PELOSI, SLAUGHTER, & DeGETTE, ALONG WITH 91 MEMBERS OF CONGRESS FILE AMICUS BRIEF IN SUPREME COURT CONTRACEPTIVE COVERAGE REQUIREMENT CHALLENGE

WASHINGTON, DC – Today, Democratic Leader Nancy Pelosi (D-CA), U.S. Reps. Louise Slaughter (D-NY), and Diana DeGette (D-CO), along with Democratic Whip Steny Hoyer (D-MD), Ranking House Judiciary Member John Conyers, Jr. (D-MI),  Ranking House Education and the Workforce Member George Miller (D-CA), Ranking House Energy and Commerce Member Henry A. Waxman (D-CA), Ranking House Ways and Means Member Sander Levin (D-MI), and Ranking House Subcommittee on the Constitution and Civil Justice Member Jerrold Nadler (D-NY) are filing an amicus brief in the United States Supreme Court in Sebelius v. Hobby Lobby Stores and Conestoga Wood Specialties Corp. v Sebelius.  Those challenging the contraceptive coverage requirement under the Affordable Care Act (ACA) claim that it imposes a substantial burden on the exercise of religion. A total of 91 House members have signed onto the brief.

These members chose to participate as amici in these cases because they want the Supreme Court to hear the full story from Congress.  They strongly believe the contraceptive coverage requirement does not violate the free exercise of religion and will ensure all Americans receive vital preventive health care services. The preventive care provisions, including the contraceptive coverage requirement, are the least restrictive means of accomplishing Congress’ goal of ensuring the necessary healthcare coverage for women.

In the amicus, the members explain how the legislative history of the ACA supports the conclusion that the contraceptive coverage requirement of the ACA satisfies the test applicable to a free exercise of religion challenge under the Religious Freedom Restoration Act (RFRA).

As the Congressional amici point out to the court: “The contraceptive coverage requirement does not substantially burden any exercise of religion in which the Corporations might be found to engage because it does not compel the Corporations to administer or use the contraceptive methods to which they object, nor does it require them to adhere to, affirm, or abandon a particular belief. It merely requires the Corporation, like other for-profit employers to provide comprehensive insurance coverage under which their employees may make their own personal decisions whether to use whatever form of contraception, if any, best suits their individualized health and wellness needs.”

CONGRESSIONAL AMICUS BRIEF IN SUPREME COURT CONTRACEPTIVE COVERAGE REQUIREMENT CHALLENGE

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Catholic Birth Control Hypocrisy And Michigan Foster Care

This is what takes me for a loop with their logic.

There is a recent surge of young girls who are wards of the state, residing in or under the aegis of Catholic organizations like Vista Maria, who are getting pregnant and having babies.  Not only is the State of Michigan not reporting these pregnancies, the state is not providing services for the second generation of children being born in its care.

The reason a state, as this is not exclusive to Michigan, is not reporting pregnancies of foster girls, or we can take it a step further and not acknowledging in a court of law the father of the child, is due to the fact that it does not, or rather, is not mandated by federal law to report pregnancies of foster children.

The new crop of babies will go under a removal order with its statistics being sent up as abuse and neglect.

That is correct.  These foster children do not receive any sex education.  These foster children do not receive any access to protection.  There is no place for foster children to even report sexual abuse because the state does not report it.

To fault the behavior of a youth who has suffered under a child welfare system so financially corrupt is not very compassionate.

So the question I pose to you is this:  "Who holds the parent accountable for abuse and neglect when the state is the parent?"

"Who will hold the Roman Catholic Church accountable for abuse and neglect of children under their care paid for by taxpayers?"

Masses protest in Detroit, say health care law's change in birth control mandate not enough

More than 1,000 protesters rallied outside the federal building in Detroit on Friday to oppose the Obama administration's contraception mandate, saying their religious freedom is under attack.

The rally, organized by Catholic leaders, was one of 13 in cities across Michigan and more than 140 others across the U.S.

"Christians ... are a majority in this country," Teresa Tomeo, a Catholic author from St. Clair Shores, told the crowd. "We don't want this mandate."

The protesters, many holding signs that read "Stop Obama's HHS Mandate," listened to a range of speakers, from professors to a Catholic bishop to Protestant pastors.

"We will not comply," Professor Mary Healy of Sacred Heart Major Seminary said as the crowd cheered.

Healy said under the mandate, people could be forced to indirectly pay for "gourmet contraceptives" that give women "their choice of a sexually promiscuous lifestyle."

Catholic leaders say using contraception is morally wrong; under the mandate, most employers would be required to provide some sort of contraception coverage.

After an uproar, the White House modified the plan so that insurance companies, not religious employers, would pay for the contraception. But some religious groups say the change doesn't go far enough.

"We're on God's side," said Bishop Ira Combs, a Protestant leader from Jackson.

Quoting from the Bible and citing history, speakers said Christians were under attack by the government.

The president of Madonna University, Sister Rose Marie Kujawa, told the crowd that "the right to religious freedom is being ignored."

Auxiliary Bishop Michael Byrnes of the Archdiocese of Detroit said: "The purpose of freedom ... (is) for the pursuit of Christian excellence."

He also said people should "use our sexual powers for the building up of marriage and for the procreation of children."

A couple of counter-protesters were at the demonstration, holding up signs that read: "Catholic in support of the HHS mandate" and "Fund Church communities, not lawsuits," referring to the closing of Catholic parishes and lawsuits that Catholic groups have filed against the Obama administration over the mandate.

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John Conyers defends contraception mandate

The video is of the hearing has a bad reflector link but you can read the testimony.  I am working to upgrade Judiciary information access and hope to have streaming soon.

At a House hearing today, U.S. Rep. John Conyers, D-Detroit, strongly defended the contraception mandate from the Obama administration that has been under fierce attack from conservative Christians.

Saying that access to contraception helps women’s health, Conyers said the birth control mandate from the Department of Health and Human Services “is not just good law but good science.”

Conyers gave several examples of how access to birth control prevents health problems, saying that: “Over 200,000 cases of ovarian cancer and 100,000 deaths were prevented because of the health benefits of contraception.”

Conyers also said that: “Over 10% of infant deaths could be prevented if pregnancies were planned and if women had better access to family planning.”

The hearing today was held by the House Judiciary Committee and titled: “Executive Overreach: The HHS (Health and Human Services) Mandate Versus Religious Liberty.”

Released in January, the federal mandate drew criticism because it required religiously-affiliated institutions like Catholic hospitals and universities to include contraception coverage for its employees. It gave churches an exemption. The Catholic Church teaches that using contraception is morally wrong.

After the outcry, Obama announced a compromise this month that asks insurance companies, not the institutions themselves, to provide contraception coverage.

Conyers called Obama’s compromise "a Solomonic solution to a difficult problem. It balances competing rights in a respectful manner.”

Some conservatives feel differently, saying the compromise is still an attack on religious freedom.

Last week, Michigan Attorney General Bill Schuette joined a lawsuit with other states against the Obama administration over the contraception mandate.