Why I am a Democrat
SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 20, 2008
For reasons I have presented earlier, while I don't subscribe to what I think is a doctrinaire commitment to "a woman's right to choose," I don't think that is an area where the President can make a direct impact. I am being told that if McCain is elected, we'll get a fifth pro-life justice on the Court, Roe will be overturned, and abortion will at least be prohibited the the red states. I think that won't happen; I think the abortion rate will actually rise if McCain is elected and fall if Obama is elected. So pro-lifers should vote Democratic this time.
posted by Victor Reppert @ 12:09 PM
Obama Administration Circumvents N.H. Executive Council
September 14, 2011 2:57 P.M.
By Michael J. New
In response to the New Hampshire Executive Council’s decision to cut of taxpayer funds for Planned Parenthood, the Obama administration announced last week that they would oversee the awarding of family planning contracts in New Hampshire. This means that that there is a good chance that New Hampshire Planned Parenthood affiliates will recover the $1.8 million in taxpayer funds that they previously lost.
Here is some background. This summer, the New Hampshire state legislature approved $1.8 million in state funds for Planned Parenthood. However, New Hampshire, unlike many other states, has an Executive Council which oversees state contracting. The Executive Council usually stays out of controversial issues. But this summer, the Executive Council overturned the decision of the state legislature and blocked state funding for Planned Parenthood. Three of the five members of the Executive Council thought it was inappropriate for the state to be subsidizing an organization that performs abortions.
However, the heavy handed response of the Obama administration — effectively nullifying New Hampshire decision — should come as no surprise. This summer, Indiana decided to cut off Medicaid funds for Planned Parenthood, reducing taxpayer funding for Planned Parenthood anywhere from $2 to $3 million. The Obama administration responded by telling the state it could not implement the new law. Specifically, Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services Administrator Donald Berwick stated that “Medicaid programs may not exclude qualified health care providers from providing services that are funded under the program because of a provider’s scope of practice.” The Obama administration filed a lawsuit and a judge issued a preliminary injunction requiring Indiana to continue Medicaid funding for Planned Parenthood.
Good job reminding Reppert of his stupidity and gullibility. It would be a shame if his writings enabled others to follow in his stupidity and gullibility.
ReplyDeleteAs someone who disagrees with a lot of Reppert's politics, I don't think he's either stupid or gullible. He has certain sympathies, but at the very least he's not at all condescending about his politics, and is pretty open-minded, not to mention well-mannered. That's rare on the internet.
ReplyDeleteThat said - the idea that McCain would have been pushing through pro-life justices, even conservative justices, is just bizarre. Because, what - McCain is clearly a big social conservative?
Steve's point, which he also made in the prior discussion, and that is that Democratic administrations differ from Republican ones not only in terms of putting justices on the court who might buy the "strict constructionist" argument against Roe v. Wade, but in terms of executive abortion policy.
ReplyDeleteIt is quite true that Planned Parenthood is an abortion provider. It also, however, encourages the use of contraception, and so is in the business of preventing unwanted pregnancies. So, would we have more abortions if Planned Parenthood were to evaporate would abortion rates go up or down?
Of course, this is isn't going to be acceptable to advocates of Humanae Vitae, who think contraception is wrong. It also goes against the grain of the "abstinence only" view of sex education, where contraceptive information is supposed to be withheld so as not to encourage premarital sex. But don't buy Humanae Vitae, and think withholding contraceptive information is an atrocious way of discouraging premarital sex. Young people know when information is being is withheld from them, and it increases their rebelliousness.
Of course, I have heard it argued that Planned Parenthood is an abortion mill, and that its other services are just a cover for a thriving abortion business. I'm sure the Obama adminstration doesn't see it that way.
In any event, I brought this up with Steve earlier, and he opposes one-issue abortion voting as much as I do. Of course we disagree on the other political issues! But I recall him indicating that he would not vote for a candidate that was weak on national security because of a better position on the right to life.