FRC’s new ad, “Inheritance of Debt”:

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Be sure to tune in tonight at 8:30 p.m. EST for the live video webcast of “Government Takeover of Health Care: Counting the Cost.” We’ve invited Members of Congress, financial analysts, and FRC policy experts to join us live at our Washington, D.C. headquarters to help us assess this bill as Congress prepares to vote this week.

Participants include:

• Host: Tony Perkins, President, FRC Action
• Congresswoman Michele Bachmann (R-Minn.)
• Congressman Charles Boustany, M.D. (R-La.)
• Congressman Mike Pence (R-Ind.)
• Douglas Johnson, Legislative Director, National Right to Life
• Karen Steward, Research Analyst, The Polling Company
• Tim Wildmon, President, American Family Association
• Bryan Fischer, Director of Issue Analysis, American Family Association
• Richard Scott, Chairman, Conservatives for Patients’ Rights, Conservatives for Patients Rights
• Phil Kerpen, Policy Director, Americans for Prosperity
• Tom McClusky, Senior Vice President, FRC Action
• David Christensen, Senior Director of Congressional Affairs, Family Research Council
• Dr. David Prentice, Senior Fellow for Life Sciences, Center for Human Life and Bioethics, Family Research Council
• Cathy Ruse, Senior Fellow, Legal Studies, Family Research Council

An archive of the webcast will be available following the event.

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Here’s some articles of interest this morning.

• “Catania to introduce same-sex marriage bill,” Melissa Castro, Washington Business Journal
• “To heaven from Times Square,” Julia Duin, The Washington Times
• “Abortion and Health Care Reform,” Editorial, New York Times
• “Chicago City Council panel backs plan to limit anti-abortion activists,” Hal Dardick, Chicago Tribune
• “Senate committee restores $50 million in abstinence ed funding,” Catholic News Agency
• “When is a cross not a Christian symbol?,” Erwin Chemerinsky and Joseph Infranco, Los Angeles Times
• “‘Imagine No Religion’ Billboards Hit Detroit,” Jennifer Riley, The Christian Post
• “Spiritual spirit squad squelched,” Pete Chagnon, OneNewsNow.com
• “Planned Parenthood Says Pro-Lifers Winning, Misleads on Insurance, Abortion,” Steven Ertelt, LifeNews.com
• “Personal Stories Reveal How Pregnancy Resource Centers Empower Women, Help Families,” Penny Starr, CNSNews.com
• “Most Stay-at-Home Moms Start That Way, Study Finds,” Donna St. George, The Washington Post

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Here’s something for your news cravings today.

• “Commentary: States should decide on gay marriage,” Jared Polis, CNN (September 24, 2009)
• “Tight schedule on move to block Ariz. abortion law,” Paul Davenport, Associated Press (September 23, 2009)
• “Study confirms most Americans want health care change but not abortion funding,” Catholic News Agency (September 23, 2009)
• “Britain To Clarify Policy on Euthanasia,” Karla Adam, The Washington Post (September 23, 2009)
• “Christian Leaders Urge Sanctions Against Iran,” Angela Abbamonte, Religion News Service (September 23, 2009)
• “‘Our Time has Come’ Or Has It?,” Ken Blackwell, American Thinker (September 24, 2009)
• “Group aims to reverse S.D. ban on embryonic stem cell research,” Katy Urban, KOTA News (September 23, 2009)
• “High-schoolers get stem cell lesson,” Carolyn Johnson, KGO-San Francisco (September 23, 2009)
• Fox News (September 24, 2009)
• “Both Sides On Defensive In Maine Marriage Debate,” WMTW (September 24, 2009)
• “No excuses,” Alisa Harris, WORLD Magazine (September 26, 2009)

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Here are some of the highlights from the FRCAction Health Care Townhall Webcast on Thursday, September 10, 2009.

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[Script follows after the jump]

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Here’s the full program of last night’s FRC Action webcast:

If you are reading this in an RSS Reader, you may need to click through to the post to view.

