Life Advocacy Briefing

Calls Needed to Stop Steve Six

THE SENATE JUDICIARY COMMITTEE WAS SCHEDULED TO VOTE last Thursday on the nomination of Steve Six to the 10th Circuit Court of Appeals. But Chairman Patrick Leahy (D-VT) announced that the nomination would be held over at the request of Ranking Member Charles Grassley (R-IA). Thank you, Sen. Grassley!

Though the nomination has not yet cleared committee, we doubt that it will be held much longer. Consequently, we urge readers to begin now to contact their own two US Senators (Capitol switchboard: 1-202/224-3121) and ask them to vote “no” on the nomination of Steve Six to the federal appellate court.

Mr. Six is an abortion collaborator who was appointed Kansas attorney general by his state’s chief abortion collaborator then-Gov. Kathleen Sebelius. He has dodged questions by Senate Judiciary Committee members, notably including Sen. Grassley, concerning his complicity in the cover-up of crimes by Planned Parenthood and the late notorious George Tiller and the persecution of former Kansas Atty. Gen. Phill Kline, whose condemning commentary on Mr. Six’s disqualifications was reprinted in last week’s edition of Life Advocacy Briefing.

Only the Abortion President and his minions in the Senate could see this man as suited to a life-term appointment to the federal judiciary. Already the two Senators from Kansas, Pat Roberts and Jerry Moran (both R), have announced opposition to his confirmation, though a nominee’s own Senators customarily quash qualms about nominees from their state.

More information outlining Mr. Six’s betrayal of justice with respect to Planned Parenthood and late-term abortionist Tiller may be acquired via the Internet website www.plannedparenthoodcorruption.org/library-of-documents.

House Blocks Potential Funding for Remote-Control Abortions

THE U.S. HOUSE HAS ADOPTED AN AMENDMENT barring funds appropriated to the Food & Drug Administration (FDA) from applying to mifepristone, the RU-486 abortion drug.

The amendment to HR-2112 was offered June 16 by Rep. Steve King (R-IA) and was adopted 240 to 176. We publish the voting record at the close of this Life Advocacy Briefing.

The FDA appropriation would not normally be considered a potential source for underwriting RU-486 or any specific drug, but HR-2112 provides funding for development of “telemedicine services,” making it a potential source of grants for Planned Parenthood, which has infested Mr. King’s home state with “telemed abortion” shops.

In telemed or webcam abortions, a customer sits at a computer console and communicates with a supposed doctor who is in a remote location, usually miles away. By this means, Planned Parenthood – or other abortion shops – can save overhead by proliferating its chemical abortion business in locations which never see a doctor. And the remote doctor never physically examines the customer, to whom pills are dispensed for an at-home abortion which is essentially an induced miscarriage.

Rep. King discovered in February, via a response from Health & Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius, that her office had issued telemed grants to Planned Parenthood, which has been piloting the scheme in Iowa since 2008.

“‘This is a dangerous drug,’” said Rep. King, quoted by Kathleen Gilbert for LifeSiteNews.com, “‘and to distribute it through robo-Skype abortions – I’m opposed to it philosophically for a lot of reasons, but practical minds who might disagree on the abortion issue should understand that this government should not be paying for it.’”

We thank Rep. King and 239 of his House colleagues for taking appropriate action before Planned Parenthood could attach its fangs to another federal funding source at the FDA. We urge the Senate to acquiesce to this decision by the House – before telemed abortions become a federally funded “way of death.”

Parental Notice Filed in Congress

U.S. LAWMAKERS WHO, AS CANDIDATES, BOASTEDOF THEIR SUPPORT for “parental notification of abortion” reforms now have an opportunity to live up to their promises.

Rep. Ileana Ros-Lehtinen (R-FL) has re-introduced the Child Interstate Abortion Notification Act and is looking for more co-sponsors. At the time of its introduction last Wednesday, 86 co-sponsors had listed their names. HR-2299 has been referred to the House Judiciary Committee.

Sen. Marco Rubio (R-FL) filed the measure in the Senate last Tuesday as S-1241. His measure had 29 co-sponsors at introduction and has been sent to the Senate Judiciary Committee.

