Barack Obama is already on my bad side.
On Tuesday, responding to "concerns" from Republicans and in the "spirit of bipartisanship" (gag), the president asked Democrats to remove $200 million from the stimulus bill that was to be allocated to organizations to provide family planning services to people on Medicaid. In other words, Obama cow-towed to Republicans who like the idea of keeping the poor, well, poor by blocking access to adequate healthcare and contraceptives that the non-poor have access to. I think this is how some Republicans rationalize this bizarre ideology:
"Man, I really love Jesus . . . And Jesus loved the poor. But, wait a minute, if poor women could determine their own reproductivity, and limit the number of children they have, as well as have access to good healthcare, well then they might have the time and energy to do things like escape poverty. We can't have that!"
Alright, maybe it's more like this:
"Wah, wah, I love babies. And birth control is kinda the same as abortion! These women are killers! We can't let them have access to federal funds!"
And in response to this craziness, Obama pressured Democrats to give up family planning and the Democrats did what Democrats always do and caved. And in the end, the stimulus package passed the House. Without a single Republican vote.
Well done, Mr. President.
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That is a good first step towards cleaning that bill up, unfortunately the stimulus still funds anti-family programs. Wendy Wright of Concerned Women for America (CWA) points out, Planned Parenthood and others are still seeking money through the stimulus package to reduce population and promote "safe sex" programs for youth. Wright says it does not make sense. "The economic stimulus bill shifts the burden of the debt onto the next generation; yet if we are spending billions of more dollars in 'family planning,' there won't be much of a next generation to pay this huge debt," she argues.
In a CWA press release, Wright points out the $825-billion stimulus package halts funding for abstinence education programs while including $335 million for sexually transmitted disease (STD) education and prevention programs. She notes that the Centers for Disease Control -- a recipient of STD education funding -- previously has used federal funds for programs that she says "may stimulate some people, but not the economy."
I think you should consider joining the Concerned Women for America, since you're a concerned woman.
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