Recent developments in Congress and the courts have given the anti-abortion movement numerous occasions to celebrate.
At the end of June, the U.S. Supreme Court, in a 6-3 decision written by Justice Neil Gorsuch, found that Medicaid laws do not give individuals the right to bring federal lawsuits against states.
The case, Medina v. Planned Parenthood South Atlantic, grew out of South Carolina’s decision to remove the nation’s largest abortion seller from its Medicaid program.
The Court’s ruling paved the way for other states to follow South Carolina’s lead.
This was one of the unfolding victories of the Dobbs v. Jackson Women's Health Organization, 597 U.S. 215, (2022) decision, which overturned Roe v. Wade 410 U.S. 113 (1973)
On July 7, the IRS agreed in a court filing that tax exempt nonprofits — including churches — should not be banned from participating in political campaigns.
We are particularly happy with this development at Priests for Life because it’s something we have been dealing with for decades.
A big part of our teaching has been about the 1954 Johnson Amendment and how it should not be used as an excuse for silence.
Perhaps the most consequential victory for the unborn took place on Independence Day, when President Trump signed into law the "Big Beautiful Bill" (the OBBBA) which included a provision to withhold federal tax dollars from abortion providers.
The new law embodies so much of what voters worked and sacrificed for, including the biggest tax cuts in history, and the biggest spending cuts, the "Trump accounts" for newborns, school choice, a stronger military, a stronger border and so much more.
But for those who are anti-abortion, defunding Planned Parenthood was the greatest victory since Dobbs and a great way to celebrate our nation’s 249th birthday.
It's understood not everyone agrees with this writer.
The original bill called for defunding Planned Parenthood for 10 years and we literally held our breath to see if that would make it into the final bill. It didn't.
Funding will now be suspended for just one year.
Yes, we want more. And we will be restless until we get more.
But even though we are disappointed to have the timeline reduced — and disappointed that a federal judge put the defunding on a temporary hold — we should still be rejoicing.
Planned Parenthood is vulnerable in ways I have not seen in my decades of anti-abortion advocacy. Facilities are closing in New York, Iowa, Wisconsin, Minnesota and elsewhere. Before the bill passed Congress, the nation’s largest abortion seller was warning it would have to close 200 of its centers.
Losing federal funding, even for a year, will have an immediate impact.
Lives will be saved as a result.
Yes, we should be distressed that the funding restriction is only one year instead of 10.
But what if it had passed with the 10-year provision?
We could have rejoiced in that, or we could have said that 10 years is not enough.
Why should child killing be funded in the 11th year?
That would be a valid point
Let’s take this a step further.
Let’s say the law stopped abortion funding permanently.
We could rejoice in that, or we could say, stopping the funding is not enough; we have to stop the killing. And we would be right.
In other words, there are always more victories to win, more ground to conquer.
We are in a battle to save lives.
Do the babies who would be protected by this limited, imperfect law, have a right to be protected right now or not?
The answer is obvious.
We'll fight this battle again next year so that the defunding continues, and we will fight it every year as we continue working on many fronts until every child conceived celebrates his or her birthday.
But right now, let’s rejoice.
Frank Pavone is an anti-abortion leader and national director of Priests for Life. Read Frank Pavone Reports — More Here.
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