- MVA Disclaimer: MVA makes political information available to its readers to help advise Catholics of those candidates who are Pro-Life and Pro-Family. We are not endorsing any candidate, but we believe it is important for Catholics to know how their legislators vote on life and family issues.
President Obama’s Agenda
www.stleos.com or www.whitehouse.gov/agenda
For nine weeks (from September 1 to Election Day (November 4), Priests for Life calls upon believers to participate in the “Election Novena” by saying the following prayer each day:
www.priestsforlife.org/novenas/election-day-novena.aspx
Novena for Faithful Citizenship from the USCCB:
www.faithfulcitizenship.org/docs/FC_Prayer.pdf”
How Did the Virginia General Assembly Vote in 2008?
www.vacatholic.org
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How Did Congress Vote on Pro-Life Issues?
See how your elected representative voted on pro-life issues, over the last two years. Go to: www.capwiz.com to review the National Right to Life Legislative Scorecard.
Also find information about the major parties’ platforms. Go to: www.priestsforlife.org
- Follow up on Child Custody Protection Act/CIANA (Child Interstate Abortion Notification Act, S. 403 from the FRC website (09/30/06)
“…[T]he U.S. Senate fell three votes short of the sixty needed to invoke cloture on the Child Custody Protection Act. This critical legislation would make it a federal offense to transport a minor across state lines for an abortion if this action circumvents the application of a state law requiring parental involvement in a minor’s abortion…”
“Family Research Council (FRC) President, Tony Perkins, released the following statement: Thirty-seven states have passed parental notification laws with polls showing overwhelming support from over 80 percent of the American people. However, the Senate’s unconscionable failure to pass this legislation undermines these state laws by allowing almost anyone to strip a parents’ rights away and endanger the health and safety of minor girls nationwide.”
To view the full article, go to: www.frc.org
Some of the highlights of the Act would’ve included:
1) making it a federal offense to transport a minor across state lines to obtain an abortion
2) the requirement that every doctor performing an abortion notify at least one parent before performing an abortion on a minor who resides in a different state
3) and the bipartisan Senate-passed amendment—included in the new House version—that makes it a separate federal
offense for a parent who impregnates a daughter to transport that daughter across state lines.4) It also bars a parent who has impregnated a daughter from benefiting from the right to sue those who violate other provisions in the bill.
UPDATE: Virginia Taxpayers’ Money May be Used to Fund Embryonic Stem-cell Research and Medicaid Abortions (06/22/06)
From Jeff Caruso, USCCB
Last Friday evening, the 11 legislators responsible for negotiating a budget compromise between earlier House and Senate proposals completed their work and shook hands on a deal. At a briefing this morning by the Senate Finance Committee, the details of the conference committee report were unveiled for public consumption. Notably absent from the compromise budget were spending guidelines (originally approved by the House) to ensure that Virginia taxpayers would not be forced to pay for embryonic stem-cell research or for research on the remains of aborted babies. Hence, Virginia’s leading research institutions will receive almost $100 million over the next two years for research initiatives, but nothing would prevent them from using that money to conduct experiments that require the destruction of unborn life. In addition, the conference committee failed to include language under consideration to halt funding of Medicaid abortions.
Commenting on these disappointing outcomes, Conference Director Jeff Caruso predicted that taxpayers across the Commonwealth “will become understandably irate as more and more of them learn that their tax dollars can be used to destroy and exploit human life at what should be its hopeful beginning instead of its tragic end.” Caruso thanked the many Conference e-mail network members who responded to alerts on these issues throughout “this unprecedented budget process.”
Conference-supported funding initiatives fared better, but even those results reopened the centuries old “glass half empty versus glass half full” debate. Prenatal care for low-income women (currently funded up to 150 percent of the federal poverty level) was expanded by $2.8 million – enough to raise eligibility to 166 percent of poverty but still less than the $4.3 million initially approved by the Senate. Similarly, the St. Mary’s Health Wagon will receive $100,000 (half of what the Senate proposed) over the next two years to help sustain the vital safety-net services it provides, and Meals on Wheels will benefit from a much needed $750,000 increase (down from $1 million originally in the Senate budget). Caruso credited members of the Conference’s e-mail network for “joining with a broad coalition of organizations to weigh in heavily on these spending decisions and help tip the balance toward incremental improvements.” The conference committee report now proceeds to the full House and Senate. Both chambers are expected to ratify the deal in short order, and then the Governor will have a week to recommend any changes for General Assembly reconsideration.
BAN ON PARTIAL BIRTH ABORTION (04/16/06)
Call the American Center for Law & Justice at 1-877-989-2255 to add your name to a list of citizens who would like to ban partial birth abortion. This list and a Legal Brief will be sent to the Supreme Court in June. To date, about 200,000 names have been added to the list.
