Life Advocacy Briefing

The Message

ABORTION IS NOT HEALTH CARE. Every act of abortion is the intentional killing of an innocent, vulnerable human being.

This is the message we believe our pro-life candidates and officials ought to be using in confronting their opponents, whose victories come via deceptive euphemisms adopted by news media in the interest of propagandizing in favor of the abortion cartel.

Our candidates and officials might advocate for retaining the Hyde Amendment, for example. Does the shorthand title “Hyde Amendment” communicate to the average American, the mom or dad who is focused on putting food on the table and sorting out what the schools are teaching their children? Have our officials and candidates taken just a moment to string together enough words to communicate to them: Your tax dollars – to the tune of hundreds of millions – are now paying doctors to kill unborn children; is that what you want from the federal government? The Hyde Amendment, first passed by Congress in 1976, is what has traditionally barred that door; it has been renewed every year – but is now being left out of Congress’s spending bills.

Are you, as a pro-life citizen who pays attention to the issues, aware that the Biden-Harris Administration and the Democratic majority in Congress have shot past the annually renewed Hyde Amendment to blow open the federal coffers for Planned Parenthood? Between massive appropriations bills that include billions for “health” – with no Hyde Amendment protection included – and the Biden rule change repealing former President Trump’s Protect Life Rule (which disqualified abortion outfits like Planned Parenthood from Title Ten “family planning” funding), the American taxpayer is now funding the abortion cartel at levels we have not seen before.

The pro-life contingent in the US House is petitioning for consideration of the Born-Alive Abortion Survivors Protection Act; that’s a nice effort worth mounting. But where is the campaign to wedge vulnerable Democrats in marginal districts to advocate for prohibiting taxpayer funding of abortions? When will they be forced to take a vote on that?

When will a debate be mounted – either in Congress or in media appearances – to advocate for humane treatment for America’s most vulnerable human beings? It is time to make abortion unthinkable again, just as it has been for most of this nation’s history. Now is the time for all good Americans to come to the aid of our country and to speak clearly without labels and euphemisms and dodges. Thank you for reading this; we hope you will take it to heart.

We Are Funding This!

WHEN PRO-LIFE UNDERCOVER JOURNALIST DAVID DALEIDEN TESTIFIED May 3 before the Pennsylvania House of Representatives, reports Doug Mainwaring for LifeSiteNews.com (LSN), a “shocking new video report” was released in conjunction with his testimony.

Produced by Mr. Daleiden’s Center for Medical Progress (CMP), the video, notes Mr. Mainwaring, “expos[es] government-sponsored grotesque experimentation using aborted baby parts at the University of Pittsburgh. … [The] shocking new video report reveals that the U. of Pittsburgh is a major hub for the trafficking of and experimentation on aborted baby organs and body parts. The report links the funding for the university’s operation to a large grant from … Dr. Anthony Fauci’s NIAID office at the National Institutes of Health (NIH).”

The report notes an earlier story from LSN last December which, states Mr. Mainwaring, revealed “that the University of Pittsburgh has been conducting medical research by grafting scalps from aborted babies onto rodents.”

The Fauci connection is eyebrow-raising, given the power the research bureaucrat has achieved in his equivocal advocacy role in the Wuhan flu epidemic. But readers should not so focus on Anthony Fauci as to draw attention from the role of the University itself.

In a Twitter post, Stacy Trasancos, executive director, notes Mr. Mainwaring, “of Bishop Joseph Strickland’s St. Philip Institute of Catechesis & Evangelization in the [Roman Catholic] Diocese of Tyler, Texas,” declared: “‘Aborted baby scalps grafted onto mice. Their organs transplanted. Humanized mice developed at the University of Pittsburgh, all to study the immune system. Supported by Dr. Fauci’s NIAID. Paid for by us.’”

Bishop Strickland himself “retweeted her post,” reports LSN, “declaring: ‘These are crimes against humanity that should be prosecuted. Silence in the face of these atrocities simply adds to the evil. Wake up, America! Demand that this stops NOW!’

“But as the CMP video reports, ‘It gets worse. … The University of Pittsburgh is a hub for some of the most barbaric experiments carried out on late-term aborted human infants – experiments funded by the United States government. … At the same time, the University sponsors the local Planned Parenthood abortion business in what looks like an illegal quid-pro-quo for fetal body parts.’

“The video shows a photo,” reports Mr. Mainwaring, “from a protocol developed by another University of Pittsburgh scientist ‘for harvesting the freshest, most pristine livers from five-month-old aborted babies in order to isolate massive numbers of stem cells for experimental transplantation into adults. …

“‘You can see the premature baby, aborted alive via “labor induction,”’ continues the description,” quoted by LSN. “‘Under surgical drapes, with the umbilical cord off to one side as the baby is cut open to harvest the liver.’

