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LifeNews.com Pro-Life News Report, Friday, November 27, 2009
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• Barack Obama's Thanksgiving Message Emulates Bush's, Ditches Pro-Life Words
• Democrat Bob Casey Will Work to Remove Abortion Funding From Senate Bill
• Pro-Life Advocate Threatened With Knife by Woman Seeking Abortion Speaks Out
• Planned Parenthood Drops Lawsuit Against Former Abortion Center Director
• Spain Bill to Expand Abortions Moves Ahead, Govt May Compromise on Teens
• Italy Govt of Silvio Berlusconi Blocks Deadly Abortion Drug, Seeks Safety Review
• CEDAW Treaty Committee, Which Bashed Pro-Life Nations, Releases New Report
• U.S. Pressured to OK UN Convention on the Rights of the Child, Abortion Concerns
• Maryland Pregnancy Center Attack Earns Washington Post, Pro-Life Condemnation
• President Barack Obama's Pro-Abortion Record: A Pro-Life Compilation
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Barack Obama's Thanksgiving Message Emulates Bush's, Ditches Pro-Life Words
Washington, DC (LifeNews.com) -- The Thanksgiving proclamation the White House issued on behalf of President Barack Obama is creating a bit of a controversy. The dustup doesn't concern what the traditional holiday message from the president says, but rather what it doesn't say.
The proclamation has already raised eyebrows for its brevity -- coming in at just over 400 words and failing to note any accomplishments during Obama's administration to this point.
Given that, for the pro-life community, Obama's main accomplishment is aggressively promoting abortion funding at American taxpayers' expense, there is another facet of the Thanksgiving message that is noteworthy.
Blogger Jill Stanek noticed the difference, primarily because her daughter had a hand in writing the final proclamation President George W. Bush issued last year.
Stanek compared the 2008 and 2009 proclamations and found that Obama's speechwriters essentially followed the Bush template.
Bush's Thanksgiving message last year read: "We recognize that all of these blessings, and life itself, come not from the hand of man but from Almighty God.... Having arrived in the New World, these early settlers gave thanks to the Author of Life." "Today, as we look back on the beginnings of our democracy, Americans recall that we live in a land of many blessings where every person has the right to live, work, and worship in freedom," it added.
Stanek concludes, "Of course, Obama's pro-death team scrubbed all that." Full story at LifeNews.com
Democrat Bob Casey Will Work to Remove Abortion Funding From Senate Bill
Washington, DC (LifeNews.com) -- As one of just two Democrats in the Senate who call themselves pro-life, Bob Casey of Pennsylvania is in a position to become the leader within his party on efforts to remove abortion funding from the health care bill. On Tuesday, Casey said he would do just that.
Casey confirmed he will work to try to remove the massive abortion funding in the bill that comes through the insurance plans offered in the proposed health insurance exchange via the public option and affordability credits.
The House bill includes an amendment by Rep. Bart Stupak that removed the abortion funding and Casey told Congressional Quarterly he will push for something similar, but would not say he would oppose the Senate health care bill if abortion funding remains.
Casey said there is "work to be done" on the issue of abortion funding, adding, There's an obvious difference on where the House came down and where the Senate is."
Casey hinted that he may promote adding his Pregnant Women Support Act as an amendment to the legislation. That is a bill spearheaded by Democrats for Life of America as a way to put more abortion limits in place as well as funding for social service programs and pregnancy centers that help women with unplanned pregnancies.
"The only other way to reduce the number of abortions ... is to help pregnant women so if they choose to have a child they can get the help and support they need," he said. "I don't know what vehicle that will take, whether that will be one amendment or more than one amendment." Full story at LifeNews.com
Pro-Life Advocate Threatened With Knife by Woman Seeking Abortion Speaks Out
Duluth, MN (LifeNews.com) -- One of the pro-life sidewalk counselors at a Minnesota abortion center who was attacked on Tuesday at knifepoint by a woman considering an abortion is sharing her story. Leah Winandy and her mother found themselves on the receiving end of a woman who held a knife to their throats.
