Life Advocacy Briefing

Breakthrough

ANOTHER WEEK, ANOTHER VIDEO exposing Planned Parenthood’s complicity in the trafficking of baby body parts, a product of the abortion trade. This third video brought out more clearly the profit motive of the abortion cartel’s chief death purveyor.

The drumbeat of truth and reality is beginning to have its effect. Not only has legislation been introduced in both houses of Congress to disqualify Planned Parenthood from federal “women’s health” and “family planning” programs, but now Presidential candidates are beginning to weigh in.

The Center for Medical Progress – producer of these explosive undercover probe videos – has given pro-life advocates a rare opportunity to reach the blasé crowd of “pop culture pro-choicers.” That is the term Life Advocacy uses to identify those who typically vote for so-called “pro-choice” candidates and who typically choose a “pro-choice” self-identification based on their concept of “niceness” as their highest value. They see Life advocates as “judgmental,” which falls outside their definition of “nice.” Yet when an advocate for Life-protective policy takes the trouble to point out the gross injustice and actual horror of abortion practices, the dawn breaks through for many of these voters, and a shift in public opinion can be seen.

It was largely the “pop culture pro-choice” crowd that moved toward pro-life self-identification upon learning, between 2011 and 2013, of the dastardly practices of convicted West Philadelphia murderer/abortionist Kermit Gosnell. Large numbers of such “pop culture pro-choicers” moved in the pro-life direction in the 1990s when the reality of partial-birth abortion became known through a lengthy, determined legislative battle both in Congress and in the state legislatures.

Planned Parenthood has ridden those storms as if aloof from their complicity and managed to retain public support beyond the reality of its own practices. Now light is dawning on Planned Parenthood itself, and the best PP’s spokesmen and leaders can come up with is to charge the Center for Medical Progress with staging the interviews. Well, yes. The interviewers on the videos were not genuine customers seeking trade with America’s largest abortion chain; but the PP officers who were caught on these videos bargaining over the organs and even whole bodies of innocent little gestating babies were in fact officers of Planned Parenthood and were in fact seeking trade in human body parts.

This, dear reader, is the epitome of “not nice,” and the more it is discussed by everyone from Presidential candidates to distressed converts, the greater will be the wave of public opinion against Planned Parenthood and the depths to which the Supreme Court’s abortion fetish has brought America.

Movement in the Political Realm

AMONG THE PLACES BEING DRAGGED INTO THIS REALITY is the United States Senate, where GOP Presidential candidate Sen. Rand Paul (KY) has filed S-1861 and freshman Sen. Joni Ernst (R-IA) has filed S-1881, joining Sen. James Lankford (R-OK), whose S-1836 was the first Senate measure introduced to defund Planned Parenthood. We publish the list of co-sponsors – as of this writing – for each of these three measures, near the close of this Life Advocacy Briefing.

Defunding legislation is also on file in the House, where Tennessee GOP Rep. Diane Black’s HR-3134 now has 162 co-sponsors, as of this writing. Near the close of this Life Advocacy Briefing, we list the 38 who have added their names since our publication of the original 124 last week.

It appears the House will take up the measure after the August recess, giving pro-life citizens opportunity to press their Representatives, regardless of party, toward voting for the disqualification of Planned Parenthood from federal taxpayer funding. District office contact information is available via the website www.house.gov or from local public library reference desks.

In the Senate, Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) indicated last week that a vote would come on one of the Senate defunding bills as early as tonight, Monday, Aug. 3. Readers are urged to call their US Senators via the Capitol switchboard at 1-202/224-3121 to thank those who are co-sponsors and to urge all to vote in favor of the Defunding Planned Parenthood Act.

ObamaCare Repeal Falls, This Time

THE U.S. SENATE VOTED DOWN LAST WEEK – in a rare Sunday session – a motion by Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) to bring ObamaCare repeal to a vote as an amendment to a must-pass proposal. The motion fell on a party-line vote.

