What the LA Times is reporting.
Antiabortion black ministers to endorse Obama’s healthcare plan
The group, led by the head of the Church of God in Christ, will embrace the government-run insurance option, reinforcing the president’s assertion that taxpayer dollars won’t pay for abortions.
Reporting from Washington – For weeks, President Obama has tried to combat claims that his healthcare overhaul would mean tax dollars going toward abortions, calling the assertion a “myth.”
Today, his argument may gain some strength: A group of black church leaders who oppose abortion is set to endorse the president’s health plan.
The clergy — led by Bishop Charles E. Blake Sr., a Los Angeles minister who heads the massive Church of God in Christ — are scheduled to announce their support for the legislation at a news conference this morning. (more…)
Something I wrote not too long ago as a comment on this site.
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Let’s begin on what he told Planned Parenthood back in ‘07
I already pointed out a couple of the individuals who helped craft this bill and their thoughts. Now let’s take a look at the actual bill itself.
Sen. Barbara Mikulski’s very vague amendment to the bill calls for “essential community providers” to provide health services for women. You can read about it here and here. Also, both links contain the recorded CSPAN exchange. Senator Hatch asked her to specifically mention in her amendment that no abortions would be covered. She rejected and her amendment passed.
Even on a cached version of their website, Planned Parenthood was not pleased that a Democrat (Senator Casey) voted against Mikulski effort. So if this amendment had nothing to do with abortion, “family planning”, or “reproductive services”, why would Planned Parenthood (whose main (not only, but MAIN) bread and butter is performing abortions) care enough to push voters to pressure Casey? Allow me to repost how Planned Parenthood explained Mikulski’s amendment:
Talking Points
* I am disappointed with the Senator’s vote against women’s health care when he voted against the Mikulski amendment. The Mikulski amendment included two critical things: 1) coverage—with no or limited cost sharing—for women’s preventive health care and screenings, such as family planning and prenatal care; and 2) ensured patient access to essential community providers, including women’s health centers like Planned Parenthood, community health centers (a.k.a. federally qualified health centers), HIV/AIDS clinics, and public hospitals.
* Expanding affordable health care coverage and protecting patients’ access to essential community providers is a critical part of health care reform.
* Preventative women’s health care, as included in the Mikulski amendment, does not include abortion services.
* Women shouldn’t be worse off after health care reform than when they began.
* Please continue your support for family planning and a broad range of women’s health care services.
Now the question I have for Blake is “Did you check to make sure this provision OR ANY VARIATION OF IT is being left out of the Baucus version of the bill?”
Blake may claim to be pro-life, but he is not about to turn his back on Obama on this or any issue. Two reasons:
1 - He is the presiding bishop over one of the largest Black churches in the world (who also overwhelming voted for Obama). And that’s exactly why he chose to elevate the murder of children to the same level of not funding certain programs to help children in his speech at the 2008 Democratic National Convention. I understand his point, but the truth is NEITHER party has the upper hand in programs like foster care.
2 - President Obama has appointed Blake to serve on the President’s Advisory Council on Faith-Based and
Neighborhood Partnerships. You don’t stay in positions like that if you are not backing the one that put you there in the first place.
3 - It juuuust so happens that the White House back in August has been pressing religious leaders to preach another gospel: The gospel of health care. And now it juuuust so happens we are hearing about this press conference. Again, this is why I have always been against the Faith Based Initiative, or any of its mutations.
Sphere: Related Content
So Now it’s Okay to Mix Religion & Politics?
by Duane on September 24th, 2009 at 11:05 amWhat the LA Times is reporting.
Something I wrote not too long ago as a comment on this site.
===
Let’s begin on what he told Planned Parenthood back in ‘07
I already pointed out a couple of the individuals who helped craft this bill and their thoughts. Now let’s take a look at the actual bill itself.
Sen. Barbara Mikulski’s very vague amendment to the bill calls for “essential community providers” to provide health services for women. You can read about it here and here. Also, both links contain the recorded CSPAN exchange. Senator Hatch asked her to specifically mention in her amendment that no abortions would be covered. She rejected and her amendment passed.
Even on a cached version of their website, Planned Parenthood was not pleased that a Democrat (Senator Casey) voted against Mikulski effort. So if this amendment had nothing to do with abortion, “family planning”, or “reproductive services”, why would Planned Parenthood (whose main (not only, but MAIN) bread and butter is performing abortions) care enough to push voters to pressure Casey? Allow me to repost how Planned Parenthood explained Mikulski’s amendment:
Now the question I have for Blake is “Did you check to make sure this provision OR ANY VARIATION OF IT is being left out of the Baucus version of the bill?”
Blake may claim to be pro-life, but he is not about to turn his back on Obama on this or any issue. Two reasons:
1 - He is the presiding bishop over one of the largest Black churches in the world (who also overwhelming voted for Obama). And that’s exactly why he chose to elevate the murder of children to the same level of not funding certain programs to help children in his speech at the 2008 Democratic National Convention. I understand his point, but the truth is NEITHER party has the upper hand in programs like foster care.
2 - President Obama has appointed Blake to serve on the President’s Advisory Council on Faith-Based and
Neighborhood Partnerships. You don’t stay in positions like that if you are not backing the one that put you there in the first place.
3 - It juuuust so happens that the White House back in August has been pressing religious leaders to preach another gospel: The gospel of health care. And now it juuuust so happens we are hearing about this press conference. Again, this is why I have always been against the Faith Based Initiative, or any of its mutations.
Sphere: Related Content