As LifeNews.com reported Wednesday, the woman brandished a knife after Leah urged her to reconsider her decision to have an abortion. Her mother met the same fate and the woman was eventually apprehended by police inside the Building for Women abortion center and found the knife in her purse.
Now, in an email LifeNews.com has obtained, Winandy shares more about what happened.
Winandy says Duluth has one abortion center that does approximately 600 abortions annually and she and her family have been helping women find positive alternatives for more than four years. On Tuesday, Winandy was present at the abortion center with her mother and Jim Tuttle of Pro-Life Ministries of Duluth.
"I saw a lady walking toward the building, who I figured must be a client," she relates. "Before I could talk to her or approach her with literature, she snapped open a knife. She waved the point at me saying, 'Don't come near me,'" Winandy explained. "I stayed where I was and said, 'Please don't kill your baby, fear God.'"
"She walked past into the courtyard, so I moved to the fence corner to continue counseling. She then turned around, came up to me and held the point of the knife at my throat," the pro-life advocate continued. Winandy said she had a momentary fear of what would happen to her if she were a victim of a stabbing but said her Christian faith helped her overcome it. Full story at LifeNews.com
Planned Parenthood Drops Lawsuit Against Former Abortion Center Director
Bryan, TX (LifeNews.com) -- After losing its initial battle in court in its attempt to silence its former director, a Texas Planned Parenthood has dropped its lawsuit. The abortion business targeted former director Abby Johnson, who recently quit and became pro-life, and the local pro-life group that helped her conversion.
Johnson had been the director of the Planned Parenthood center in this southeast Texas city but turned in her resignation on October 6 after years of a local pro-life group helping her see the problem with abortion. Johnson quit after seeing an ultrasound of an abortion.
Planned Parenthood officials hit both Johnson and the Coalition for Life with restraining orders requiring them not to disclose information about the abortions done at its facility. But, District Judge J.D. Langley issued a ruling earlier this month saying Planned Parenthood did not provide sufficient evidence that Johnson breached a confidentiality agreement concerning identity of an abortion practitioner who works at Planned Parenthood.
Now, the Alliance Defense Fund, which has provided legal help to Johnson and the Brazos Valley Coalition for Life, tells LifeNews.com Planned Parenthood has dropped its lawsuit.
Planned Parenthood falsely claimed she violated a confidentiality agreement and breached an employment contract, though she never had one with the abortion center, ADF legal counsel Steven Aden explained. Full story at LifeNews.com
Spain Bill to Expand Abortions Moves Ahead, Govt May Compromise on Teens
Madrid, Spain (LifeNews.com) -- Legislation in the Spain parliament that would expand the nation's laws allowing abortions has cleared another hurdle. Meanwhile, the government indicates it may compromise on the issue of parental notification for abortions for teenagers in order to win enough votes to pass it.
The cabinet of the Spain government, headed by President Rodriguez Zapatero, has proposed a bill that would expand abortions and legalize them up to the fourteenth week of pregnancy.
The measure has upset pro-life advocates, but the government made it worse by saying parental involvement won't be allowed. That means teenagers between the ages of 16 and 18 who can get abortions will not have to either inform their parents about their abortion nor obtain their consent.
Today, the pro-abortion proposal was approved in its first stage as ruling party Socialist Party was joined by five smaller parties to back the abortion expansion on a narrow majority of 180 to 163. The vote total was enough to stall any amendments from pro-life advocates supported by the Catholic Church and the Popular Party that could be used to severely weaken the bill. The bill now moves to a parliamentary committee for further work.
Meanwhile, to help win support for the bill among MPs, Equality Minister Bibiana Aido told them that the government would negotiate on the part of the measure that forbids parental involvement. Full story at LifeNews.com
Italy Govt of Silvio Berlusconi Blocks Deadly Abortion Drug, Seeks Safety Review
Rome, Italy (LifeNews.com) -- The government of Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi has blocked the sale of the dangerous abortion drug in Italy. The drug had been approved by the AIFA, the Italian pharmaceutical authority similar to the FDA in the U.S., but Berlusconi's center-right government wants to review its safety.