We publish the voting record at the close of this Life Advocacy Briefing and hope for greater success the next time the effort is mounted.

‘Defund’ Rallies Elevate Public Attention, Save Lives

STUDENTS FOR LIFE OF AMERICA HAS BEGUN a campaign of rallies focused on defunding  Planned Parenthood. The initial rallies – staged in about 65 cities – have been well-attended, both by activists and by leading pro-life spokesmen and politicians. SFLA president Kristan Hawkins was quoted by Dustin Siggins, writing for LifeSiteNews.com, estimating turnout at about 13,000 so far.

In the first “Women Betrayed” rally held in the District of Columbia, three GOP Presidential candidates addressed the crowd: Dr. Ben Carson and Senators Rand Paul (KY) and Ted Cruz (TX).

Fox News Channel, reporting on the rallies nationwide, indicated attendees included self-identified “pro-choice” citizens who were disturbed by Planned Parenthood’s apparent complicity in baby-body-parts trafficking.

Not only are the rallies elevating public attention to the PP scandal, but also the rallies are having a direct effect on families, judging by reports of babies saved via several of the events.

“‘Hundreds are showing up at each event,’” said Mrs. Hawkins in the LifeSiteNews report, “‘and the grass roots are on fire. Every news outlet was at the DC rally, and we are seeing articles in the media from nearly every rally. … The response from the grass roots to defund Planned Parenthood has been truly astounding.’”

Media Opportunities

MEDIA COVERAGE OF THE PLANNED PARENTHOOD SCANDAL HAS VARIED, with “mainstream” media largely avoiding the topic. Still, credit is due to some expected and some surprising sources.

Talk radio’s most celebrated host, Rush Limbaugh, has highlighted the Planned Parenthood scandal on his popular, nationally syndicated radio program every day since the undercover videos began to be released. Among his commentaries was a strong objection to mass media hysteria over the fatal shooting of a Zimbabwe lion in the midst of general silence on the trafficking of baby body parts.

Fox News Channel’s Bret Baier has repeatedly brought forward the latest news in the scandal on his 6 p.m. (EDT) daily Special Report program and instigated discussions among fellow journalists during the program’s “panel” segment, typically featuring syndicated columnist Charles Krauthammer, The Hill’s A.B. Stoddard and The Weekly Standard’s Steven Hayes.

We found Mr. Hayes’s July 21 statement particularly insightful concerning the politics of the scandal: “I think pro-life candidates have an obligation to campaign on this, and I wouldn’t care if the politics were horrible; it wouldn’t matter. You should make the argument, because the argument needs to be made. But … the politics,” he said, “will not be horrible. Everybody who takes a dollar for a political campaign from Planned Parenthood should be asked about this and made to defend this practice.” And that goes for candidates at all levels for all offices.

The media source who has surprised us most is ABC-TV’s George Stephanopoulos, far from perfect but not especially sympathetic to Planned Parenthood when interviewing PP CEO Cecile Richards on July 26. Columnist Katie Pavlich reports, “[Ms.] Richards was extremely defensive when asked [by Mr. Stephanopoulos] about why Planned Parenthood doctors are seen in undercover footage haggling over the price for body parts and ironically accused the journalists who captured the footage of engaging in unethical practices. One doctor in particular,” notes Ms. Pavlich, “was caught on camera negotiating body parts while joking that she wanted a Lamborghini.

“‘This has been a three-year, well-funded effort,’” declared Ms. Richards, as quoted by Ms. Pavlich, “‘by the most militant wing of the anti-abortion movement in this country to try and entrap doctors with highly doctored videos. Doctors repeatedly said, which was edited out, Planned Parenthood does not at all profit from fetal tissue donation, which is an important element of healthcare research in this country,’ [Ms.] Richards said, failing to acknowledge,” writes Ms. Pavlich, “that the organization behind the undercover video … has released the ‘edited’ footage [Ms.] Richards is referring to in full. ‘What is not told is that these [undercover videos] are highly selectively edited,’” Ms. Richards declared, reports Ms. Pavlich.