The purpose of the bill, which drew 270 House votes in 2005 and 264 in 2006, is to provide criminal penalties for a non-custodial adult to take a minor across state lines for an abortion evading the minor’s home-state parental involvement laws. The measure also requires, according to a news release from Rep. Ros-Lehtinen, that “in a state without a parental notification requirement, abortion providers are required to notify a parent.” Hence the measure, her release says, “would apply parental notification laws to all 50 states. …

“‘Minors cannot get a tattoo, rent a car or take medicine in school without their parents’ consent,’” notes Rep. Ros-Lehtinen in the release. “‘Yet a minor is able to legally cross state lines in order to take the life of her unborn child without her parents’ knowledge. [The bill] reflects the inviolable right of parents to guide their children’s upbringing. … This bill will help states enforce what [most] have already implemented on their own.’”

Readers are asked to call their relevant lawmakers (Capitol switchboard: 1-202/224-3121) to thank those who are co-sponsors (see below) and to request them to add their names if they have not yet signed on.

Co-Sponsors of Child Interstate Abortion Notification Act

Republican Representatives Aderholt & Bachus (AL); Franks (AZ); Crawford (AR); Herger & Lungren (CA); Coffman & Lamborn (CO); Adams, Bilirakis, Buchanan, Crenshaw, Diaz-Balart, Mica, Miller, Posey, Rivera, Southerland, Stearns, West & Young (FL); Kinzinger, Manzullo, Roskam & Shimkus (IL); Burton, Donnelly & Pence (IN); King (IA); Davis & Rogers (KY); Fleming & Scalise (LA); Bartlett (MD); Benishek, Huizenga, McCotter, Miller & Rogers (MI); Bachmann (MN); Akin & Hartzler (MO); Fortenberry & Terry (NE); Garrett & Smith (NJ); Buerkle & King (NY); Ellmers, Foxx & Jones (NC); Austria, Chabot, Johnson, Jordan, LaTourette, Latta, Schmidt & Tiberi (OH); Sullivan (OK); Barletta, Pitts & Shuster (PA); Gowdy & Wilson (SC); Black, Blackburn, DesJarlais, Fincher & Roe (TN); Brady, Canseco, Carter, Conaway, Culberson, Farenthold, Hensarling, McCaul, Neugebauer, Olson & Smith (TX); Wolf (VA); McMorris-Rodgers (WA); and Sensenbrenner (WI).

Democratic Representatives Lipinski (IL) and Peterson (MN). No Democratic Senators.

Republican Senators Sessions (AL), Kyl & McCain (AZ), Chambliss (GA), Risch (ID), Coats (IN), Grassley (IA), Moran & Roberts (KS), McConnell & Paul (KY), Vitter (LA), Cochran & Wicker (MS), Blunt (MO), Johanns (NE), Ayotte (NH), Burr (NC), Coburn & Inhofe (OK), DeMint & Graham (SC), Thune (SD), Cornyn & Hutchison (TX), Hatch & Lee (UT), Johnson (WI), Enzi (WY).

Illinois Parental Notice Stalled Again

THOUGH ILLINOIS’s 16-YEAR-OLD PARENTAL NOTICE ACT has been cleared – after lengthy litigation – by the federal courts, the still-stymied law is trapped now in the state judicial system, and frustrated lawmakers last week saw a state appellate court overturn a trial court order lifting a restraining order pending trial.

The plaintiffs in this state-level litigation are represented, reports the Associated Press, by the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU), claiming, reports AP, “the law inflicts harm on girls and violates the Illinois constitution.”

March for Life Speeches

With the transcripts below, we complete our publication of Congressional speeches delivered at the Jan. 24, 2011, March for Life, transcribed by Life Advocacy Briefing from C-SPAN.org videocoverage. Celebrate with us the fact that the number of Congressmen at the March this year pushed this series all the way to mid-year!

Rep. Thaddeus McCotter (R-MI): I’m Thaddeus McCotter from the Great Lakes State of Michigan and an alumnus of Detroit Catholic Central High School. First, coming from Michigan, I truly have to say that I’m enjoying the warm weather here in Washington. And on a more serious note, we understand that the right to life is not a Republican or a Democratic issue. It is a human issue. And so today, before you and to my constituents in Michigan’s Eleventh Congressional District, who have entrusted me with this office to serve them, I reaffirm my commitment to defending innocent human life and to creating a culture of life here in the United States. Thank you all for what you do. God bless you.

