Saturday, April 19, 2014

Church Defeats Abortion in Colorado, Dems Concede

In Colorado, the first state to legalize abortion (1967), the Democrat-held legislature planned a covert preemptive strike against unborn children with the NARAL-supported Senate Bill 175, titled the Reproductive Health Freedom Act -- an all-encompassing, yet vaguely-worded bill intended to stop any future pro-life legislation. However, once Denver Archbishop Samuel J. Aquila brought the attack to light, and led Christians across the state in opposition, including a thousand-strong march at the statehouse, Democrats were forced to scuttle the mission.
“Too many times we have taken a back seat. Catholics, Christians and people of good will can no longer take a back seat. We are called to work for the good and for the true.”
-- Rev. Samuel J. Aquila, Archbishop of Denver
You see, when the Church leads the flock, God blesses America! (2 Chron. 7:14) For example, read Illinois Black Churches, Catholic Diocese Block 'Gay Marriage'

For background, read Abortion Rate Declines, Democrats Want More Access and also read Democrats' Life Mission is to Kill the Unborn, Says Governor as well as Pope Decries Abortion, so Media Distorts Him

-- From "Senate Bill 175 withdrawn by Senate Democrats avoiding abortion debate" posted at KMGH-TV7 ABC (Denver, CO) 4/16/14

At least one Democrat had public concerns about the measure and all Republicans planned to vote against it. Democrats hold a slim one-seat majority in the Senate, so passage of the measure wasn't a sure thing.

Republicans and religious conservatives watching the debate applauded when Democrats abandoned the proposal. Opponents including the Catholic Archbishop of Denver feared the bill could threaten even basic health regulations on reproductive care.

To read the entire article above, CLICK HERE.

From "Colorado Senate Democrats spike abortion bill" by Kurtis Lee, The Denver Post 4/16/14

All Senate Republicans, alongside the Archdiocese of Denver, denounced the legislation as "overreaching" and "ambiguous," saying the measure was not needed.

"It's a solution in search of a problem," said Sen. Bernie Herpin, R-Colorado Springs. "There is no one, no evidence, that has said there's a denial of things like contraception to women in Colorado."

Some GOP lawmakers criticized [Democrat Sen. Andy] Kerr's bill as political theater in an election year where the Jefferson County Democrat faces a tough re-election.

The proposal, written more like a resolution, offered limited details. For example, a section of the bill reads that the "state, its agencies, institutions, political subdivisions and units of local government shall not enact a policy regarding reproductive health care that is inconsistent with or interferes with access to information based on current evidence based scientific data and medical consensus."

To read the entire article above, CLICK HERE.

From "Senate Democrats kill anti-Personhood proposal" by Eli Stokols, KDVR-TV31 (Denver, CO) 4/16/14

The abortion issue has long been a winner for Colorado Democrats . . .

Their proposal, the “Reproductive Health Freedom Act,” ostensibly sought to prevent any future challenges to abortion rights in the state — to do something impossible — in an effort to protect Colorado women from the kind of restrictive laws that have passed in other states: mandatory ultrasound requirements and impossible-to-meet clinic requirements.

On Wednesday night, with all 18 Democrats in the chamber, the bill was postponed indefinitely — killed, in a word — by the sponsor, who avoided what would have been a lengthy floor debate and blamed the decision on Republicans promising to filibuster the measure and bog down the Senate calendar.

Democrats also had to realize that politically this effort had backfired, riling up conservatives across the state at the end of a session that has been the opposite of last year’s, a session in which hardly any bill debated inside the Capitol drew much of a reaction outside the building.

To read the entire article above, CLICK HERE.

From "CO Dems Abandon Abortion Bill After Archbishop Leads Rally at Statehouse" by Lauretta Brown, CNSNews.com 4/18/14

Although Democrats have a one-seat majority in the state Senate, fears arose that the bill would not pass after Senator John Kefalas (D-Fort Collins) - who had initially cast the deciding vote for the legislation in committee - expressed his misgivings, citing the huge public outcry.

Kefalas, a Catholic, says that he supports “a woman's right to make a decision,” but that he “had concerns about the outpouring that I heard from folks.”

“I'm not sure if it's the best tool for conveying the message which we wish to convey, which is that as Democrats, as with many people, [think] government should stay out of these things," Kefalas said in an interview with a local news station adding, “I'm also listening to folks that are reaching out to me.”

. . . after passing by just a one-vote margin (4-3) in the Senate Health and Human Services Committee, the bill stirred enormous opposition from pro-lifers, who said that it would block any future attempts to regulate abortion clinics, require parental notification before abortions were performed on minors, or force abortionists to show women ultrasound images of their babies so they could make an informed decision on whether to abort.

To read the entire article above, CLICK HERE.

From "Radical abortion bill dies in Colo. Senate after call to prayer, action" posted at Catholic News Agency 4/16/14

Pro-abortion rights group NARAL Pro-Choice America, which backed the bill, had said that if it became law, it would have been the first of its kind in the country.

The legislation would have created a “fundamental right” to anything defined as “reproductive health care.” It would have barred state agencies and local government from having any policy that “denies or interferes with an individual’s reproductive health care decisions.”

Opponents had argued that the bill was vaguely worded and could have had far-reaching effects. They said it could have affected laws requiring parental involvement or notification for a minor who is seeking an abortion, as well as conscience protection laws and requirements that only licensed physicians can perform abortions.

To read the entire article above, CLICK HERE.

From "Archbishop Aquila Leads Rally Against Colorado Abortion Bill" by Wayne Laugesen, National Catholic Register 4/16/14

Bill opponents crammed public areas of the Senate chambers and believe the outside protest, phone calls and high volume of visible opposition may have played a role in the delay.

And sources at the State Capitol indicated after the April 15 rally that at least two Democratic senators are now reconsidering their support for the bill.

Archbishop Aquila told protesters that senators were receiving so many calls they turned off their phones. Calls to a variety of senators April 15 went straight to voicemail boxes that were full.

Colorado Attorney General John Suthers, a devout Catholic, concurs with critics who say the law is so vague it would cause an assortment of unintended consequences — including legal challenges to laws that mandate health-care providers report suspected sexual abuse of children.

To read the entire article above, CLICK HERE.

Also read America Going to Hell; Christians Lose Convictions