TALKING ABOUT EUTHANASIA (03/30/06)
There is debate in the Netherlands on extending their voluntary euthanasia law to include infants. While some doctors are admitting to euthanizing babies in the Netherlands, it is not yet legal. The doctors are advocating its legalization, and it is being considered. Euthanasia and abortion are so closely linked that one logically follows upon the other. Keeping informed is important in our work to protect all human life. There is a great article in April’s Crisis magazine entitled, “Pulling the Plug: How to Talk to the Left About Euthanasia.” It provides these web-links as informative resources: www.euthanasia.com, www.lifenews.com, www.internationaltaskforce.org. These resources all note that over 90% of those who wish to die are depressed or mentally ill. We pray for those who suffer and ask Our Lord to strengthen them and give them true peace.
ACTION ALERT! TWO-CHILD LIMIT IN PHILIPPINES (01/20/06)
The Philippine legislature is scheduled to introduce a bill that will impose a two-child limit on families. A final vote that was expected on January 16th has been extended. To find out how you can help, visit www.FilipinoFamilyFund.org
GOOD NEWS FOR ABORTION CLINIC PROTESTERS! (02/28/06)
The Supreme Court ruled 8-0 on Feb. 28, 2006 that federal extortion and racketeering laws cannot be used against protesters at abortion clinics. The Supreme Court’s decision keeps pro-abortion groups from using federal anti-mob laws against protest groups.
ACTION ALERT! WWW.ENDROE.ORG
Per Bishop Loverde’s request, parishes have been encouraged to participate in the “End the Roe Litmus Test” campaign. St. Leo’s is encouraging its parishioners to send a message to Senators Allen and Warner that “support for Roe v. Wade should NOT be a condition for serving as a U.S. judge.”
Another option is to email Senators Allen and Warner at www.EndRoe.org – it takes less than 3 minutes to send this crucial message. Please notify your pro-life friends about this campaign and encourage them to also sign the www.EndRoe.org petition.
2006 Virginia General Assembly Brief Summary
Promoting Research, Preserving Life – VCC-supported budget language to prohibit state funding of research that requires the taking of human life (embryonic stem-cell research and research on aborted children) has been included in the version of the budget approved by the House Appropriations Committee, but not in the version approved by the Senate Finance Committee. As these two versions head to the “floors” of their respective chambers (i.e., to the full House and full Senate) and then to a “conference committee” whose task is to reconcile differences, the VCC will work to preserve this language in the House version and add it to the Senate bill. VCC-supported legislation that would encourage research on umbilical-cord-blood stem cells passed unanimously in both chambers and will receive first-time budget funding.
Abortion Clinic Regulations – Two pieces of abortion-related legislation have passed the House by large margins but now await consideration by the Senate Education and Health Committee. One would require abortion clinics to be licensed by the state and subject to regulations applicable to ambulatory surgery centers; the other would require doctors to file a report with the state health department each time they treat a patient who suffers a medical complication resulting from an induced abortion. [The patient’s identity would not be revealed.]
Death Penalty – In the wake of a U.S. Supreme Court decision banning use of the death penalty on those under 18 at the time of the offense, Virginia will officially wipe the juvenile death penalty off its own books, thanks to the passage of legislation for that purpose in both chambers. However, the General Assembly has also demonstrated its willingness to further expand the death penalty, even though Virginia already ranks second among states in the number of executions carried out since 1976. Three measures that would permit the death penalty to be applied in more types of cases passed the House by overwhelming margins. Each of them will soon be reviewed by the Senate Courts of Justice Committee.”
FOLLOW UP ON FAIRFAX COUNTY SCHOOL BOARD’S BIRTH CONTROL PAMPHLETS (05/12/05)
On May 12, the Fairfax School Board approved a birth control pamphlet acknowledged to include incorrect, incomplete, and misleading information about birth control methods for 10th graders. To counter its pro-sexual activity message, the Board approved a pamphlet that was supposed to provide balance with “abstinence.” Instead, that pamphlet undermines abstinence and in recognition of that fact, the Board told staff to find a third pamphlet to supplement the anti-abstinence “abstinence” pamphlet. Students will be expected to sort out what is correct in the conflicting, inaccurate information contained in the pamphlets. The School Board received approximately 1500 letters of protest, including a strong statement from the Diocese of Arlington, and less than a dozen in support. But, parents were told that their voice does not count and they can always “opt out.” Efforts are underway to develop a website so that parents can see what is being taught through the Family Life Program. More information will be coming.
Report Given by: Mary Beth Style
Member of the Family Life Education Curriculum Advisory Committee