White House Statement On Abortion Compromise

[cal04]

Source: The White House Blog

One More Step Towards Health Insurance Reform

Today, the President announced that he will be issuing an executive order after the passage of the health insurance reform law that will reaffirm its consistency with longstanding restrictions on the use of federal funds for abortion.

While the legislation as written maintains current law, the executive order provides additional safeguards to ensure that the status quo is upheld and enforced, and that the health care legislation’s restrictions against the public funding of abortions cannot be circumvented.

The President has said from the start that this health insurance reform should not be the forum to upset longstanding precedent. The health care legislation and this executive order are consistent with this principle.

Read more: http://www.whitehouse.gov/blog/2010/03/21/one-more-step-towards-health-insurance-reform

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STATEMENT FROM COMMUNICATIONS DIRECTOR DAN PFEIFFER
http://www.politico.com/livepulse/0310/White_House_issues_statement_on_executive_order_.html

[LiberalFighter]

1. Stupak is one jerk that needs to go down in the primary.

[groundloop]

2. Darned right - and I'll contribute to his opponent

[CLANG]

15. As broke as I am, I can always cough up a few bucks for liberty.

Not the phony liberty that the repukes cry about, but real liberty of ideas for all mankind.

[populistdriven]

3. K&R to target Stupak in the primary

[sabrina 1]

9. Why just Stupak?

The leadership of this party did not even consider Kucinich's Amendment or Dorgan's which was killed by the WH without even telling him. But they catered to Republicans and to Stupak, encouraging them to push even harder to get provisions into the bill that they wanted.

Obama and Nancy Pelosi both confirmed that there were 'a lot of Republican ideas' in the bill (too bad there are NO Democratic ideas in it) during the Summit, and wondered why, considering how much they caved, the still weren't satisfied.

So, Stupak is a jerk, but he would have been a jerk no one ever heard of, if he had been treated the way real Democrats were.

I blame and always will, the current leadership of the Party, who were handed a huge victory by the people, throwing out the party whose ideas they did not like, only to turn around and continue the ideas the people rejected.

Stupak is a scapegoat to distract from where the blame really lies.

[icee]

13. Who'll write the November epitaph?

[CLANG]

16. Stupak is not a scapegoat!

There may be more fish to fry, but not a smellier one, AFAIC.

[sabrina 1]

17. Even a 'smelly fish' can be used as a scapegoat.

I never said he was a victim or one of the good guys. I said he is being used to excuse the lack of courage of the Democratic leadership to do what was right. To give as much attention to the amendments of real Democrats, like Kucinich and Dorgan as they did to him.

Had they even considered those amendments instead of just making them disappear, the American people would know as much about Dorgan's ideas and Kucinich's as they know about Stupak's.

He is a great distraction from their own complicity in refusing to even consider real reform. They know the outrage he generates. But are taking no responsibility for the fact that they are responsible for him because they catered to him.

[CLANG]

19. I can't speak for the dem leadership

but I can speak for myself. Primary his ass. I see your point and basically agree with your sentiment, but it doesn't change my feelings about Stupak.

[sabrina 1]

21. We agree on primarying him

that's for sure, along with a few others :-)

[harmonicon]

20. I agree with you.

If people in Stupak's (very very large) district want to elect him, so be it. I don't agree with him, but he's honest about his positions. I think we're a lot better off with people like him in office than lying two-faced sacks of shit like Pelosi and Reid.

[patrice]

4. You can kill all of the innocent children you want with Federal money, especially Muslims, but not

those fetuses.

[reggie the dog]

8. actually they kill muslim fetuses when they kill pregnant muslims

[patrice]

10. Oh yeah, well if that doesn't convince them that War is Abortion, nothing will.

[sabrina 1]

24. True, and don't forget that this supposedly Democratic

Legislation forbids undocumented aliens from paying for coverage, including children. So, we can also stand by and watch children and their parents die by denying them humanitarian care.

That alone was the the reason for at least one Democrat's refusal to sign the bill.