With the drug killing at least 13 women worldwide and injured more than 1,100 women in the United States alone as of 2006, mifepristone kills unborn children and kills or injures women as well.
The RU 486 abortion drug has been approved for use to up seven weeks into pregnancy and only in hospitals.
But, today, the London Times indicates the Senate health commission suspended its used and asked the government's health ministry for a review of its safety. The commission said the drug could harm women and may violate the nation's abortion laws.
When Italy legalized abortion in 1978, its decision only included surgical abortions, not the kind that can be done with the controversial mifepristone pill. Full story at LifeNews.com
CEDAW Treaty Committee, Which Bashed Pro-Life Nations, Releases New Report
New York, NY (LifeNews.com/CFAM) -- The committee responsible for monitoring state compliance with the United Nations (UN) Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women (CEDAW) says it increased its activism in the last two years by working more closely with non-governmental organizations (NGOs) to develop its agenda, and with select parliamentarians and jurists to enforce it across the globe.
On the other hand, according to the report, many nations are simply ignoring the committee and refusing to send in their reports.
In its "Report to the Secretary General" the committee said that it is working assiduously to enforce its interpretations of the treaty by creating new "rapporteurs" to "follow-up" on country reports, using UN agencies to implement their agenda, and working with individual parliamentarians and judges to influence national laws and policies.
It has also increased the amount of "pre-session" time that allows activists to sway the committee, mostly from US-based NGOs among which it has "attract[ed] wide followership."
The report says that 30% of states parties to convention are choosing not to participate in the controversial country reviews at all. Full story at LifeNews.com
U.S. Pressured to OK UN Convention on the Rights of the Child, Abortion Concerns
New York, NY (LifeNews.com) -- Last week in New York, the UN Children's Fund (UNICEF) celebrated the 20th anniversary of the Convention on the Rights of the Child (CRC) with the release of a special report on the impact of the treaty.
While many used the anniversary to celebrate the CRC, some expressed concern about the growing pressure on the United States to ratify the treaty, saying that the treaty's rights-based emphasis touted by UNICEF is fundamentally flawed.
UNICEF's special edition State of the World's Children entitled "Celebrating 20 Years of the Convention on the Rights of the Child" highlights developments made in the child rights arena. The UNICEF report described the CRC as "not only a historic document" but "a moral compass" that guides people all over the world.
The report boasts that the CRC "has already altered the landscape of children's rights" but that it is still far from being realized.
The report uses anecdotal evidence from CRC proponents to detail the "success" of the convention in the last two decades. According to UNICEF, the CRC has resulted "in the increased usage of 'child rights' language in the vernacular of national and international legal documents, policies, programs and advocacy." Full story at LifeNews.com
Maryland Pregnancy Center Attack Earns Washington Post, Pro-Life Condemnation
Baltimore, MD (LifeNews.com) -- A new measure the Montgomery County government is considering that attacks pregnancy centers is so outrageous that the Washington Post editorial board, known for its consistently pro-abortion bent, is joining pro-life advocates in condemning it. Council member Duchy Trachtenberg is behind the proposal.
The new measure, similar to one the Baltimore City council approved that is awaiting the potential signature or veto from the pro-abortion major, would fine centers that don't post signs saying they don't do abortions.
The idea is to punish pregnancy center for attracting women considering abortions and providing them with the kind of information, alternatives and tangible pregnancy help abortion centers don't provide.
In a Monday editorial, the Post described the proposed local ordinance as "flawed" and said it "should be rejected" next month when the county votes on it.
The liberal newspaper labels the measure "too cryptic" and notes the hypocrisy that it "is suspect because it singles out pregnancy centers while absolving abortion clinics of any disclosure requirements regarding adoption or parenting options." Full story at LifeNews.com
President Barack Obama's Pro-Abortion Record: A Pro-Life Compilation
Washington, DC (LifeNews.com) -- The following is a compilation of bill signings, speeches, appointments and other actions that President Barack Obama has engaged in that have promoted abortion before and during his presidency. While Obama has promised to reduce abortions and some of his supporters believe that will happen, this long list proves his only agenda is promoting more abortions. Full story at LifeNews.com
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