“To his credit,” writes Ms. Pavlich, “[Mr.] Stephanopoulos followed up on that point, asking if Planned Parenthood doesn’t profit from the sale of parts, then why do doctors participate in a negotiation process about price for baby parts?’” Nice retort, which must have sent Cecile Richards reeling, coming as it did from a well-known liberal journalist. 

Poignant Punch Line

EVEN A CARTOONIST FOR THE CHICAGO TRIBUNE gets the point of the baby-body-parts Planned Parenthood scandal. Above a well-crafted sketch of a developing preborn baby appears this thought-balloon: “I don’t remember signing an organ-donor card.” Bingo.

Additional Co-Sponsors of HR-3134

Republican Representatives Gary Palmer/AL; Steve Womack/AR; Ken Calvert, Doug LaMalfa, Dana Rohrabacher & David Valadao/CA; Ron DeSantis, Richard Nugent & Ileana Ros-Lehtinen/FL; Rick Allen, Doug Collins & Jody Hice/GA; Rodney Davis & Randy Hultgren/IL; Todd Rokita/IN; Thomas Massie & Ed Whitfield/KY; Mike Bishop & David Trott/MI; Cresent Hardy/NV; Leonard Lance/NJ; George Holding & David Rouzer/NC; Robert Latta & Michael Turner/OH; Steve Russell/OK; Tim Murphy/PA; Mick Mulvaney & Mark Sanford/SC; Kristi Noem/SD; Michael Burgess, John Carter & Michael McCaul/TX; Mia Love & Chris Stewart/UT; Randy Forbes & Robert Hurt/VA, and Reid Ribble/WI.

Senate Co-Sponsors, Defunding Planned Parenthood

S-1836: Republican Senators Jerry Moran/KS, Ben Sasse/NE & James Inhofe/OK.

S-1861: Republican Senators Jerry Moran/KS, Bill Cassidy/LA, Ben Sasse/NE & Mike Rounds/SD.

S-1881: Republican Senators John Boozman & Tom Cotton/AR, John McCain/AZ, Marco Rubio/FL, Johnny Isakson & David Perdue/GA, Mike Crapo/ID, Dan Coats/IN, Pat Roberts/KS, Mitch McConnell & Rand Paul/KY, Bill Cassidy & David Vitter/LA, Roger Wicker/MS, Roy Blunt/MO, Steve Daines/MT, Deb Fischer & Ben Sasse/NE, Richard Burr & Thom Tillis/NC, Rob Portman/OH, James Inhofe & James Lankford/OK, Tim Scott/SC, Mike Rounds & John Thune/SD, John Cornyn & Ted Cruz/TX, Mike Lee/UT, Ron Johnson/WI, and John Barrasso & Michael Enzi/WY.­

We’ve Seen This Atrocity Before

July 19, 2015, commentary by veteran Chicago columnist Dennis Byrne

I know that it will bring in a deluge of outraged response to ask what Planned Parenthood and Josef Mengele have in common.

But I couldn’t get the comparison out of my mind once I began reading the stories and the transcript of the now famous and recorded conversation in which Dr. Deborah Nucatola, senior medical director for Planned Parenthood, explained how some of her clinics harvest the organs of live, unborn babies … err, excuse me … fetuses. Individuals in utero who are crushed to death and whose kidneys, livers, hearts, lungs, legs, calvarium and brains are harvested. Fetuses that are going to die anyway and whose non-person cells just happen to be available for medical research. [Here he inserts a link to the full, unedited video.]

In the conversation, covertly recorded by the Center for Medical Progress, a California-based pro-life group, Nucatola explains in gruesome detail how to harvest the organs without damaging them during the abortion procedure, which involves [a] certain amount of crushing the life out of the fetus.

But, Nucatola explains, look at all the good we do. Women who are told they can give their children’s organs for medical research are made to feel better about their abortions. Look at all the cures that we’re helping scientists discover. We’re not in it for profit.

