Week in Review
American Bishops Shout ‘Fire!’ after Helping to Set the Blaze
The following article appeared as an ALL guest commentary on Thursday, 4/25. PLTW only contains the intro to the article. To read the full piece, follow the link at the end of this introduction.
After first endorsing and supporting the Pregnant Workers Fairness Act (PWFA), America’s Catholic Bishops are now opposing the Biden Administration’s Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) pro-abortion regulations as published on April 14, 2024. But these immoral regulations are a direct consequence of the PWFA. They were completely foreseeable, and the bishops ignored many pro-life warnings against supporting the Act. Consequently, under the authority of the PWFA, the EEOC regulations will now affect all employers in the United States with 15 or more employees.
While the Catholic bishops along with some other sources have claimed since the Fall of 2023 that the Biden Administration hijacked the prolife purpose of the PWFA, the public record shows that the Catholic Bishops worked closely with and followed the lead of Democrat Congressional Members to produce the final wording of the PWFA signed by the President. The public record is equally clear that the Catholic bishops and their staff ignored warnings from Republican Members of Congress and prolife groups regarding the pro-abortion consequences of the PWFA. In fact, the Bishops opposed corrective amendment language to the PWFA proposed by Republicans and supported by prolife and religious groups to expressly exclude PWFA-covered businesses from having to provide abortion and other morally problematic “services” to pregnant women.
This analysis describes the legislative steps leading to this awkward situation which now requires all business men and women across America, as well as religious schools and universities, to pay for and provide abortion and other morally problematic services (such as in vitro pregnancies), or to divert operating funds to pay for lawyers to challenge this law.
Again, the PWFA requires U.S. employers of 15 or more persons to “provide reasonable accommodations to a qualified employee’s or applicant’s known limitation related to, affected by, or arising out of pregnancy, childbirth, or related medical conditions, absent undue hardship on the operation of the business of the covered entity” (Federal Register, Vol. 88, No. 154, August 11, 2023 / Proposed Rules, p. 54714). The ostensible purpose of the PWFA was, for example, to require a covered business to exempt a pregnant woman or a women with a risk of blood clots from heavy lifting. It could also require that a woman be allowed to use a stool when serving as a cashier, or be allowed extra restroom breaks, and to provide similar accommodations that would allow women to keep their jobs while pregnant.
But the Act does much more than that. The implementation of the PWFA requires businesses to facilitate abortion, in vitropregnancies and other actions at odds with both Divine Revelation and the natural law. The problematic language used by the EEOC is the phrase, ‘‘pregnancy, childbirth, or related medical conditions,’’ which is also in the underlying law.
Click here to read the rest of the article.
Analysis of Planned Parenthood’s Annual Report
Planned Parenthood released its 2022-2023 annual report last week, and the numbers have hit both record-breaking highs and lows this year. The theme circulating throughout the report claims that Planned Parenthood went “Above & Beyond” for its clients with 9.13 million services this past year, as letters of gratitude for the abortion giant from its clients fill the pages of the report. After a closer review, STOPP International is calling out Planned Parenthood’s lack of transparency in reporting, as numbers are not matching the other data it included. While its “services” and its patient numbers continue to decline, Planned Parenthood’s abortions numbers are the highest they’ve ever been, and the organization has received $2 billion dollars in revenue this past year.
What is certain is that Planned Parenthood has gone above and beyond to ensure that its deadly business grows financially, receiving a total of $1,906,700,000 in revenue, an 8% increase from last year. Approximately $699,300,000 of that revenue comes directly from taxpayer funds, a 4.3% increase from last year, while private contributions are up 44%, which includes MacKenzie Scott’s $275 million dollar donation to Planned Parenthood in March 2022.
Planned Parenthood brags that it alone has killed 392,715 children with abortion, a staggering increase from last year’s recorded 374,155. However, Planned Parenthood did not specify if this number includes the number of preborn children killed through abortion pills, nor is there mention of abortion pills anywhere within the report, despite Planned Parenthood’s CEO’s recent claim that 70% of PP’s abortions are done via the abortion pill method. Planned Parenthood’s miscarriage care increased 36%. However, with such an ambiguous title and no details, it is hard to know what Planned Parenthood considers as “miscarriages” or “care.”
Planned Parenthood’s fully serviced telehealth numbers were last recorded at a high 553,149 in 2021-2022. However, this year the telehealth appointments were down to their lowest number yet at 123,855, a 78% decrease from last year. Only 13 of Planned Parenthood’s affiliates can legally provide telehealth visits for the abortion pill referrals specifically, and Planned Parenthood claims state bans are restricting physical access to abortion. If PP is limited in getting women to obtain abortions even by abortion pills, how did abortion numbers jump up to a new record high this year?
As the number of abortions and eight other “services” increased for Planned Parenthood this year, its patient services saw a 3.8% drop from last year’s, hitting almost exactly 2,000,000 patients—the lowest number of patients it has seen within at least the past decade.
While the number of patients and the other 16 services PP provides are down, this leads us to ask why Planned Parenthood needs more taxpayer funding as it continues to be a $2 billion dollar organization. If Planned Parenthood is limited in its physical and telehealth options to offer abortions and abortion pills, how has the number of abortions gone up? Do the abortion numbers even include abortion pills? As we ask these questions of the abortion giant, there appears to be one common answer to conclude from: Planned Parenthood’s annual report does not give a full picture of its year, except that it continues to grow richer at the expense of taking preborn children’s lives and deceiving women and men into believing they need the abortion giant’s “services.”