Rep. Robert Aderholt (R-AL): Good afternoon, I’m Robert Aderholt, Congressman from Alabama’s Twelfth Congressional District. It is great to see so many pro-life Congressmen here. Let me just say that we’re up for a new day in Congress with these newly elected Congressmen who value life and want to protect life. And thank you for standing up for life and being out here today. There’s rallies that are held across this country. I had the privilege to be in Alabama over the weekend and speak at a pro-life rally. There’s marches that are being held across the country. But most of all, thank you for the prayers that you pray for the unborn. It makes a difference. Thank you for praying for this Congress and for legislators across the country that make the decisions for the protection of the unborn. May God bless each and every one of you, and may God bless America.

Rep. Mike Kelly (R-PA): Good afternoon, pro-life America! I’m Mike Kelly from northwestern Pennsylvania, part of the Steeler nation. And I want you to know my grandson George, my granddaughter Vivian, my wife Vicki. In 1776, Thomas Jefferson said, “We hold these truths – that all men are created equal, endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable rights, life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness.” If we knew in 1776 how important life was, we certainly know in 2011 that the same thing holds true. That while the temperature may be cold, our hearts run warm, and our passion runs white hot. God bless you, and God bless America.

Rep. Paul Broun (R-GA): Friends, the greatest moral issue we face in this nation is the killing of four thousand babies every day. God cannot and will not bless this land while this is going on. We have to stop it – we have to stop it now. I’m Paul Broun from Georgia, representing the Tenth Congressional District. When I was elected to Congress, I promised that the first bill I’d introduce was the Sanctity of Human Life Act. It was and will be until we stop this tragedy – this horror that’s going on in America. But the greatest political force in America today is embodied in the first three words of the US Constitution: We the people. You will stop abortion! Talk to your Senator, talk to your Congressman. Get your friends – everybody in your sphere of influence – to demand that we pass a Personhood bill so that those precious unborn children – one-cell human beings – will have the right to life and be protected as you and I are. That’s going to be the key. It’s up to you. Will you join me in fighting to give the right of Personhood to those unborn children? Will you? We’ve got to do it. Go to work. God bless you.

House Voting Record

King (Steve) ‘Telemed’ Amendment to bar funding for RU-486 in Food & Drug Administration Appropriation  – June 16, 2011 – Adopted – 240-176 (Democrats in italics; new Member in ALL CAPS)

Voting “yes” / pro-Life: AL/Aderholt, Bachus, Bonner, Brooks, Roby, Rogers; AK/Young; AZ/Flake, Franks, Gosar, Quayle, Schweikert; AR/Crawford, Griffin, Ross, Womack; CA/Bono-Mack, Calvert, Campbell, Denham, Dreier, Gallegly, Herger, Hunter, Issa, Lewis, Lungren, McCarthy, McClintock, McKeon, Gary Miller, Nunes, Rohrabacher, Royce; CO/Coffman, Gardner, Lamborn, Tipton; FL/Adams, Bilirakis, Buchanan, Crenshaw, Diaz-Balart, Mack, Mica, Miller, Nugent, Posey, Rivera, Rooney, Ros-Lehtinen, Ross, Southerland, Stearns, Webster, West, Young; GA/Broun, Gingrey, Graves, Kingston, Price, Austin Scott, Westmoreland, Woodall; ID/Labrador, Simpson; IL/Costello, Hultgren, Kinzinger, Lipinski, Manzullo, Roskam, Schilling, Schock, Shimkus, Walsh; IN/Bucshon, Burton, Donnelly, Pence, Stutzman, Young; IA/King, Latham; KS/Huelskamp, Jenkins, Pompeo, Yoder; KY/Davis, Guthrie, Rogers, Whitfield; LA/Alexander, Boustany, Cassidy, Fleming, Landry, Scalise; MD/Bartlett, Harris; MI/Amash, Benishek, Camp, Huizenga, Miller, Rogers, Walberg; MN/Bachmann, Cravaack, Kline, Paulsen, Peterson; MS/Harper, Nunnelee, Palazzo; MO/Akin, Emerson, Graves, Hartzler, Long, Luetkemeyer; MT/Rehberg; NE/Fortenberry, Smith, Terry; NV/Heck; NH/Guinta; NJ/Frelinghuysen, Garrett, Lance, LoBiondo, Runyan, Smith; NM/Pearce; NY/Buerkle, Gibson, Grimm, King, Reed; NC/Coble, Ellmers, Foxx, Jones, McHenry, McIntyre, Myrick, Shuler; ND/Berg; OH/Austria, Chabot, Gibbs, Johnson, Jordan, Kaptur, LaTourette, Latta, Renacci, Schmidt, Tiberi, Turner; OK/Boren, Cole, Lankford, Lucas, Sullivan; OR/Walden; PA/Barletta, Critz, Fitzpatrick, Gerlach, Holden, Kelly, Marino, Meehan, Murphy, Pitts, Platts, Shuster, Thompson; RI/Langevin; SC/Duncan, Gowdy, Mulvaney, Scott, Wilson; SD/Noem; TN/Black, Blackburn, DesJarlais, Duncan, Fincher, Fleischmann, Roe; TX/Barton, Brady, Burgess, Canseco, Carter, Conaway, Cuellar, Culberson, Farenthold, Flores, Gohmert, Granger, Hall, Hensarling, Sam Johnson, Marchant, McCaul, Neugebauer, Olson, Paul, Poe, Sessions, Smith, Thornberry; UT/Bishop, Chaffetz; VA/Cantor, Forbes, Goodlatte, Griffith, Hurt, Rigell, Wittman, Wolf; WA/Hastings, Herrera-Beutler, McMorris-Rodgers, Reichert; WV/McKinley, Rahall; WI/Duffy, Petri, Ribble, Ryan, Sensenbrenner; WY/Lummis.

