The mad, relentless, reckless, crazed and frenetic race to force U.S. citizens to live without healthcare choice and instead to live within the tight constraints of an ill-conceived, hastily patched together, undebated, unevaluated, nationalized, government-owned and managed healthcare system continues on at breakneck speed.

A Quick Recap

The U.S. Catholic Conference of Bishops and numerous individual bishops, have repeatedly spoken out, boldly and clearly, on the imperative need to at least ban the funding of abortions and to include a medical professional’s conscience clause.  The bishops urged Catholics to call or email their elected Congress representatives about the matter. And faithful Catholics responded with calls and emails!

Interestingly, Planned Parenthood leaders, in a desperate attempt to salvage the organization’s abundant, billion dollar federal funding (Planned Parenthood already received more than $300 billion in taxpayer money), even sent out a surprising note to Catholics, calling the bishop’s pleading “dangerous” and urging pro-abortion Catholics to call on their elected legislators to oppose the Stupek amendment.  As Brian Burch, president of CatholicVote.org, put it last week:  “You’re not going to be believe this.  Planned Parenthood is asking Catholics to call Congress and demand taxpayer support for abortion.”

President Obama has consistently refused to encourage any support of life and or a ban on abortion, and numerous, outspoken, self-proclaimed Catholic, yet relentlessly pro-abortion, legislators such as House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-San Francisco, CA) and Jack Reed (D-RI), pay no heed to repeated bishop pleas on the matter.

Nonetheless, an outpouring of phone calls and emails from faithful Catholics nationwide have so far had some impact: The Stupak-Pitts amendment, a bi-partisan addition led by Congressman Stupak (D-MI) and Congressman Pitts (R-PA) —against great odds—was allowed to be voted on by the House Speaker, and was (not surprisingly) approved in the House by a vote of 240–194.  The Stupek amendment prohibits abortion coverage in the public plan and in private plans receiving government subsidies.

The U.S. House of Representatives then passed its version of a national healthcare bill, which includes a ban on funding of abortion, by a thin margin of 220 to 215.   Just five votes difference!

Abortion advocates, especially Planned Parenthood leaders, are outraged at the ban on abortion funding and don’t want to see such an amendment in the Senate bill.

Any minor victory could be short-lived without the miracle of continued prayer and action….

In a CNN interview Sunday, White House Senior Advisor David Axelrod indicated that President Obama is working with lawmakers to remove the pro-life Stupak amendment from the health care bill.

What will the Senate do?

Sen. Harry Reid (D-NV) has released the Senate version of the healthcare bill, more than 2,046 pages.  What Senator will actually take the hours to read this bill thoroughly?  Even more disturbing, why won’t the Senate allow for time to genuinely consider this bill?  No, instead, Sen.Reid is pushing for a vote on Saturday morning!

In the Senate version, abortion funding is included in the public plan and in federally subsidized private plans as long as the money comes from pooled private premiums.  This wording allows for little more than an accounting trick, according to prolife analysists, and, in sum, the Senate version of healthcare includes abortion funding.

“Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid has rejected the bipartisan Stupak-Pitts amendment,” said Douglas Johnson, legislative director for the National Right to Life Committee. “[The Senate bill] has substituted completely unacceptable language that would result in coverage of abortion on demand in two big new federal government programs.”

Shocking inclusions

According to Steven Moser, founder and president of Population Research Institute,  “A Stupak Amendment is clearly not enough. It includes no conscience protection, and does nothing to prohibit hastening death.  Other shortcomings abound. The House bill, for instance, permanently funds pornographic sex education for all students.  It sets up an Institute of Medicine to study and make
recommendations about Medicare, which may be the Trojan Horse to introduce rationing into the health care system.”

What is the Senate Agenda for the bill?

According to Sen. McConnell’s office, here is the plan for the Senate:On Thursday, Sen. Reid filed “cloture” on the motion to proceed to HR 3590, the Service Members Home Ownership Tax Act.  Remember Sen. Reid is using HR 3590 as a “shell” to offer his 2,074 page health bill as a substitute amendment.  The cloture vote on the motion to proceed will be Saturday evening at 8:00 pm.   Democrats need only 60 votes to achieve cloture.