We at STOPP continue to call out and expose Planned Parenthood as the deceiver it is, and we will do so for as long as it continues to exist. STOPP will go above and beyond to continue educating the public on Planned Parenthood so that we can stop it for good.
Click here to read the report with STOPP charts and graphs.
ALL in the News
ALL recently called out President Biden for blessing himself with the Sign of the Cross during a press conference about increasing abortion access. ALL’s comments were included in an article by The Christian Post.
Catholic Vote featured comments from ALL’s recent analysis of the annual Planned Parenthood report.
Katie Brown, ALL’s national director, was recently interviewed by Ed Martin on the Pro-America Report to discuss Planned Parenthood’s latest financial numbers. She was also interviewed on Choose Life Radio about ALL’s Charity Watchlist.
Katie commented on the decision of the Catholic Xavier University to add abortion coverage into the university’s healthcare coverage, calling out the school for directly violating the Catholic faith. Her comments were featured in College Fix and LifeNews.
Susan Ciancio, editor of Celebrate Life Magazine and director of the Culture of Life Studies Program—a pre-K-12 pro-life education program for homes and schools—writes a weekly commentary on timely pro-life topics. Her most recent article discussed remarks by Whoopi Goldberg and was published by LifeSiteNews.
Twice a week, Judie’s commentaries are distributed to an expansive media list. The list contains over 100 media outlets such as Fox News, The Federalist, Breitbart, and The Daily Caller, among others. Judie’s commentaries are each featured on the front page of ALL.org.
Pro-Life Education
Culture of Life Studies Program
Conversation Starter: Politicians and the Eucharist: Is it okay for a pro-abortion Catholic politician to receive Communion? Is it okay for a priest to deny Communion to a public figure whose pro-abortion stance is well known? Are there other instances in Church history where public figures were denied Communion for grave reasons? What can you as a young person do to help influence pro-abortion politicians? These are the questions this six-page mini lesson will answer. Students will learn about Canon 915 and the importance of the Eucharist. Plus, they will see examples from current events and past Church history. ORDER HERE
ALL’s Education Materials
Total Protection: Preborn Children & Politics: This brochure explains why ALL works every day to save all babies, not just some. We never advocate for or agree to exceptions to laws regarding abortion. Our “total protection” message is consistent with the Catholic Church’s teachings on abortion, and it is necessary for pro-life victory. Learn why total protection is so crucial. SHOP NOW
Pro-Life Social Media
Biden’s Sign of the Cross at Pro-Abortion Campaign Stop
It’s 2024 and Joe Biden is still permitted to receive the sacraments. How is this possible when the self-proclaimed “Catholic” president has done nothing in conformity with the doctrines of the Church? Blame those in the Church hierarchy who care little about the souls of men like Biden and more about acceptance by those with political power.
This week, Joe Biden campaigned in Florida and publicly made the Sign of the Cross when Democrat Nikki Fried took the stage to condemn the state’s actions of regulating preborn child killing.
Watch:
This. Is. VILE!
— CatholicVote (@CatholicVote) April 23, 2024
President Biden makes the Sign of the Cross at an abortion rally in Florida!
You cannot be Catholic and support abortion!
You cannot invoke GOD and promote Death! pic.twitter.com/aG4P542EM0
If bishops who oversee Biden’s dioceses of Washington, D.C. and Wilmington were serious about saving souls, they would have publicly expressed a fraternal correction for Biden’s scandalous behavior. But it’s a decades-old problem of complacency. While Bidens, Pelosis, and Kennedys defend preborn human sacrifice as “human rights,” Church leaders shrug their shoulders believing these problems will fix themselves. Catholic Twitter/X was more outraged by Biden’s behavior than those governing the Church.
When will you cowards @USCCB do something about this apostate!
— Dean Oaks (@NeoThomist81) April 23, 2024
Nothing. Folks at the USCCB voted for Biden.
His making the sign is absolutely evil, a symbolic rejection of the Catholic faith he purports to believe. I wish, for the salvation of his soul, his Bishop would formally excommunicate him.
— Deacon Keith Fournier (@KeithFournier7) April 24, 2024
It was, from the earliest centuries, a remedy to return a sinner back to Jesus Christ.
He’s disgusting. Catholicism is a prop for Biden. The Catechism is clear – excommunication.
— Non-fat Latte Girl (@nflattegirl) April 23, 2024
Can we get a ruling on this? @BishopBarron @BishStrickland
— The Sarcasticat (@TheSarcasticist) April 23, 2024
Seriously, this is grotesquely scandalous. The Church needs to come down hard on this or risk losing credibility. People, Catholics and otherwise, are desperate for strong leadership.
2287 Anyone who uses the power at…
The rest of the tweet:
2287 Anyone who uses the power at his disposal in such a way that it leads others to do wrong becomes guilty of scandal and responsible for the evil that he has directly or indirectly encouraged. “Temptations to sin are sure to come; but woe to him by whom they come!”
Guys, please pray for this man, pray that God pour graces into him so that he can repent before death. Yes, his actions are horrid; yes, he's done extremely evil things, but please don't lose charity because of him or any other sinner.
— Daehenob (@Daehenob67) April 24, 2024
Absolutely true.
There has to be some sort of excommunication penalty associated. I really wish the pope would aggressively condemn this wickedness.
— Daily Tolkien Wisdom (@dytolkienwisdom) April 23, 2024
Even if the pope doesn’t condemn it, Biden’s bishops should. But they don’t. And that’s the real scandal.