Participants:

• Tony Perkins, President, FRC Action
• Senator Jim DeMint (R-S.C.)
• House Republican Leader John Boehner (R-Ohio)
• Rep. Chris Smith (R-N.J.)
• Ken Blackwell, former Ohio Secretary of State
• Doug Johnson, National Right to Life Committee
• Bishop Harry Jackson, Senior Pastor, Hope Christian Church
• Wesley J. Smith, Senior Fellow in Human Rights & Bioethics, Discovery Institute
• Mat Staver, Liberty Counsel
• Mark Kellen, M.D., President, Association of American Physicians and Surgeons
• Kathryn Serkes, Association of American Physicians and Surgeons
• Dr. David Prentice, FRC Senior Fellow for Life Sciences, FRC
• David Christensen, Senior Director for Congressional Affairs, FRC
• Tom McClusky, Senior Vice President, FRC Action

Resources mentioned:

• The Capps Abortion Amendment To Affordable Health Choices Act
• Family Coverage: An alternative to the President’s Plan
• Q & A on Health Care
• Ten Reasons Rationing is Included in the Health Care Bill
• Personal Faith, Public Policy by Tony Perkins and Bishop Harry Jackson, Jr.
• Saving Freedom, by Senator Jim DeMint
• More Health Care Resources…

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Here’s the press release fro FRC Action with information on tonight’s live webcast on health care reform:

WASHINGTON, D.C. – On Thursday, September 10 at 8:30 pm ET, FRC Action, the legislative lobbying arm of Family Research Council, will host a special one hour “National Townhall on Health Care Reform” Webcast. FRC Action President Tony Perkins will be joined by Congressional leaders and policy experts to discuss the moral, ethical, and financial dangers of President Obama’s health care plan.

Webcast viewers will be able to:

* get their questions answered.
* dissect the dangers inherent in the President’s proposed plan.
* and examine the life and death implications this will have for themselves and their loved ones

Who: Tony Perkins, President, FRC Action
Senator Jim DeMint (R-SC)
House Republican Leader John Boehner (R-OH)
Rep. Charles Boustany (R-LA)
Rep. Chris Smith (R-NJ)
Ken Blackwell, former Ohio Secretary of State
Doug Johnson, National Right to Life Committee
Cathy Ruse, Senior Fellow for Legal Studies, Family Research Council
Bishop Harry Jackson, Senior Pastor, Hope Christian Church
Wesley J. Smith, renowned ethicist
Mat Staver, Liberty Counsel
Dr. David Prentice, Senior Fellow for Life Sciences, Family Research Council
Tom McClusky, Senior Vice President, FRC Action

Where: www.frcaction.org/webcast

What: “National Townhall on Health Care Reform”

When: Thursday, September 10 at 8:30pm ET

Register for the webcast here.

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…is happening at FRC Action’s The Cloakroom. What are you waiting for? Go now.

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Here’s some news articles of interest to help kick off Labor Day weekend.

• “Boston’s Roman Catholic Cardinal Says He Confronted Obama about Abortion in Health Care Plan at Ted Kennedy’s Funeral,” Terence P. Jeffrey, CNSNews.com
• “Gay Ice Cream?,” Elisabeth Meinecke, Human Events
• “Montana AG approves language for abortion restriction initiative,” Montana’s News Station.com
• “Jack Kevorkian Promotes Euthanasia Again, Al Pacino HBO Movie Out Next Year,” Steven Ertelt, LifeNews.com
• “What Would Jesus Insure?,” Joseph Loconte, The Weekly Standard
• “Muslim teen fears for life after changing religion,” John Couwels, CNN
• “R-71 names still under wraps as judge weighs case,” Rachel La Corte, Seattle Times
• “Reformed Body Says Lutheran Gay Vote Does Not Impair Partnership,” Lillian Kwon, The Christian Post
• “Common grace,” Marcia Segelstein, WORLD Magazine
• “Two Huge Stem Cell Trials Are In The Works. Guess Which Type,” William Teach, Right Wing News
• “Missing Critical Thinking,” Shane Vander Hart, Caffeinated Thoughts

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Yesterday, FRC President Tony Perkins appeared on MSNBC’s The Ed Show to debate health care reform with the show host, Ed Schultz.

Click on the play button to watch the video.

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President Obama has accused FRC and others who are opposing the government takeover of health care of breaking the 9th commandment. Listen to this (clip).