Voting “no” / anti-Life: AL/Sewell; AZ/Grijalva, Pastor; CA/Baca, Bass, Becerra, Berman, Bilbray, Capps, Cardoza, Chu, Costa, Davis, Farr, Filner, Garamendi, Honda, Lee, Lofgren, Matsui, McNerney, Napolitano, Pelosi, Richardson, Roybal-Allard, Linda Sanchez, Loretta Sanchez, Schiff, Sherman, Speier, Stark, Thompson, Waters, Waxman, Woolsey; CO/DeGette, Perlmutter, Polis; CT/Courtney, DeLauro, Himes, Murphy; DE/Carney; FL/Brown, Castor, Deutch, Hastings, Wasserman-Schultz, Wilson; GA/Barrow, Bishop, Johnson, Lewis, David Scott; HI/Hanabusa, Hirono; IL/Biggert, Davis, Dold, Gutierrez, Jackson, Quigley, Rush, Schakowsky; IN/Carson, Visclosky; IA/Boswell, Braley, Loebsack; KY/Chandler, Yarmuth; LA/Richmond; ME/Michaud, Pingree; MD/Cummings, Edwards, Hoyer, Ruppersberger, Sarbanes, VanHollen; MA/Capuano, Frank, Keating, Lynch, Markey, McGovern, Tierney; MI/Clarke, Conyers, Dingell, Kildee, Levin, Peters, Upton; MN/McCollum, Walz; MS/Thompson; MO/Carnahan, Clay, Cleaver; NV/Berkley; NH/Bass; NJ/Andrews, Holt, Pallone, Pascrell, Payne, Rothman, Sires; NM/Heinrich, Lujan; NY/Ackerman, Bishop, Clarke, Crowley, Engel, Hanna, Hayworth, Higgins, Hinchey, HOCHUL, Israel, Lowey, Maloney, McCarthy, Nadler, Owens, Serrano, Tonko, Towns, Velazquez; NC/Butterfield, Kissell, Miller, Price, Watt; OH/Fudge, Kucinich, Ryan, Sutton; OR/Blumenauer, DeFazio, Schrader, Wu; PA/Altmire, Brady, Dent, Doyle, Fattah, Schwartz; RI/Cicilline; SC/Clyburn; TN/Cohen, Cooper; TX/ Doggett, Gonzalez, Al Green, Gene Green, Hinojosa, Jackson-Lee, E.B. Johnson, Reyes; UT/Matheson; VT/Welch; VA/Connolly, Moran, Scott; WA/Dicks, Inslee, Larsen, McDermott, Smith; WV/Capito; WI/Baldwin, Kind, Moore.

Not voting: AZ/Giffords; CA/Eshoo, George Miller; CT/Larson; IL/Johnson; IN/Rokita; MA/Neal, Olver, Tsongas; MI/McCotter; MN/Ellison; NY/Meeks, Rangel, Slaughter, Weiner; OH/Boehner, Stivers.