First, They Came for the Catholics

Townhall.com ^ | February 1, 2012 | Michelle Malkin

[Kaslin]

President Obama and his radical feminist enforcers have had it in for Catholic medical providers from the get-go. It's about time all people of faith fought back against this unprecedented encroachment on religious liberty. First, they came for the Catholics. Who's next?

This weekend, Catholic bishops informed parishioners of the recent White House edict forcing religious hospitals, schools, charities and other health and social service providers to provide "free" abortifacient pills, sterilizations and contraception on demand in their insurance plans -- even if it violates their moral consciences and the teachings of their churches.

NARAL, NOW, Ms. Magazine and the Feminist Majority Foundation all cheered the administration's abuse of the Obamacare law to ram abortion down pro-life medical professionals' throats. Femme dinosaur Eleanor Smeal gloated over the news that the administration had rejected church officials' pleas for compromises: "At last," she exulted, the left's goal of "no-cost birth control" for all had been achieved.

As always, tolerance is a one-way street in the Age of Obama. "Choice" is in the eye (and iron fist) of the First Amendment usurper.

Like the rising number of states who have revolted against the individual health care mandate at the ballot box and in the courts, targeted Catholics have risen up against the Obamacare regime. Arlington (Va.) Bishop Paul Loverde didn't mince words, calling the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services order "a direct attack against religious liberty. This ill-considered policy comprises a truly radical break with the liberties that have underpinned our nation since its founding." Several bishops vowed publicly to fight the mandate.

Bishop Alexander Sample of Marquette, Mich., asserted plainly: "We cannot -- we will not -- comply with this unjust law."

It's not just rabid right-wing politicos defying the Obama machine. Pro-life Democratic Sen. Bob Casey of Pennsylvania denounced the "wrong decision." Left-leaning Bishop Robert Lynch threatened "civil disobedience" in St. Petersburg, Fla., over the power grab. Lefty Washington Post columnist E.J. Dionne wrote that Obama "botched" the controversy and "threw his progressive Catholic allies under the bus" by refusing to "balance the competing liberty interests here."

White House press secretary Jay Carney blithely denied on Tuesday that "there are any constitutional rights issues" involved in the brewing battle. Yet, the Shut Up and Hand Out Abortion Pills order undermines a unanimous Supreme Court ruling issued just last week upholding a religious employer's right to determine whom to hire and fire. And two private colleges have filed federal suits against the government to overturn the unconstitutional abortion coverage decree.

Hannah Smith, senior counsel at the nonprofit law firm The Becket Fund, which is representing the schools, boiled it down for Bloomberg News: "This is not really about access to contraception. The mandate is about forcing these religious groups to pay for it against their beliefs."

How did we get here? The first salvo came in December 2010, when the American Civil Liberties Union pushed HHS and its Planned Parenthood-championing secretary, Kathleen Sebelius, to force Catholic hospitals to perform abortions in violation of their core moral commitment to protecting the lives of the unborn.

The ACLU called for a litigious fishing expedition against Catholic hospitals nationwide that refuse to provide "emergency" contraception and abortions to women. In their sights: Devout Phoenix Catholic Bishop Thomas Olmsted, who revoked the Catholic status of a rogue hospital that performed several direct abortions, provided birth control pills and presided over sterilizations against the church's ethical and religious directives for health care.

The ACLU and the feminists have joined with Obama to threaten and sabotage the First Amendment rights of religious-based health care entities. The agenda is not increased "access" to health care services. The ultimate goal is to shut down health care providers -- Catholic health care institutions employ about 540,000 full-time workers and 240,000 part-time workers -- whose religious views cannot be tolerated by secular zealots and radical social engineers.

Is it any surprise their counterparts in the "Occupy" movement have moved from protesting "Wall Street" to harassing pro-life marchers in Washington, D.C., and hurling condoms at Catholic school girls in Rhode Island? Birds of a lawless, bigoted feather bully together.

[kindred]

The evil obamanation regime continues to trample the first amendment rights gauranteed by the Constitution and the evil democrats continue their offence against America while the GOP rinos sit on their worthless hands.

[PIF]

Coming for the Catholics first? They came for commercial fishermen, they came for farmers, they came for loggers, and now you are just noticing?

[ripley]

“First they came for the Catholics...”

Dontcha know they don’t like those people who believe in some invisible man in the sky?

/s/

[nathanbedford]

Pro-life Democratic Sen. Bob Casey of Pennsylvania denounced the "wrong decision."

What a damn hypocrite!

He votes in favor of Obamacare and abdicates in favor of the bureaucrats the power to make these rulings and then professes surprise and distress when they rule.

How have we come so far that these article I legislative functions are being handed over to unelected and unaccountable bureaucrats?

One way is that we declare health care a right and therefore the right must be upheld for everyone. We subsidize health care for some and then say that the uninsured burden the state in providing the healthcare for some therefore all, even those who are not recipients, must be regulated. We declare a right of privacy for bidding the government from interfering with abortion and watch that morph into a right of the bureaucrats to dictate the conscience of a healthcare provider. So a contrived right of privacy trumps an explicit First Amendment right of freedom of religion and it is done without so much as a by your leave from the branch obligated under article 1 to address these issues.

Sen. Casey: hypocrite of the day.

[circlecity]

"I predict Obama will quietly back down. His media fellators will advise he cannot afford a blowup of this magnitude leading up to November."

If he stays true to form he will SAY he is backing down while telling HHS behind the scenes to stay the course full speed ahead. The media won't report what's really going on thus covering his rear end.

[G Larry]

The Catholic Church is finally beginning to stand its ground.

