What We're Reading - June 19
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Good morning, everyone! Nationally, people are still talking about the U.S. Conference of Mayors resolution to support women’s health and defend Planned Parenthood health centers. In Nevada, many are celebrating the news that a “personhood” ballot initiative failed to get the required number of signatures to qualify for the November ballot. Here’s what else we’re reading this morning…
Many speculate on the politics involved in the Supreme Court’s decision on the Affordable Care Act. “Supreme Court review of health care under microscope (and stopwatch)”—“When the ruling arrives, the study will provide researchers with another piece of evidence as they try to answer an old question: how much of a justice’s actions at oral argument are predictive of his or her decision, and how much of it is playing devil’s advocate. Fans of the health-care act must hope that it is the latter. The two justices who are thought to be most in play in deciding whether the law is a constitutional exercise of Congress’ power are Justice Anthony M. Kennedy and Chief Justice John G. Roberts Jr. Both were overwhelmingly skeptical of the law in their questioning, Malphurs found. Kennedy, considered the pivotal justice in almost all of the court’s ideological conflicts, used about three-quarters of his questions and comments to challenge Solicitor General Donald B. Verrilli Jr. and the other government lawyers defending the law. Roberts challenged the pro-health-care-law position 44 times during the hearings, compared with 14 statements or questions that Malphurs deemed confrontational to those opposing the law. Overall, each side received about the same number of challenging statements and questions from the bench. But that is only because the ideological wings of the court played their expected parts.”
As it continues to wade into secular politics, at what point does the Catholic Church become more than just a religious institution? “The Bishops' Politics: Why Are Women's Health and Lives Subject to The Catholic Lobby?”—“Many of the religions practiced in the United States support a woman’s right to access reproductive health care, including abortion and contraception, as a matter of free exercise of conscience. The Catholic Church is the one of the few, if not the only religion that is fundamentally antithetical to any notion of women's reproductive health, freedom, and justice. Unfortunately, the Catholic Church as represented by the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops, more than any other, directly influences American politics… Given that the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops and organizations like the Catholic Health Association play a critical role in American politics, the question becomes, then, for how much longer are we going to permit religion to have a place in our political discourse? And, at what point does the health and safety of American women become paramount to any issues of religious conscience? There is a clear and present danger that the health of American women – especially the health of minority and low-income women – will be subject to the political whims of the Catholic Church. One stark example of this unholy union of political and religion is the increasing number of mergers between secular and Catholic hospitals. Hospitals throughout the country are struggling to remain solvent. As hospitals face increasing financial difficulty, mergers between secular and Catholic hospitals seem to be an oasis in a desert plagued by financial uncertainty. Certainly, such mergers seem to be a solution more desirable than closing hospitals. But at what cost? “
After banning two female state representatives from speaking on the State House floor about women’s health issues, Michigan women are asking: is this what a Romney presidency would look like? “Democrats seize on abortion issue before Mitt Romney's visit to Michigan”—“LANSING, MI - A day before Republican Mitt Romney campaigns in Michigan, Democrats called him out over the abortion issue, which exploded here last week when a speaking ban was placed on two female state lawmakers after debate on anti-abortion legislation. ‘Is he going to turn his back on Michigan women like his party has done in the last couple weeks?’ said state Sen. Gretchen Whitmer, D-East Lansing. ‘Is he going to stand up to the extremists in his own party who just passed the most restrictive anti-choice bill in the country? I'm not optimistic.... We've seen time and time again that Mitt Romney is not willing to stand up for Michigan.’ Whitmer spoke at a ‘Romney Economics: The Middle Class Under the Bus’ stop in Lansing. Organized by the Democratic National Committee, the event was meant to get ahead of the GOP presidential candidate's own bus tour stops in Frankenmuth, DeWitt and Holland on Tuesday.”