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Here’s some news articles of interest for you to ponder this morning.

• “Clinical Trials Are Testing Stem Cells as Heart Failure Treatment,” Sarah Baldauf, U.S. News & World Report (August 18, 2009)

“Researchers’ significant interest in using stem cells to treat heart failure arises, in part, because the disease is so prevalent. The American Heart Association estimates 5.7 million Americans live with the disease and 670,000 new cases are diagnosed annually. “When you put [stem cells] into a heart, some can differentiate to become blood vessel and others to become heart muscle cells,” explains James Willerson, president of the Texas Heart Institute in Houston and a principal investigator of a separate, National Institutes of Health-sponsored stem cell trial for heart failure. It is important, he says, that stem cells also “have substances that recruit other cells and promote life.” This combination holds incredibly powerful potential for not only rejuvenating but rebuilding organs and tissue and turning back the clock for ailing patients. Willerson is optimistic about the therapeutic future of stem cells, which can be extracted from fat cells, hair cells, and other diverse cell types. “I believe we will be able to regenerate the whole heart of a human being with stem cells,” he says.”

• “Medical Groups Promoted HPV Vaccine Using Drug Company Money,” Rob Stein, The Washington Post (August 18, 2009)
• “DART Driver Refused Bus With Atheist Sign,” KCCI-8 Des Moines (August 18, 2009)

“Des Moines Area Regional Transit confirms a driver refused to drive a bus with an atheist advertisement Monday.”

• “Poll: Majority of Americans Understand Health Care Bills Mean Abortion Funding,” Steven Ertelt, LifeNews.com (August 19, 2009)

“The pro-life movement has been working overtime to educate Americans about the fact that the health care bills in Congress would result in massive abortion funding. Despite a slew of mainstream media stories to the contrary, the public appears to have received the message.

A new NBC/Wall Street Journal poll released yesterday shows a majority of Americans agreed that the health care bills “will likely use taxpayer dollars to pay for women to have abortions.”

The poll found 50 percent agreed that is true while 37 percent of Americans don’t believe that is likely.”

• “Law Requiring Ultrasounds for Abortions Is Struck Down,” Kari Lydersen, The Washington Post (August 18, 2009)

“An Oklahoma judge decided Tuesday that doctors do not need to perform ultrasounds and offer women detailed information about the tests before performing abortions, striking down the strictest such law in the country.”

• “Study Using Embryonic Stem Cells Is Delayed,” Bloomberg News (August 19, 2009)

“The Geron Corporation said on Tuesday that regulators had held up its study of a therapy for injured spinal cords before even one patient could be enrolled, delaying the first human trial using embryonic stem cells.”

• “Christian Law Firm Fights ‘Ridiculous’ Criminal Charges Against School Officials,” Nathan Black, The Christian Post (August 18, 2009)

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Here’s some news articles of particular interest.

• According to the New York Times, former President Bill Clinton defends end-of-life counseling that is included in the health care reform plan.
• Steven Ertelt of LifeNews.com has a great article about a CDC study that shows teen abortion rates are lower in states that accept abstinence funding.
• Cleveland is becoming a leader in adult stem cell research. Continue reading the article from The Plain Dealer.
• David French of Phi Beta Cons reported Tuesday that the EEOC went after Belmont Abbey College in North Carolina for refusing to cover oral contraceptives in its employer provided health insurance.
• Prisoners in the Rappahannock Regional Jail in Virginia will now be allowed to receive religious mail, after the ACLU sent a letter to officials demanding that these letters containing biblical passages be distributed, as The Christian Post reports.

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(Transcript after the jump)

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Patients deemed “terminally ill” by the state of Oregon are getting the sense that death is cheaper than saving their lives. Since Oregon offers a state-run health care plan, those who are terminally ill have been told that their treatments have been denied, but that they would be covered for assisted suicide.

Fox News aired a series called “America’s Future,” which is looking at the challenges we face in the 21^st Century. One series featured a man from Oregon, who was denied chemotherapy treatment and was offered physician assisted suicide instead.

“Oregon doesn’t cover life-prolonging treatment unless there is better than a 5 percent chance it will help the patients live for five more years — but it covers doctor-assisted suicide, defining it as a means of providing comfort, no different from hospice care or pain medication.