“The U of Pitt scientist who developed this experiment,” reports Mr. Mainwaring, “received nearly $3 million from NIH. The video also notes,” he continues, “that U of Pitt has benefited from a multi-year, $1.4 million grant from NIH’s GUDMAP project, establishing the university as a major hub for aborted fetal kidneys and other fetal body parts for NIH-funded projects across the country.

“The CMP video recounts the University of Pittsburgh’s long history of fetal experimentation, ‘sometimes on babies delivered alive during later abortions.’”

And the video reveals, notes Mr. Mainwaring, “‘Two years ago, sources told CMP that Pittsburgh was one of the major hubs of the FBI’s investigation of Planned Parenthood’s involvement in the human trafficking of aborted fetuses.’ … The video goes on to note,” reports LSN, “how many of the most notorious abortion doctors and Planned Parenthood leaders were either trained at the University of Pittsburgh or are currently connected to the school.

“‘It all starts to look suspiciously like an illegal quid-pro-quo over aborted fetal organs and body parts, all funded by taxpayers,’ notes the video, which concludes urging viewers to call Pennsylvania State Representatives [and Senators] to demand answers and accountability from Planned Parenthood and the University of Pittsburgh.’”

We suggest also that readers from across the country contact their own Members of Congress and home-state US Senators to insist that they pursue further investigation into the trafficking of human fetal body parts and that they add a focus to their investigation, calling the National Institutes of Health and Dr. Fauci’s NIAID to account for their use of tax dollars to incentivize such Nazi-style experimentation. [US Capitol switchboard: 1-202/224-3121]

Lubbock Voters Embrace the Babies

VOTERS IN LUBBOCK, TEXAS, VOTED on May 1 to approve a referendum proposition banning abortion, reports Raymond Wolfe for LifeSiteNews.com (LSN), and to “allow relatives of aborted babies to sue abortion providers.

“With more than 250,000 residents,” notes Mr. Wolfe, “Lubbock becomes the largest city in the United States to declare itself a ‘sanctuary city for the unborn,’ and the 26^th city overall to do so.

“Voters approved the ordinance by roughly 62% to 37%,” reports LSN. Here is the ordinance approved by Lubbock’s voters: “‘It shall be unlawful for any person to procure or perform an abortion of any type and at any stage of pregnancy in the City of Lubbock, Texas. … It shall be unlawful for any person to knowingly aid or abet an abortion that occurs in the City of Lubbock, Texas.’

“Under the policy,” writes Mr. Wolfe, “abortion providers could be penalized with ‘maximum penalty permitted under Texas law’ for violation of city public health ordinance, though the measure includes life-of-the-mother exemptions.”

The referendum drive was apparently generated by a 2021 action by the mayor and city council to vote down a proposal to declare Lubbock a “sanctuary city for the unborn.” That proposal had been brought to the council and mayor by a petition of citizens, who proceeded to apply for ballot listing.

Mayor Dan Pope – who is a Republican – “staunchly opposed the ordinance,” writes Mr. Wolfe, “and compared Planned Parenthood centers to churches. …

“The pro-life ‘sanctuary’ movement in Lubbock gathered momentum last year,” Mr. Wolfe notes, “after Planned Parenthood announced plans to open an abortion center in the city. State Sen. Charles Perry [R] circulated a petition in response to the announcement, calling for people to ‘stand strong and send a clear message that the abortion industry should not set up shop in our back yard.’

“Planned Parenthood opened in Lubbock in the fall and started aborting preborn babies on April 15, pushing pro-life advocates even harder,” reports LSN. “‘They’re murdering babies here in our city,’ Jim Baxa of West Texas for Life told the Texas Tribune last month. ‘We need to stop that.’” Amen!

Babies’ Lives Are Not ‘Football’

May 4, 2021, BreakPoint commentary by John Stonestreet & Shane Morris

            The term “political football” is a perfect description for how the executive branch of the federal government handles abortion. There are two “teams,” pro-life and pro-choice, who toss the issue back and forth from administration to administration. Neither decisively wins, at least in the long run. While state level legislation and federal court decisions have moved the ball in real ways, executive orders and legislative rules are barely even temporary, depending entirely on who is in the White House.

