President’s “Common Ground” Initiative Falls Short

by Susan Brinkmann, OCDS
Staff Journalist

The Obama Administration is claiming that the establishment of a new $25 million fund to help pregnant teens is the fulfillment of his promise to seek “common ground” on the abortion debate during his speech at the University of Notre Dame, even though other initiatives promise to pour billions into contraception and abortion programs.

LifeSiteNews.com is reporting that the Office of Faith-based and Neighborhood Partnerships sent an e-mail to nonprofit organizations last Friday announcing that it would begin accepting applications for a $25 million fund that it praised as “another critical step in the President’s vision for common ground.”

“It was only a year ago that President Obama gave a seminal speech at Notre Dame urging our nation to find common ground on the issue of abortion and unintended pregnancies,” said the email. “The Pregnancy Assistance Fund is a competitive grant program established by the Affordable Care Act to assist women who have decided to carry their pregnancies to term and those who are parenting.”

The fund, which is part of ObamaCare, will make $25 million available to states to support pregnant and parenting teens. However, as LifeSite points out, another section of the same legislation makes billions of taxpayer funds available to abortion providers through the Community Health Centers program.

There was no mention of abortion or other “family planning” programs in the e-mail.

During an interview with CNN, Democrats for Life executive director Kristen Day praised the initiative. “Pro-life and pro-choice people have gotten behind it, so it’s a good first step at reducing abortion and providing support for healthier babes and mothers,” she said. 
Day said that the fund promised a political advantage to Democrats, who have “been working on common ground around abortion for a long time because we want to take it away as a wedge issue.”

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President Signs Executive Order Behind Closed Doors

By Susan Brinkmann, OCDS
Staff Journalist

With only a handful of people on hand and no press allowed, President Barack Obama signed an executive order yesterday that supposedly promises not to use taxpayer funds for abortion under the new health care law. The secrecy of the signing ceremony sparked a rash of criticism that the White House was unable to defend.

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New “No” Votes Render Health Care DOA

By Susan Brinkmann, OCDS
Staff Journalist

Hopes for quick passage of the Senate version of health care reform in the U.S. House may have been dealt a death blow by at least seven pro-life members who are now saying they won’t vote for the bill unless it is stripped of all abortion coverage.

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Obama Dismisses Abortion Issue at Health Care Summit

By Susan Brinkmann, OCDS
Staff Journalist

When the subject of abortion coverage in health care reform was raised at yesterday’s summit, President Barack Obama and House Speaker Nancy Pelosi stuck to their talking points and insisted that abortion is not covered in their plans.

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Lawmaker Apologizes for Abortion Comments

By Susan Brinkmann, OCDS
Staff Journalist

A pro-life lawmaker in Virginia is under fire for saying that medical research suggests abortions raise the risk of miscarriage and birth defects in subsequent pregnancies and that those findings echo the Bible’s teaching that abortion is wrong.

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Dozens of Frozen Fetuses Found in Doctor’s Freezer

By Susan Brinkmann, OCDS
Staff Journalist

Police investigating a doctor who involved in the death of a woman during an abortion in his office, made a horrifying discovery during a search of his clinic – dozens of frozen embryos – some as old as 30 years – found in a freezer.

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U.S. Bishops Ask Parishes to Help Stop Abortion Funding in Health Care Reform

By Susan Brinkmann, OCDS
Staff Journalist

The U.S. Bishops are once again sending out bulletin inserts and pulpit announcements to the nation’s parishes with the hopes of inspiring to Catholics to become active in the effort to prevent health care reform from advancing a pro-abortion agenda.

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