Casey’s Chance

“There is nothing in this bill that speaks to abortion” – Sen. Robert Casey Jr.

Over the past few months, we’ve heard the Democratic leaders in Washington repeatedly declare that abortion will not be funded by their proposed health-care bill. Amendments, like the one passed in July headed by Sen. Barbara Mikulski,  allowed for subsidies to be sent to “women’s health” facilities such as Planned Parenthood.  As the public began to catch on to this tactic (and Representatives had to face their constituents at townhall meetings) these direct approaches to funding were, for the most part, dropped.  Although the current bill does not specifically allocate funds for abortion, it does allow for funding in a roundabout way.  The plan would provide vouchers for low and middle-income Americans to purchase plans which do cover elective abortions.  To say that this is not the same thing as taxpayer-funded abortion, is insincere at best. While there is a good chance that a massive overhaul of our health-care system will be voted down, some version of health-care “reform” will probably be passed this year.  If we can’t stop it entirely, we must at least try to insure that it is as innocuous as possible.  Saying “No” to abortion funding is a big part of that effort. This is why we must watch our elected officials very carefully right now and pay attention to each version of the plan that comes along.

Sen. Robert Casey Jr. has always promoted himself as a conservative to moderate Democrat.  His voting record has shown a far more liberal slant. He has also described himself as pro-life, but he has only a 66% pro-life rating from National Right to Life ( and his rating from NARAL Pro-Choice America was 65% as of 2007).  Now, he has the opportunity to prove himself.  Throughout the debate on ObamaCare, his stance on abortion funding has been somewhat muddled.  He initially claimed that this bill did not provide for money to subsidize abortion.  Then, he said that even if it did, there was no need to insure that elective abortions were not covered, “There is no reason why in a health-care bill we have to have another debate about that issue (abortion).”  Now, he seems to have finally decided that any proposed health-care legislation must have an amendment which assures that none of the money will be used to fund abortion.  Let’s hope he sticks to it.  Given his record of folding to the left, I don’t have a lot of confidence in the man.

The Pro-Choice crowd will be applying a lot of pressure to any Congressman that they think can bullied into backing down.  Sorry to say it, but Sen. Casey is a perfect target.  We need to send our own message.

Sen. Casey, It is time to vote the way you campaign.  You claimed to be fiscally-responsible, but voted in favor of the President’s reckless spending.  You claimed to care about the desires of your constituents, but voted to keep funding ACORN.  Once again, your reputation is on the line.  It is easy to say you are pro-life when you believe that the issue is settled and your beliefs will never be tested.  You have a great opportunity here.  When election time rolls around, wouldn’t it be nice to have at least one issue where you stood your ground?

To contact Sen Casey:

phone (202) 224-6324

fax (202) 228-0604

by email