Having voted for Obama, why are Catholics surprised at his abortion policy?
Wednesday, February 1, 2012 at 11:41AM 
As evidenced by the banner at the US Dept. of Health and Human Services, the organization's 'goal' is unconstitutional. (US Govnmt. and taxpayers' image)
Obama’s policies on abortion are as far left as you can get, as noted at Issues2000. Among them:
“On March 30, 2001, Obama was the only Illinois senator who rose to speak against a bill that would have protected babies who survived late term labor-induced abortion. Obama rose to object that if the bill passed, and a nine-month-old fetus survived a late-term labor-induced abortion was deemed to be a person who had a right to live, then the law would ‘forbid abortions to take place.’ Obama further explained the equal protection clause of the Fourteenth Amendment does not allow somebody to kill a child, so if the law deemed a child who survived a late-term labor-induced abortion had a right to live, ‘then this would be an anti-abortion statute.’"
Sounds like political doublespeak to me. Late term abortion is a fixed term—nothing flexible about it. I know supporters of abortion rights in some circumstances who are horrified at the prospect of late term abortion. Why are pro-Obama Catholics horrified at Obama's policy now?
During his brief tenure in the US Senate, Obama co-sponsored the Senate version of the Freedom of Choice Act. He said one of the first things he’d do as president was sign the act.
Conservatives rightly claimed the act would do away with virtually all restrictions on abortion, including late term abortion, and parental notification when minors sought abortions. Some viewed the act as promoting abortion, going beyond Roe v. Wade.
According to Catholicism.org, at least 54 percent of Catholics voted for President Barack Obama. I remember wondering how any Catholic could vote for a president with his views. Surely these voters knew the president’s policies?
Now Catholics are upset about the president’s signature healthcare bill, the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (ObamaCare), requiring all healthcare plans to cover abortion drugs and contraceptives.
The American Center for Law and Justice said:
“HHS Secretary Kathleen Sebelius (pictured above) stated that ‘the final rule on preventive health services will ensure that women with health insurance coverage will have access to the full range of the Institute of Medicine’s recommended preventive services, including all FDA-approved forms of contraception.’ FDA-approved ‘contraceptives’ include abortion drugs like Plan B, Ella, and others.”
The HHS ruling tramples the First Amendment, of course, but Obama rarely considers the US Constitution in his decision-making.
As an aside, I’d point out that anyone who truly believes in freedom should ask himself why the federal government has a right to assume control of healthcare.
The bigger question for me as far as pro-Obama Catholics go is simple.
Isn’t this what you asked for when you cast a vote for a president whose policies were those of a documented Leftist from the beginning—why are you surprised?
Related Articles
Articles in archives about ObamaCare --The US Report
Freedom of Choice Act --FactCheck at Annenberg Public Policy Center
(Commentary by Kay B. Day/Feb. 1, 2012)
Reader Comments (4)
President Jenkins,
http://www.theusreport.com/the-us-report/2012/2/1/having-voted-for-obama-why-are-catholics-surprised-at-his-ab.html
Are you still proud of your support for this horrific man, Obama? If Notre Dame is to regain some semblance of credibility, you need to apologize for ever having him on campus and rescind the honorary degree you conferred upon him.
Jim Kress
PhD 1976
I appreciate your take on something that I've often turned over in my mind. Always good to see you here and know your thoughts. best, KBD