During the presidential campaign a number of left-leaning pro-life folks (Jim Wallis at Sojourners and Douglas Kmiec come to mind) made the argument that Barack Obama was the real pro-life candidate in the race. Despite his consistent record of support for even the most extreme pro-choice positions, Obama's policies, particularly universal health care, would actually result in fewer abortions because they would give poor women the economic means to see their pregnancies through.
Well, this remains to be seen, but his appointment of Kansas governor Kathleen Sebelius as his Secretary of Health and Human Services is hard to reconcile with the rosy scenarios Sojourners painted for us. My friend Jason links us to an article by George Weigel that illuminates Sebelius' radicalism on this issue. Here's an excerpt:
[Governor Sebelius] has routinely opposed or vetoed several abortion-accountability bills, including medically-supported clinic regulation legislation which she vetoed in both 2003 and 2005. The need for this critical legislation was predicated, in large part, on evidence of shocking conditions in Kansas abortion clinics. For example, two inspections of the same Topeka abortion clinic discovered fetal remains in the same refrigerator as food; a dead rodent in the clinic hallways; overflowing, uncovered disposal bins containing medical waste; unlabeled, pre-drawn syringes with controlled substances in an unlocked refrigerator; improperly labeled and expired medicines; carpeted floors in the surgical procedure room; and visible dirt and disarray throughout the clinic. Dr. Krishna Rajanna, who operated the unsanitary clinic, also consistently violated the practice guidelines for conscious sedation.
Recently, in 2008, she vetoed a measure that would have strengthened the state's existing parental notification law by 1) requiring that any adult accompanying a minor show identification, declare in writing their relationship to the minor, and identify the father of the unborn child; 2) require the minor to show some form of photo identification providing identity and place of residence; and 3) if the minor chooses to seek a judicial waiver, prohibiting any employee of an abortion provider or clinic from assisting her with the requisite court filings and proceedings.
More shocking, however, is her continuing and unyielding support for late-term abortions, including post-viability abortions. Over the past three years she has vetoed measures requiring explicit medical reasons for late-term abortions; requiring abortion providers to report the diagnosis or the nature of the condition which necessitated a post-viability abortion; and permitting injunctive relief for either a completed or about-to-be-performed illegal late-term abortion and adding certain prosecutors (in addition to the Attorney General) to prosecute violations of existing prohibitions on late-term abortions.
Whatever you think about abortion, very few people, other than those who get paid to perform them, wish to see the number of abortions increase. Yet it's hard to see how, with extremists like Sebelius in the president's cabinet, that will be avoided.
RLC