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Pelosi: A Contraceptive Stimulus Is Needed
Comments Come Days After Obama Lifted The Mexico City Policy
By Joe Murray, The Bulletin
Describing children as “costs” incurred by federal and state governments, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., proudly defended a move inserting contraceptive spending into the new “economic” stimulus package. This proved to conservatives the Democratic takeover of Washington stands to radically redefine the pro-life movement.
“Well, the family planning services reduce cost. They reduce cost,” Mrs. Pelosi said told ABC News’ George Stephanopoulos during Sunday’s airing of “This Week.”
Under the proposal, Democratic lawmakers are hoping to funnel public money to family planning organizations, which would include organizations like Planned Parenthood, by eliminating a waiver states had to previously obtain to before offering to provide Medicare “family-planning services.” If the measure is successful all 50 states can offer such family-planning services and receive a $9 to $1 match from the federal government.
“The states are in terrible fiscal budget crises now and part of what we do for children’s health, education and some of those elements are to help the states meet their financial needs. One of those — one of the initiatives you mentioned, the contraception, will reduce costs to the states and to the federal government.”
When asked by Mr. Stephanopoulos, “So no apologies for that?” Mrs. Pelosi confidently responded, “No apologies. No. We have to deal with the consequences of the downturn in our economy.”
The decision to include hundreds of millions of dollars for family planning services in the new stimulus package being crafted on Capitol Hill ignited a firestorm in Washington with pro-life advocates classifying the move a blow against the family. Part of the controversy is fueled by the fact the nation’s largest abortion provider, Planned Parenthood, would be a beneficiary of public monies.
“So now, according to Pelosi’s thinking, flooding abortion clinics with tax money to pay for contraception is supposed to stimulate the economy. That’s ‘freakonomics’ at best,” said Troy Newman, president of Operation Rescue. “But at worst, it is a government sponsored program to reduce the population. This is the beginning of the pay-back to Planned Parenthood for supporting Obama.”
The timing of the speaker’s comments has conservative and pro-life leaders arguing President Barack Obama and the Democrats have turned away from the rhetoric of unity and toward a far-left policy that leaves them well outside the U.S. mainstream on abortion.
They came days after Mr. Obama’s decision to repeal the Mexico City policy — a ban on spending U.S. dollars on funding overseas clinics offering abortion services.
“Looks like the Democrats have abortion and contraception on the brain. Last week, President Barack Obama lifted restrictions on federal funds being used to promote and perform abortions overseas,” Bill Donohue, president of the Catholic League, said. “Now we have Pelosi arguing that the way to balance the budget is not by cutting expenditures, but by cutting kids. Her comment matches up well with what Obama said during the presidential campaign about comprehensive sex education: speaking of his own daughters, he said that ‘if they make a mistake, I don’t want them punished with a baby.’”
Critics also charged Mrs. Pelosi’s stance of reducing the number of children in the U.S. flirted with racist and bigoted policies that once were at the forefront of the abortion-rights movement.
“Speaker Pelosi shows a clear lack of compassion and understanding of social justice by laying the groundwork for racist and eugenic social policies,” said Rev. Patrick J. Mahoney, director of the Christian Defense Coalition. “Clearly the focus of the distribution of these contraceptives would center on minority communities which tend to be poorer and more economically challenged.”
The debate ensured that the abortion controversy, which Mr. Obama had hoped to defuse in Washington, is set to explode as pro-choice organizations attempt to cash in their political chips and pro-life organizations prepare to defend the ground they won in a battle that has raged more than three decades.
Joe Murray can be reached at jmurray@thebulletin.us
“Well, the family planning services reduce cost. They reduce cost,” Mrs. Pelosi said told ABC News’ George Stephanopoulos during Sunday’s airing of “This Week.”
Under the proposal, Democratic lawmakers are hoping to funnel public money to family planning organizations, which would include organizations like Planned Parenthood, by eliminating a waiver states had to previously obtain to before offering to provide Medicare “family-planning services.” If the measure is successful all 50 states can offer such family-planning services and receive a $9 to $1 match from the federal government.
“The states are in terrible fiscal budget crises now and part of what we do for children’s health, education and some of those elements are to help the states meet their financial needs. One of those — one of the initiatives you mentioned, the contraception, will reduce costs to the states and to the federal government.”
When asked by Mr. Stephanopoulos, “So no apologies for that?” Mrs. Pelosi confidently responded, “No apologies. No. We have to deal with the consequences of the downturn in our economy.”
The decision to include hundreds of millions of dollars for family planning services in the new stimulus package being crafted on Capitol Hill ignited a firestorm in Washington with pro-life advocates classifying the move a blow against the family. Part of the controversy is fueled by the fact the nation’s largest abortion provider, Planned Parenthood, would be a beneficiary of public monies.
“So now, according to Pelosi’s thinking, flooding abortion clinics with tax money to pay for contraception is supposed to stimulate the economy. That’s ‘freakonomics’ at best,” said Troy Newman, president of Operation Rescue. “But at worst, it is a government sponsored program to reduce the population. This is the beginning of the pay-back to Planned Parenthood for supporting Obama.”
The timing of the speaker’s comments has conservative and pro-life leaders arguing President Barack Obama and the Democrats have turned away from the rhetoric of unity and toward a far-left policy that leaves them well outside the U.S. mainstream on abortion.
They came days after Mr. Obama’s decision to repeal the Mexico City policy — a ban on spending U.S. dollars on funding overseas clinics offering abortion services.
“Looks like the Democrats have abortion and contraception on the brain. Last week, President Barack Obama lifted restrictions on federal funds being used to promote and perform abortions overseas,” Bill Donohue, president of the Catholic League, said. “Now we have Pelosi arguing that the way to balance the budget is not by cutting expenditures, but by cutting kids. Her comment matches up well with what Obama said during the presidential campaign about comprehensive sex education: speaking of his own daughters, he said that ‘if they make a mistake, I don’t want them punished with a baby.’”
Critics also charged Mrs. Pelosi’s stance of reducing the number of children in the U.S. flirted with racist and bigoted policies that once were at the forefront of the abortion-rights movement.
“Speaker Pelosi shows a clear lack of compassion and understanding of social justice by laying the groundwork for racist and eugenic social policies,” said Rev. Patrick J. Mahoney, director of the Christian Defense Coalition. “Clearly the focus of the distribution of these contraceptives would center on minority communities which tend to be poorer and more economically challenged.”
The debate ensured that the abortion controversy, which Mr. Obama had hoped to defuse in Washington, is set to explode as pro-choice organizations attempt to cash in their political chips and pro-life organizations prepare to defend the ground they won in a battle that has raged more than three decades.
Joe Murray can be reached at jmurray@thebulletin.us
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