On Friday, the Senate will convene at 10:00 am and debate the merits of Sen. Reid’s 2,074 page bill until 11:00 pm on Friday evening.

On Saturday, November 21, the Senate will convene at 10:00 am continuing the debate leading up to the vote at 8:00 pm that night on cloture on the motion to proceed.  Under the agreement, if cloture is invoked (which requires  60 votes), all post-cloture time will be yielded back, the motion to proceed to the bill will be agreed to and the bill will be reported.

Once the bill is reported, Sen. Reid will be recognized to offer up his substitute amendment.

What can I do?

Call your Senator, urging they reject the call for cloture (Vote NO on cloture).

It takes only a few minutes to call other Senators who are  “vunerable.”  We need 41 NO votes on cloture.

According to various resources, the Senators listed below provide the best chance of this getting cloture stopped in the Senate:

Mark Begich-AK- phone. (202) 224-3004, , toll free. (877) 501 – 6275*  fax. (202) 224-2354,

email(http://begich.senate.gov/contact/contact.cfm_)

Blanche L. Lincoln –AR-Office:  202-224-4843; Fax:  202-228-1371, email(http://lincoln.senate.gov/contact/email.cfm)

Mark Pryor-AR Phone: (202) 224-2353,  Fax: (202) 228-0908

Email(http://pryor.senate.gov/contact/)

Joseph Lieberman- CT-(202) 224-4041 Voice,(202) 224-9750 Fax

Email (http://lieberman.senate.gov/contact/)

Thomas Carper-DE Phone: (202) 224-2441, Fax: (202) 228-2190

Email (http://carper.senate.gov/contact/)

Bill Nelson- FL- Phone: 202-224-5274, Fax: 202-228-2183

Email (http://billnelson.senate.gov/contact/index.cfm)

Even Bayh-IN (202) 224-5623, (202) 228-1377 fax

Email (http://bayh.senate.gov/contact/email/)

Mary Landrieu- LA Voice: (202)224-5824,Fax:(202) 224-9735

Email (http://landrieu.senate.gov/contact/index.cfm)

Susan Collins –( R ) ME-Phone: (202) 224-2523, Fax: (202) 224-2693

Email(http://collins.senate.gov/public/continue.cfm?FuseAction=ContactSenatorCollins.EmailIssue)
Olympia Snowe-( R ) ME – Phone: (202) 224-5344,Toll Free: (800) 432-1599
Fax: (202) 224-1946

Email (http://snowe.senate.gov/public/index.cfm?FuseAction=ContactSenatorSnowe)

John Tester-MT Phone: (202) 224-2644, Fax: (202) 224-8594

Email (http://tester.senate.gov/Contact/index.cfm)

Kent Conrad-ND-Phone: (202) 224-2043, Fax: (202) 224-7776

Email(http://conrad.senate.gov/contact/webform.cfm)

Ben Nelson-NE- Tel: 1-202-224-6551, Fax: 1-202-228-0012

Email (http://bennelson.senate.gov/contact-me.cfm)

Ron Wyden-OR Phone: (202) 224-5244, Fax: (202) 228-2717

Email (http://wyden.senate.gov/contact/)

Robert Byrd-WV- Telephone:  (202) 224-3954,Fax:  (202) 228-0002

Email (http://byrd.senate.gov/contacts/)

Mark Warner- VA- Phone: 202-224-2023, Fax: 202-224-6295

Email (http://warner.senate.gov/public/index.cfm?p=Contact)

Bob Bennett- UT-Phone:  (202) 224-5444 (no fax)

Email: http://bennett.senate.gov/public/index.cfm?p=ContactForm

Byron Dorgan- ND Phone (202) 224-2551 , Fax (202) 224-1193

Email: http://dorgan.senate.gov/contact/contact_form.cfm

Max Baucus-MT (202) 224-2651 (Office),(202) 224-9412 (Fax)

Email: http://baucus.senate.gov/contact/emailForm.cfm?subj=issue

And don’t forget to pray!  ”

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