you to attend the March for Life this year, no matter the distance it takes to get there. I traveled several hundred miles to spend a few hours at the March, and it was definitely worth it. The opportunity is so rare, the impact so tremendous, that I could hardly believe it. Really, the March for Life isn’t about marching itself or about being pro-life. It’s about truth. And, truthfully, abortion is unjust. It’s wrong. It’s murder. And it is our job to stand together in great numbers and remind the world of this.

I want to finish this piece with someone else’s words. I am standing in a massive crowd all around a raised stage with speakers, cameras, screens, and a podium. This part of the day happens just before the march itself. You get the chance to listen to a number of amazing speakers. One speaker in particular stands out to me the most.

He says, “You may or may not know this. My birth mother was seventeen years old. She wasn’t married. She didn’t have a boyfriend. She was terrified… didn’t know what to do. And her dad and her church put her in the doors of a pregnancy resource center and people just like you opened their arms to her, showed her the love of Christ, and gave her an alternative. And I’m here and alive today because of this movement, and I’m here to say ‘thank you,’ and I will continue to say thank you until abortion is ended in the United States.”

 

Angela Kim is 18 years old and a student at Grove City College. Her life goal is to glorify God and end abortion in the United States. To stay up-to-date with her work, visit her blog at Journal of an Abolitionist or follow her on Twitter @MissAngelaAKim

 

 

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The Photo That Shocked The Nation

There has never been a better time in the history of the world for a person with a disability to be alive, yet, tragically, the vast majority of babies diagnosed in the womb with a disability are aborted.  Why are these babies not given a chance at life? Expectant parents and doctors have been convinced that children will have a “poor quality of life”, and rather than pursuing medical treatments and options, doctors recommend abortion as a solution. It is stunning that in 21st Century America, where modern medicine can grow new limbs and cure once incurable diseases, doctors and medical professionals too quickly turn to abortion as a resolution to a prenatal diagnosis of disability.

Thankfully, there are parents who refuse to accept abortion as a solution. In 1999, Julie and Alex Armas received the diagnosis that their preborn baby, Samuel, had Spina Bifida. However, Julie and Alex decided to fight for their son’s life. They qualified for an experimental pre-natal surgery at Vanderbilt University Hospital. At 21 weeks, Samuel was operated on in utero. That day there was a photographer was in the operating room, taking photos for a USA Today piece on pre-natal surgeries. The photo that was used in the spread sent shock waves around the world, and was dubbed “the Hand of Hope.”

The-Hand-of-Hope-72dpiThe photo displayed for the world, the humanity of the tiny baby in the womb, as well as the miracle of modern medicine!

When Samuel was born, the doctors and nurses were blown away by how well he did. It’s amazing what the love and persistence of parents who refuse to accept abortion as a solution can do. Today, Samuel is fifteen years old. His quality of life is anything but low.

Five years after Samuel’s very successful surgery, Julie Armas was pregnant with her third son, and again received a diagnosis of Spina Bifida. When Julie and Alex sought the same beneficial treatment that Samuel received, they were refused the surgery. Julie described the irony of the abortion culture: “I could choose to end his life, but I couldn’t choose to have a surgery that I had already experienced, that I knew would benefit him.” How tragic.

October is Spina Bifida Awareness Month, as well as Down Syndrome Awareness Month. I don’t think it’s a coincidence that it also happens to be the middle of a 40 Days for Life Campaign. It is time to move away from the attitude that babies diagnosed with disabilities are disposable. Society should no longer accept abortion as a solution for ending disabilities. Abortion can never be a solution, because abortion can only destroy. America, we can do better.

Watch the Armas Family’s Story here [130:00].