            After Pres. Biden’s first 100 days in office, it is clear that the football is in the hands of the pro-abortion team. Recently, the Dept. of Health & Human Services proposed a new rule that would restore a major source of federal funding for abortion clinics. This rule would undo the Trump administration’s “Protect Life” rule, which withheld money designated for low-income family planning from any clinics that “perform, promote, refer for or support abortion…” The “Protect Life” rule also required clinics to keep their abortion and non-abortion services physically and financially separate.

            The rule made a difference. Planned Parenthood, which drew an estimated $60 million in annual federal funding just from the Title X Family Planning Program, dropped out rather than attempt to meet the new requirements. Now, under the Biden Administration, Planned Parenthood and other abortion providers are back on the federal dole.

            Bizarrely, the Biden Administration claims that its new rule will not lead to federally funded abortions. When Owen Jensen, a reporter from the Catholic network EWTN asked why the President would “insist that pro-life Americans pay for abortions and violate their conscience,” White House press secretary Jen Psaki replied, “that’s not an accurate depiction of what happened.” She then quoted from the Public Health Service Act, which stipulates that no Title X funds “shall be used in programs where abortion is a method of family planning.”

            That isn’t a real answer, of course, as Jensen pointed out. Money is easily moved around. In a fiscal shell game, Planned Parenthood can simply divert funding they don’t have to spend on non-abortion services back to abortion.

            Speaking for the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops’ Committee on Pro-Life Activities, Archbishop Joseph Naumann agreed: “In spite of explicit prohibitions in federal law and clear Congressional intent that abortion may not be a part of this program, it has repeatedly been co-opted by abortion supporters as a funding stream for organizations, programs and facilities that directly promote and provide abortions.”

            What might we learn from all of this?

            First, though elections do have consequences, at least when it comes to who is President, they’re short-lived. This means that putting “the right person” in the White House matters but is not the highest or best goal of pro-lifers. For example, President Trump’s most significant contribution to the pro-life “team” are not his executive orders, but a thoroughly remade judiciary. At the same time, many more millions of tax dollars were given to Planned Parenthood by Congress. The most effective legislation to limit abortion and fund alternative care has been at the state level. Those elections matter, too.

            Second, the battle for unborn lives will be won or lost in the larger culture. It is encouraging that though Americans are very much divided on abortion itself, they strongly oppose government footing the bill. A Marist Poll earlier this year found that almost three-fifths of Americans oppose taxpayer funding for abortion.

            In other words, a lot of folks who want abortion to remain legal don’t want to coerce their neighbors into paying for them. That’s at least a start. The finish line, however, is when abortion is as unthinkable as other grave evils like slavery and child sacrifice.

            Until then, this political football will continue to change hands with each and every election.

House Voting Record

HR-51 – Procedural Motion to Table a Motion to Reconsider passage of the bill conferring statehood on the District of Columbia  – April 22, 2021 – Passed 292 to 123 (Democrats in italics)

Voting “no”/pro-Life: Aderholt, Brooks, Moore, Palmer/AL; Biggs, Gosar, Lesko/AZ; Crawford, Westerman/AR; Issa, Kim, LaMalfa, McCarthy, McClintock/CA; Boebert, Buck, Lamborn/CO; Cammack, Donalds, Franklin, Gaetz, Mast, Posey, Steube, Waltz, Webster/FL; Allen, Carter, Greene, Hice, A.Scott/GA; Fulcher/ID; R.Davis, LaHood, Miller/IL; Baird, Banks, Barr, Hollingsworth, Pence, Spartz/IN; Feenstra, Hinson/IA; Estes, LaTurner, Mann/KS; Comer, Massie/KY; Harris/MD; Scalise/LA; Bergman, McClain/MI; Fischbach, Hagedorn/MN; Guest, Kelly, Palazzo/MS; Hartzler, Smith/MO; Rosendale/MT; Bacon/NE; Herrell/NM; Smith/NJ; Stefanik, Zeldin/NY; Bishop, Budd, Cawthorn, Foxx, Hudson, Murphy, Rouzer/NC; Armstrong/ND; Chabot, Davidson, Johnson, Jordan, Latta, Wenstrup/OH; Hern, Mullin/OK; Joyce, Meuser, Perry, Reschenthaler, Smucker/PA; Duncan, Mace, Norman, Rice/SC; Burchett, DesJarlais, Harshbarger, Kustoff, Rose/TN; Arrington, Burgess, Carter, Cloud, Fallon, Gohmert, Gooden, Granger, Jackson, McCaul, Nehls, Pfluger, Roy, Sessions, Weber, Williams/TX; Cline, Good, Griffith, Wittman/VA; Herrera-Beutler, Newhouse/WA; Miller, Mooney/WV; Fitzgerald, Grothman, Steil, Tiffany/WI.

