By Susan Brinkmann, OCDS
Staff Writer

The first Catholic Vietnamese-American congressmen, Rep. Anh “Joseph” Cao, (R-New Orleans), announced that he would rather save his soul than vote for any health care bill that includes abortion coverage.

“At the end of the day if the health care reform bill does not have strong language prohibiting the use of federal funding for abortion, then the bill is really a no-go for me,” said Cao in a report by the Catholic News Agency (CNA).

Cao, who once studied to be a Jesuit priest, said this background makes him embrace the notion of social justice.

“I do fully understand the need of providing everyone with access to health care, but to me personally, I cannot be privy to a law that will allow the potential of destroying thousands of innocent lives,” he said.

His stance will make him the target of radio ads by the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee that will play on radio stations with largely African-American audiences, urging him to support Obama’s health reform efforts.

“I know that voting against the health care bill will probably be the death of my political career,” Cao said, “but I have to live with myself, and I always reflect on the phrase of the New Testament, ‘How does it profit a man’s life to gain the world but to lose his soul.’”

Cao is the first native of Vietnam to serve in Congress and the first Republican to serve in his district since 1890. He won in a district that usually votes overwhelmingly Democratic.

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