Obama Compromise Falls Short
President Barack Obama declared Friday he's found a solution to the HHS mandate that he says will protect religious liberty but also ensure that women have access to free contraception, as he rushed to defuse an election-year issue that threatened to overtake his administration.
Al Kresta, Host of “Kresta in the Afternoon” and National Spokesman for www.StopHHS.com comments as follows:
“Today, President Obama was forced to reopen a conversation that he had declared to be closed on Jan. 20. Taken at his word, it is good to hear him say that religious employers would not have to pay for or provide contraceptive coverage. In a backgrounder press conference this morning with White House Senior Officials, members of the press were also told three times that religious employers would not even have to refer. The insurer would have to provide contraceptive coverage at no cost and would have the burden of contacting those they cover.
“It is important to remember that a press conference is not a policy. The best that we can say is that the President is now reopening the discussion and he seems to show a willingness to make some accommodations. Nevertheless, again, a press conference is not policy. He shows no awareness of the conscience problems faced by Catholic businessmen, religious organizations that self-insure, or American citizens who, for reasons of conscience, do not want to participate in insurance plans that offer contraception, sterilization, and abortion-inducing drugs.
“The only remedy that www.StopHHS.com is presently supporting is HR 1179, sponsored by Rep. Jeff Fortenberry (R-NE) and the parallel Senate Bill SB1467 sponsored by Sen. Roy Blunt (R-MO).
“The most distressing aspect of this debate is that we are having it at all. Religious liberty is not a gift of the state that is graciously bestowed on us by our political leaders. Religious liberty is what we posses by virtue of our creation in the image and likeness of God.
“We will persevere in this fight until everybody’s freedom of conscience is protected.”
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Thanks for speaking up for the business owners who don't want this either. The Church is not alone in this, so they should act to just protect their own.
ReplyDeleteThere is very little to be hopeful for today. The Obama administration must be defeated at the polls. That is a sad realization for many Catholics who once supported him.
Nothing changes with this "compromise". Who pays for evil is somewhat irrelevant isn't it? Churches will still be required to provide insurance that covers procedures our consciences object to. It's not about the money. End of story.
ReplyDeleteI hope that someone will speak up for us small business Catholic employers. Currently in NYS contaception is a mandated coverage if you provide prescription coverage for your employees and only the large catholic institutions can claim consciense objection. At least right now we can shop for an insurance provider who does not have prescrition coverage embedded in their plan but if this federal mandate takes effect we will not have any choice left but to not provide the insurance and face the fines. Please remember that freedom of religion is for all citizens and not just the large comglomerates.
ReplyDeleteAnd Al, I know that you and many others are claiming this is not about the Church's specific beliefs, rather about religious liberty, and that is true to a certain extent. But these secular atheists will trap the Church into a corner, using this and maybe other "compromises", and force the birth control issue out. They believe they can win this battle. Someone in the USCCB better be prepared to make an effective defense of Church teaching cause that's what this will boil down to..
ReplyDeleteI would like to thank you for all your efforts. I find Stop HHS, is only one of the few sites that we can receive truthful comments on this ongoing concern. I will continue to refer anyone that I come in contact to your website.
ReplyDeleteI would also like to thank you for your radio show, Kresta in the Afternoon,and recommend it to all, to get a Catholic prospective of news. Knowledge and prayer will get us through the rest of this year. Ave Maria.
Please keep praying and doing some sort of fast...give up a small desert or tv program. Contact your Bishop and Bishop Dolan and let them know we are praying for them. Tell them how much we support them and depend on them to lead us in Truth. Evangelize to others that do not understand that it is more than a contraception issue; it is about our Freedom in America and affects every American.
ReplyDeleteAl, you've done an outstanding job keeping informed on this matter and your analysis has been spot-on. Please take this as a word of encouragement that I am certain is native to the vast majority of your listeners!
ReplyDeletehttp://www.catholicculture.org/commentary/articles.cfm?ID=523 :
ReplyDelete"Unfortunately, before the bishops released their second statement, leaders of two of the largest Catholic employers in the country—the Catholic Health Association and Catholic Charities USA--had released their own statements indicating that they were satisfied with the Obama administration’s “compromise” proposal. So while the political battle continues, the Catholic forces are already split."
Thats right, read it above, Catholic Charities USA is stabbing us in the back. Dont' give anymore, we know its run and influenced by Satan. This is all new to me, and never received an inkling of hints on this even from Kresta. Of course we all know about the CCHD, but this one too also! I'm still wondering about Catholic Relief Services and what I dont know about them...I pretty much have learned in the last year that they don't see it as part of their mission to evangelize or even pass out an occassional bible. But Kresta hasn't weighed in, there are things either he doesnt know or wont' say.
RB2
I fear that some of us are being deceived. This compromise is a deception. The madate is still there...Catholic organizations will still be required to supply insurance that provides objectionable coverages. The only difference is who is explicitly paying for it (a farce, nothing is free). Every organized crime boss loves these arrangements, someone else does my dirty work, I don't pay for it, don't commit the crime, look the other way. Catholics cannot be deceived by this and must stand up against evil, not just shove the responsibility to someone else.
ReplyDeleteConscience protection should not be limited to religious conscience. Religious conscience is not special. Religious people are not special. Government should respect the conscience rights of all people, even atheists.
ReplyDeleteAn atheist libertarian, for example, takes a moral stand against coercion, including coercion by the state. It is immoral to coerce an atheist libertarian to pay for faith based initiatives. The only way to protect conscience for all is to implement true libertarian principles.
The first amendment was designed to prevent rival religions and churches from using the coercive nature of government (an institution common to all citizens) for their own advantage. Separating religion from state allows a peaceful free market to exist among competing religions and churches. And it allows the non-religious to stay out of that theological cesspool altogether.