It's astounding to see so-called progressives supporting this. If this was a Republican Bill, we would all be united in our outrage. This has definitely revealed for me, a lot about people I thought were united on issues like the humane treatment of all human beings.

[ZombieHorde]

5. Very interesting. nt

[optimator]

6. "additional safeguards to ensure that the status quo"

that will be his legacy.

[Iowa]

25. +1

[Duer 157099]

7. Oh goody, I hope Stupak is giddy with "hope"

Maybe Obama will do to him what he's done to the left--leave him filled with hope but no change.

[icee]

11. Well, this should bring out the homemade medical tools for

backseat abortions for poor people. Jesus Christ, I cannot believe it.

[Metta]

12. The president is a wimp. If he'd have supported progressives, this never would have happened.

As Malcolm X rightly said, "... chickens come home to roost." Shmuck.

[awoke_in_2003]

14. It is so nice to see

all these men making decisions in women's matters :sarcasm:

[RUMMYisFROSTED]

18. "Health Insurance Reform"

Take note.

[Gormy Cuss]

22. So much for change we can believe in.

It's so nice that the price for getting some access to health insurance is that low income women will still lack access to a legal medical procedure.

[Jefferson23]

23. President Obama Breaks Faith with Women

Statement of NOW President Terry O'Neill

March 21, 2010

The National Organization for Women is incensed that President Barack Obama agreed today to issue an executive order designed to appease a handful of anti-choice Democrats who have held up health care reform in an effort to restrict women's access to abortion. Through this order, the president has announced he will lend the weight of his office and the entire executive branch to the anti-abortion measures included in the Senate bill, which the House is now prepared to pass.

President Obama campaigned as a pro-choice president, but his actions today suggest that his commitment to reproductive health care is shaky at best. Contrary to language in the draft of the executive order and repeated assertions in the news, the Hyde Amendment is not settled law -- it is an illegitimate tack-on to an annual must-pass appropriations bill. NOW has a longstanding objection to Hyde and, in fact, was looking forward to working with this president and Congress to bring an end to these restrictions. We see now that we have our work cut out for us far beyond what we ever anticipated. The message we have received today is that it is acceptable to negotiate health care on the backs of women, and we couldn't disagree more.

###

For Immediate Release
Contact: Mai Shiozaki, 202-628-8669, ext. 116; cell 202-641-1906

http://www.now.org/press/03-10/03-21a.html

[LisaM]

31. I've never felt that Obama's commitment to abortion rights was strong

I could say the same about a few other male politicos - I don't mean it just for him.

When he and Hillary did that very ill-advised (IMO) faith-based Q&A during the primaries, I thought the difference was clear. She spouted the language about "safe, legal, and rare", but I think in her heart, Hillary has a much more feminist slant on this. I didn't trust Obama on abortion then, and I don't now.

[Jefferson23]

32. It is a sad compromise, so I understand your concerns, absolutely.

[AllyCat]

26. It's so great to have my healthcare used as a bargaining chip!

Thanks for the hope and change Obama. Can't wait to NOT vote for you in 2012. Not that it will matter. But like Malloy says, it matters to me.

And NO I'm not voting for a Repuke. This bill sucks. This presidency sucks. And this Congress sucks.

[Zhade]

27. Fuck you, obama.

Never getting my vote again.

[No Elephants]

28. What about the Constitution? Congress has the exclusive power to legislate and the exclusive

power to decide how money is spent or not spent.



The Hyde Amendment is not self-executing. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hyde_Amendment



Congress chose to leave it out of this bill.




What about the Constitution, Mr. Constitutional Law Lecturer in Chief?

[Hell Hath No Fury]

29. These are not NEWS stories --

they are press releases/propaganda put out by the WH.

Just to be clear.

[jobwithout]

30. All you progressives STFU

Dont you dare mention anything that will place even a shadow on this pyrrhic victory. We had once chance for healthcare reform and all we got was health insurance welfare. Giving up reproductive rights in and of itself was too costly a price to pay for thsi "win."