“It’s chilling when you think about it,” said Dr. William Toffler, a professor of family medicine at Oregon Health & Science University. “It absolutely conveys to the patient that continued living isn’t worthwhile.”

According to KATU, another cancer patient from Oregon shares a similar story, as she was being denied coverage for Tarceva, a powerful chemotherapy drug. Oregon’s health care plan offered her physician assisted suicide as well.

Since Oregon’s health care plan was created 15 years ago, this was prior to the advent of new life saving medicines. Instead of prolonging the life of a terminally ill cancer patient, Oregon is now sentencing them to death by denying coverage. If President Obama’s health care plan is passed, this will be the same message that millions across the country could be hearing.

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Here’s what we are reading today.

• “Councilmen waver on new state gay marriage bill,” Jenna Chandler, The Porterville Recorder (July 22, 2009)
• “Abortion Opponents Criticize Health Reform Bills,” Dan Eggen and Rob Stein, The Washington Post (July 22, 2009)

“President Obama, who has vowed to find common ground on culture-war issues, finds himself in the middle of a classic Washington dispute over abortion that is further undermining support among conservative Democrats for his ambitious health-care reform efforts.”

• “Taxpayer-Funded Abortion Is Not Health-Care Reform,” John Boehner, National Review (July 23, 2009)

“The Obama administration contends the urgent deadline is necessitated by the suffering of American families who have waited too long for Congress to act to address the high cost of health care. But according to the independent Congressional Budget Office (CBO), the bill the president supports won’t lower health-care costs; it will increase them. And as the veteran political operatives in the Obama White House well know, the frantic timetable conveniently leaves precious little time for the American people to know what’s actually in the bill.”

• “Obama Staffer Speaks at Planned Parenthood Event, Urges Pro-Abortion Lobbying,” Steven Ertelt, LifeNews.com (July 23, 2009)

“A top official with the administration of pro-abortion President Barack Obama spoke to gathering of Planned Parenthood activists last week. There, she promised leaders of the abortion business that Obama is a pro-abortion president and urged them to continue their pro-abortion lobbying efforts.”

• “Taliban cracking down on Christians,” Allie Martin, OneNewsNow (July 23, 2009)

“According to Open Doors USA, raids against Christians, carried out by the Taliban, have increased throughout Pakistan and Afghanistan. Dr. Carl Moeller, president of Open Doors USA, says the Taliban does not tolerate anyone who thinks or believes differently than they do. Christians are being evicted from their homes, he says, and some are being forced to convert to Islam or pay special taxes in exchange for protection.”

• “Non-embryonic stem cells pass major hurdle in mice,” Seth Borenstein, Associated Press (July 23, 2009)

“Two teams of Chinese scientists have made a major advance in mice in the development of a new kind of stem cell that doesn’t involve destroying embryos.

Those cells are derived from ordinary skin cells, and when they were created two years ago from human skin and genetically reprogrammed, it was hailed as a breakthrough. But questions remained whether they could act as chameleon-like as embryonic stem cells and morph into any cell type in the body.”

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Here’s what we are reading today.

• “Students Embed Stem Cells in Sutures to Enhance Healing,” PhysOrg.com (July 20, 2009)

“Johns Hopkins biomedical engineering students have demonstrated a practical way to embed a patient’s own adult stem cells in the surgical thread that doctors use to repair serious orthopedic injuries such as ruptured tendons. The goal, the students said, is to enhance healing and reduce the likelihood of re-injury without changing the surgical procedure itself.”

• “Mayo Clinic calls House plan bad medicine,” Christina Bellantoni and Jennifer Haberkorn, The Washington Times (July 21, 2009)

“A world-renowned clinic that President Obama held up as an example of good medicine said Monday that the American people would be “losers” under the House’s health care proposal, joining the growing chorus of critics the Obama administration is trying to fend off as the debate intensifies from Capitol Hill to Main Street.”

• “Neural stem cells offer potential treatment for Alzheimer’s disease,” PhysOrg.com (July 20, 2009)

“If you look at Alzheimer’s, it’s not the plaques and tangles that correlate best with dementia; it’s the loss of synapses – connections between neurons,” Blurton-Jones said. “The neural stem cells were helping the brain form new synapses and nursing the injured neurons back to health.”