It’s chillingly the same reasoning that Josef Mengele, a physician and SS officer, used to justify his experiments on Auschwitz concentration camp prisoners during World War II. Mengele’s cruelties included prisoners being “put into pressure chambers, tested with drugs, castrated, frozen to death. Children were exposed to experimental surgeries performed without anesthesia, transfusions of blood from one to another, isolation endurance, reaction to various injections with lethal germs, sex-change operations, removal of organs and limbs … .”

The first objection that I’ll hear is that Planned Parenthood doesn’t do this on living victims. That, of course, assumes that something other than human beings are the victims of the abortion and harvesting procedure. In fact, according to pro-choice dogma, one does not even dare call the “mass of cells” losing their organs “victims.” Because they’re not human beings.

According to Nazi dogma, the victims weren’t human either, or at least not worthy enough to have a claim to life. They are Jews, Gypsies and others who don’t have an inherent – as all humans do – right to life. Just as the pro-abortion folks like those at Planned Parenthood justify abortion.

Some other similarities:

• Mengele’s procedures were done without anesthesia; so are the abortions.
• Mengele’s procedures were done without the consent of the victim; so are the abortions.
• Mengele’s procedures were done without regard for the health or safety of his victims; so are the abortions.

The harvesting and commercial sale of fetal organs is illegal, grotesque and immoral. But the callous and anti-science defenders of unrestricted abortion, such as Planned Parenthood, can only justify their response by insisting, in opposition to the medical evidence, that the fetus is not a person and just a part of the mother, to be disposed of at will.

Nucatola’s insensitive detachment and the speed that pro-choicers came to her defense – and the slap on the wrist Planned Parenthood is giving her – is further revelation of the depths to which our culture has descended.

As Joseph Welch famously said to Joe McCarthy, the soulless commie hunter: “Have you no sense of decency, sir, at long last? Have you left no sense of decency?”

Senate Voting Record on Repealing ObamaCare

Cloture Motion on Amendment to Repeal ObamaCare – July 26, 2015 – Failed – 49-43 (needing 60) (Democrats in italics; “Independents” marked “I”)

Voting “yes”/pro-life: Shelby/AL, Sullivan/AK, McCain/AZ, Boozman & Cotton/AR, Gardner/CO, Rubio/FL, Isakson & Perdue/GA, Crapo & Risch/ID, Kirk/IL, Coats/IN, Ernst & Grassley/IA, Moran & Roberts/KS, McConnell & Paul/KY, Cassidy & Vitter/LA, Collins/ME, Cochran & Wicker/MS, Blunt/MO, Daines/MT, Fischer & Sasse/NE, Heller/NV, Ayotte/NH, Burr & Tillis/NC, Hoeven/ND, Portman/OH, Inhofe & Lankford/OK, Graham & Scott/SC, Rounds & Thune/SD, Alexander/TN, Cornyn & Cruz/TX, Hatch & Lee/UT, Capito/WV, Johnson/WI, Barrasso & Enzi/WY.

Voting “no”/anti-life: Boxer & Feinstein/CA, Bennet/CO, Blumenthal & Murphy/CT, Carper/DE, Nelson/FL, Hirono & Schatz/HI, Durbin/IL, Donnelly/IN, King (I)/ME, Cardin & Mikulski/MD, Warren/MA, Peters & Stabenow/MI, Franken & Klobuchar/MN, McCaskill/MO, Tester/MT, Reid/NV, Shaheen/NH, Booker & Menendez/NJ, Heinrich & Udall/NM, Gillibrand & Schumer/NY, Heitkamp/ND, Brown/OH, Merkley & Wyden/OR, Casey/PA, Reed & Whitehouse/RI, Leahy/VT, Kaine & Warner/VA, Cantwell & Murray/WA, Manchin/WV, Baldwin/WI.

Not Voting: Sessions/AL, Murkowski/AK, Flake/AZ, Coons/DE, Markey/MA, Toomey/PA, Corker/TN, Sanders (I)/VT.