A joke of a "news" article appeared in CNS the other day.
...on January 27 reported a comment by Bishop Robert Lynch of St. Petersburg, Florida, on the Freedom of Choice Act (FOCA). Asked by CNS reporter Nancy Frazier O'Brien about FOCA, Bishop Lynch spoke against it, but then tried to dismiss Catholic concerns about the impact of the bill on Catholic hospitals: "But there is no plan to shut down any hospital if it passes. There's no sense of ominous danger threatening health care institutions."
Sr. Carol Keehan, president of the Catholic Health Association, took the identical position when interviewed by O'Brien. Keehan caused some controversy weeks ago when she defended President Barack Obama against criticism from pro-lifers and praised his choices of pro-abortion Health and Human Services secretary Tom Daschle and deputy health care director Jeanne Lambrew.
Sr. Keehan has now relegated herself to "Clueless Twit"; she has not expressed "concerns" about Daschle's tax-evading status.
More to the point, however, Bp. Lynch and Sr. Clueless Twit seem not to have read the opinion of the USBishops' house counsel which reads in part:
"The combined impact of these various provisions is the likely invalidation of a broad range of state laws if challenged under FOCA, including . . . government programs and facilities that pay for, provide, or insure childbirth or health care services generally, but not abortion; laws protecting the conscience rights of doctors, nurses and hospitals, if those laws create even minimal delay or inconvenience in obtaining an abortion or treat abortion differently than other medical procedures . . ."
It seems that FOCA will not get to Obama's desk, at least not this year. That doesn't change the indelible impression given by these folks.
HT: InsideCatholic
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2 comments:
Won't get to Obama's desk? I wonder why? Here's what Time Magazine had to say about "The Catholic Crusade Against a Mythical Abortion Bill".
Umnnnnn, John...
Since at least 1963, high-school debate teams have NOT been allowed to use Time Mag-a-rag as a source for their arguments.
Even THEN it was regarded as unreliable.
And, just like "The Fairness Doctrine" one can have the same effect with differently-titled legislation.
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