• “Health Bill Might Direct Tax Money to Abortion,” Robert Pear and Adam Liptak, The New York Times (July 19, 2009)

“Peter R. Orszag, the White House budget director, asked whether he was prepared to say that “no taxpayer money will go to pay for abortions,” answered: “I am not prepared to say explicitly that right now. It’s obviously a controversial issue, and it’s one of the questions that is playing out in this debate.”

• “Mail policy questioned at jail,” Tracy Bell, Stafford County Sun (July 21, 2009)

“The American Civil Liberties Union of Virginia in conjunction with several other ally groups, late last week demanded that officials at the Rappahannock Regional Jail immediately cease censoring religious material sent to prisoners.”

• “Young Americans plan to be married,” Cheryl Wetzstein, The Washington Times (July 19, 2009)

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As the health care debate heats up it is hard to get straightforward, understandable information on the nuts and bolts of how Obamacare will operate.  Big picture, no trees, no weeds. That’s what we need.  Well, there was an extremely powerful eight minute interview on Mark Levin’s radio show last Friday (July 17, 2009) that you must listen to.  (We make it easy to do so below.)

Mark Levin interviewed Betsy McCaughey, adjunct fellow at the Hudson Institute and the chairman and founder of the Committee to Reduce Infection Deaths, about the Obama Administration’s health care plan.  She clearly and frighteningly describes provisions of the current House bill that will reduce care for the elderly and compel all programs to provide regimented, HMO-style care for the rest of us.  (FYI, McCaughey served also as the Lt. Governor of New York from Jan. 1995 to Dec. 1998.)

If you would like to listen we are going to provide two ways to do so. First, you can click here and listen or listen below to the eight minute interview using the Family Research Council website:

We want to heartily thank “The Mark Levin Show” for most graciously giving FRC permission to play the audio from our website.

You can listen or download the entire Friday, July 17, 2009 program from Mark Levin’s website – this is his “Audio” webpage.  Once on the Audio page, do the following: 1) click on “07/17 The Mark Levin Show;” and, 2) start the player at 8 minutes, 45 seconds.

I believe this audio will sharpen your focus on the key features of the health bill.

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On this week’s Washington Watch radio program, FRC President Tony Perkins interviewed Senator Orrin Hatch (R – Utah) about the president’s proposed heath care overhaul.

You can find the audio of the interview here, but below is a transcript:

TONY PERKINS:  Well, there is no shortage of problems with the Obama administration’s bill on healthcare reform.  From the massive cost to the accelerated timetable, I mean this thing is being pushed through.  And this is a massive change in public policy and it is vastly expensive.  And consider, this is probably about 16% or 17% of the nation’s economy and we’re talking about changing this overnight.  And another concern for many Americans is the fact that this issue, if it goes through as it is presently proposed, taxpayers will be forced to fund abortion in this country for the first time in over three decades.  And one of the Senators that’s been leading the charge on this to make sure that Americans are not brought into the process of funding abortion is Senator Orin Hatch of Utah, who introduced an amendment last week to keep abortion out.  His amendment was defeated by one vote but, he continues to bring attention to this issue and other aspects of healthcare reform. And he joins me now by phone from Capitol Hill. Senator, thanks for joining us.

SENATOR HATCH:  Well, it is nice to be with you.  This is a crucial time for our country because what they are trying to do on healthcare.

TONY PERKINS:  Not only that but you have been involved in the hearings for the Supreme Court nominee Sonya Sotomayor.  I mean, you have been running back and forth. I mean they are intent on getting something out on this healthcare, are they not?

SENATOR HATCH:  Well, they are.  You know, they are talking about a bill in the House that will be well over a trillion dollars.  Well, frankly, when you get rid of the budget gimmicks, it is one and a half trillion to two trillion dollars additional on top of the two and a half trillion dollars we’re already spending on healthcare  in this country.  And they don’t seem to care about how much it is going to cost.  It’s just awful.  And they use budget gimmicks to try to get the…, they’re trying to pretend that the costs are really lower.  But they’re not lower.

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