They need the support of all Christians and Jews in this fight for the right of conscience and the freedom of religion.

[EBH]

Every Christian needs to sit down with their own insurance plan whether they are Catholic or not and understand what is being demanded of them by law.

For Catholics working in jobs outside the Church, your employer’s insurance is going to require you to pay for this coverage as it is required to be “offered.” This actually goes much farther than just the formal Church.

Are Catholics, are Christians willing to go so far as to refuse or drop insurance?

Will Catholics commit acts of heresy or will they place their full faith in God?

[Rashputin]

"I predict Obama will quietly back down."

You forget, Barry is the penultimate narcissist.

He could easily have had this delayed until after the election but his ego was flagging a bit so, he creates a situation that in essence demands that liberal Catholics chose him over the Pope once and for all.

What could be better for your ego if you're the sort of megalomaniacal narcissist he is than denying freedom of religion to the Catholic Church and daring liberal Catholics to side with the Pope rather than Barry? There's no hiding behind "those I represent" or "considering both Catholics and non-Catholics". This is clearly Barry or Catholicism, and Barry will gloat over every Catholic who publicly supports him, every percentage of support a survey shows he has among Catholics, and every Catholic vote he gets on election day even if that's millions less than he got in 2008. As in everything else, for Barry, it's all about Barry.

Barry suffers from two separate and in him now interrelated forms of insanity which, when combined in a single individual, never end well for those who are somehow dependent on the sicko. And due to the cowardice rampant in high places, the whole country is dependent on Barry whether we like it or not. Thank your friends and neighbors for voting this man into office, and if you were an accessory to his election either by voting for him or sitting out 2008, don't forget to thank that face you see in the mirror every day.

This will not, can not, end well and every time Barry finds another way to feed his insanity, how badly it could end gets a little bit worse.

JMHO

[IronJack]

Time for massive civil disobedience on this one. I think that Catholic resisters will find the public overwhelmingly behind them, although they can also expect the Left's Brownshirts to take their toll.

These are the issues of which civil wars are made.

[LibsRJerks]

Well, Michelle, as a fellow Catholic, I agree that this is an atrocity.

I believe it’s time, then, to direct Catholics to stop voting for Rick Santorum in the primaries. He is a spoiler for this race, and will ensure a Romney/Obama victory. Ironically, he has been a pro-life “champion” up until now.
At this point, through, it seems to be all about him.

Catholics are doing this to THEMSELVES!! You want to knock out Obama, really? Then stop splitting the conservative vote.

[Venturer]

Let’s say that Obama backs down on this ,because he feels he cannot get elected while attacking the catholic Church.

What does anyone believe he will do when he no longer has to worry about being re-elected.

If you think Obama’s first term was bad.

YOU AINT SEEN NOTHING YET.

[crosshairs]

Obama is getting another term and that means Catholics who stick to their principles will be imprisoned and then it will be up to the courts.

So will evangelicals and Jews. Hitler's Nazi Germany all over again.

[campaignPete R-CT]

"Pro-life Democratic Sen. Bob Casey"

wish Malkin would stop referring to Casey with that term. He is a pro-lifer in word, but not in deed.

[cizinec]

WRONG.

First they came for the free market economists. Much of the Roman Catholic hierarchy was fine with Marxism, so they said nothing. Then they came for the 2nd Amendment people. The Catholic hierarchy liked government control, so they said, “Throw them in jail!” Then they came for the Tea Party activists. The Catholic Hierarchy didn’t really like the Tea Party, so they said nothing.

Now they are reaping what they sowed. To the Catholic hierarchy, welcome to the wrong side of the tracks. Better late than never, I guess. You are welcome here as long as you start accepting the idea of personal freedom. If not . . . reap it.

[Biggirl]

Rather I see a hugh rebellion happening down the road and it will not be peaceful.

[Biggirl]

You said it, and I have been predicting that there will be a violent blowback.

[ArrogantBustard]

When you (not you personally, I don't know who made that poster) misspell a poster, you only look ridiculous.

It's "Seig Heil".

Please.

[MrB]

I’ve slightly modified it to apply more directly to my “targets”:

sheeperals.

[BobP]

Obama says abortion is important for daughters to fulfill their dreams.

Jackwagon said: "And to those of you who say that I am living in a fantasy land,
I say to you: no! Today I'm announcing myself king. I am the lord of all I survey.
And as for those bullying Republicans... off with their heads!

Obama in a statement released by the White House on Sunday, January 22, 2012 said: ''As we mark the 39th anniversary of Roe v. Wade... we must also continue our efforts to ensure that our daughters have the same rights, freedoms, and opportunities as our sons to fulfill their dreams.''

So by killing babies it fulfills our daughter's dreams? He also said it reflects the broader principles of America. As a state lawmaker in Illinois, he voted four times against legislation to protect the life of a baby that survived a botched abortion.

Obama can only be described as ''pure evil.''

So now we know... 
'CHANGE' =
 ZERO Job Growth
 ZERO Pipelines
 MORE Food Stamps
 MORE Spending
 MORE Debt
 MORE Golf
 MORE Taxes 
 MORE Welfare 
 MORE Abortions
 MORE Regulation
 MORE Government 
 MORE Speeches
 MORE Money Printing
 MORE Vacations
 MORE Porkulus ('Recovery Summer' lost a net 329,000 jobs.)
 MORE Failure
 MORE Mumbo-jumbo
 LESS Coal
 LESS WOOD (Gibson Guitars Strung Up by Feds)

Countdown until Zer0 leaves Office: 354 days as of February 1, 2012.

[Biggirl]

The answer is NO.

As fact, the sales last year of guns was very high.