Voting “yes”/anti-Life: Carl, Rogers, Sewell/AL; Young/AK; Gallego, Grijalva, Kirkpatrick, O’Halleran, Schweikert, Stanton/AZ; Hill, Womack/AR; Aguilar, Barragan, Bass, Bera, Brownley, Calvert, Carbajal, Cardenas, Chu, Correa, Costa, DeSaulnier, Eshoo, Garamendi, Garcia, Gomez, Harder, Huffman, Jacobs, Khanna, Lee, Levin, Lieu, Lofgren, Lowenthal, Matsui, McNerney, Napolitano, Nunes, Obernolte, Panetta, Peters, Porter, Roybal-Allard, Ruiz, Sanchez, Schiff, Sherman, Speier, Steel, Swalwell, Takano, Thompson, Torres, Valadao, Vargas, Waters/CA; Crow, DeGette, Neguse, Perlmutter/CO; Courtney, DeLauro, Hayes, Himes, Larson/CT; Blunt-Rochester/DE; Bilirakis, Buchanan, Castor, Crist, Demings, Deutch, Diaz-Balart, Dunn, Frankel, Gimenez, Lawson, Murphy, Rutherford, Salazar, Soto, Wasserman-Schultz, Wilson/FL; Bishop, Bourdeaux, Johnson, McBath, D.Scott, Williams/GA; Case, Kahele/HI; Bost, Bustos, Casten, D.Davis, Foster, Garcia, Kelly, Kinzinger, Krishnamoorthi, Newman, Quigley, Rush, Schakowsky, Schneider, Underwood/IL; Bucshon, Carson, Mrvan, Walorski/IN; Axne, Miller-Meeks/IA; Davids/KS; Guthrie, Rogers, Yarmuth/KY; Graves, Letlow/LA; Golden, Pingree/ME; Brown, Hoyer, Mfume, Raskin, Ruppersberger, Sarbanes, Trone/MD; Auchincloss, Clark, Keating, Lynch, McGovern, Moulton, Neal, Pressley, Trahan/MA; Dingell, Kildee, Lawrence, Levin, Meijer, Moolenaar, Slotkin, Stevens, Tlaib, Upton, Walberg/MI; Craig, Emmer, McCollum, Omar, Phillips, Stauber/MN; Thompson/MS; Bush, Cleaver, Graves, Long, Luetkemeyer, Wagner/MO; Amodei, Horsford, Jones, Lee, Titus/NV; Kuster/NH; Gottheimer, Kim, Malinowski, Norcross, Pallone, Pappas, Pascrell, Payne, Sherrill, Sires, VanDrew, Watson-Coleman/NJ; Leger-Fernandez/NM; Clarke, Delgado, Espaillat, Garbarino, Higgins, Jacobs, Jeffries, Katko, Malliotakis, C.Maloney, S.Maloney, Meeks, Meng, Morelle, Nadler, Ocasio-Cortez, Reed, Rice, Suozzi, Tenney, Tonko, Torres, Velazquez/NY; Adams, Butterfield, Manning, McHenry, Price, Ross/NC; Balderson, Beatty, Gonzalez, Joyce, Kaptur, Ryan, Stivers, Turner/OH; Bice, Cole, Lucas/OK; Bentz, Blumenauer, Bonamici, DeFazio, Schrader/OR; Bowman, Boyle, Cartwright, Dean, Doyle, Evans, Fitzpatrick, Houlahan, Keller, Kelly, Lamb, Scanlon, Thompson, Wild/PA; Cicilline, Langevin/RI; Clyburn, Timmons, Wilson/SC; Johnson/SD; Cohen, Cooper, Fleischmann/TN; Allred, Brady, Castro, Cuellar, Doggett, Escobar, Fletcher, Garcia, Gonzales, Green, Jackson-Lee, Johnson, Taylor, VanDuyne, Veasey, Vela/TX; Curtis, Moore, Owens, Stewart/UT; Welch/VT; Beyer, Connolly, Luria, McEachin, Scott, Spanberger, Wexton/VA; DelBene, Jayapal, Kilmer, Larsen, Rodgers, Schrier, Smith, Strickland/WA; McKinley/WV; Gallagher, Kind, Moore, Pocan/WI; Cheney/WY.

Not voting: Clyde, Ferguson & Loudermilk/GA; Simpson/ID; Higgins & Johnson/LA; Huizenga/MI; Fortenberry & Smith/NE; Gibbs/OH; Green/TN; Babin, Crenshaw & V.Gonzalez/TX.