"Taxpayer-funding of abortion is extremely unpopular with the American people, and it may be the issue that prevents socialized medicine from becoming a reality in America. Speaker Nancy Pelosi got testy with reporters yesterday when the issue of abortion in the ObamaCare bill came up. When asked about it, Pelosi said, “This is not about abortion! …I will not have it turned into a debate on (abortion).” She then went on to suggest that the Senate’s bill “is abortion neutral.”
Democrat Bart Stupak of Michigan disagrees and is quoting the healthcare bill “chapter and verse.” When told of Pelosi’s statement at a press conference yesterday, Rep. Stupak responded:
Whom do you believe – the Speaker from San Francisco or a courageous congressman willing to buck his own leadership?
Here’s why abortion funding is such an issue: Rep. Bart Stupak (D-MI) and Joe Pitts (R-PA) introduced an amendment in the House to ban abortion funding in the healthcare “reform” bill. It passed overwhelmingly with the support of 64 Democrats, and Nancy Pelosi was not one of them. But the Stupak/Pitts amendment was opposed by President Obama, and did not survive the Senate. In its place are the abortion funding provisions Rep. Stupak noted above. And that’s why Democrats are at an impasse today.
To make the reconciliation process work, the House must pass the Senate bill with no changes. That means the 64 House Democrats who supported the Stupak/Pitts amendment must now vote for a bill that funds abortion. It will be difficult, if not impossible, to address abortion in the reconciliation process. To understand why, click here for an excellent analysis.
New polling data suggests abortion funding could be devastating for Democrats at the ballot box. And, with your support, Campaign for Working Families will make sure that voters know exactly how their elected representatives voted on this critical issue."
Gary Bauer
Campaign for Working Families
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