Last night, the U.S. House of Representatives approved an amendment to the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) introduced by pro-life Congresswoman Beth Van Duyne.
This amendment bars the Biden Administration from funding or reimbursing service members for costs associated with abortions. It garnered support from a majority of Republicans but faced opposition from most Democrats, resulting in a vote of 214-207.
Essentially, this amendment overturns the current Pentagon policy of reimbursing travel expenses for service members seeking abortions in states where it’s legal, but where the service member is stationed in a state where babies are protected from abortion.
Some critics see this move as a political tactic that could complicate the passage of the broader defense bill. Conversely, others see it as a necessary measure to prevent taxpayer funds from being allocated to abortion-related expenses.
Carol Tobias, president of National Right to Life, says her group appreciates the amendment and “thanks the House Appropriations Committee for their work fighting back against the Biden administration’s radical abortion agenda.”
“The FY25 Military Construction, Veterans Affairs Appropriations Bill (H.R. 8580) would block the Biden administration from funding elective abortions at Veterans Affairs medical centers with taxpayer dollars. The Biden administration is using every lever of power at its disposal to promote abortion with no regard for the law and with no thought of the innocent unborn children who would die,” she said. “National Right to Life is grateful to Chairman Cole and House appropriators for their work and strongly supports this bill.”
VA clinics across the country should be providing medical services to veterans. Instead, Joe Biden is turning them into abortion centers.
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Biden has been under criticism for some time about his policy of allowing abortions up to birth at taxpayer-funded VA clinics across the country.
Since 1992, the Department of Veterans Affairs has been statutorily prohibited from using taxpayer dollars for abortion. In September 2022, however, the Biden administration ignored the longstanding prohibition and issued a new rule that requires taxpayers to fund abortions for undefined and presumably broad “health” reasons. A department leader estimated about 1,000 unborn babies will be aborted every year under the new rule.
The rule also requires VA hospitals to abort unborn babies “regardless of state restrictions.” In response, attorneys general in 18 states recently sued the Biden administration for violating their laws protecting unborn babies.
Despite the opposition, Biden officials are now making the policy permanent and it was made final in a rule posted in the federal registering March. The VA has already killed dozens of babies in abortions.
There is significant concern that VA doctors and nurses will be pressured to participate in abortions. The Biden rule says VA administrators should allow them to exercise their conscience rights and opt out of participating in an abortions, but that doesn’t mean those rights will actually be respected at every VA clinic or hospital.
SBA Pro-Life America President Marjorie Dannenfelser has condemned the policy.
“The Biden-Harris administration is using the VA for their radical abortion agenda instead of focusing on the pressing needs of wounded, ill and homeless veterans. VA hospitals should not be weaponized by using taxpayer dollars to fund Biden-Harris’ culture wars. The administration is actively violating longstanding law and ignoring the will of the American people who don’t want their hard-earned tax dollars funding abortions,” she told LifeNews.
Biden’s radical abortion policy earned him the scorn of the nation’s Catholic bishops.
Catholic Archbishop Timothy Broglio urged Catholics to stand firm in opposition to two new Biden administration actions that force taxpayers to fund the killing of unborn babies in abortions through the military.
In an April 28 letter, Broglio said he felt “deeply saddened” by a U.S. Senate vote in April that allowed a new rule forcing the Department of Veterans Affairs to provide abortions at its hospitals to go into effect, according to the Catholic News Agency.
Broglio, who leads the Archdiocese of Military Services in the U.S., also condemned a “morally repugnant” new Department of Defense policy that forces taxpayers to pay for military members and their families to travel and receive paid time off for elective abortions.
“The policy and rule, now in effect, are morally repugnant and incongruent with the Gospel which the faithful are commissioned to share throughout the world,” the archbishop wrote. “Moreover, the new DOD policy and VA rule fail to incorporate basic conscience protections, thus creating First Amendment pitfalls for military commanders and VA employees.”
Biden professes to be a devout Catholic, but his actions are the most pro-abortion of any president in U.S. history. As a result, some bishops say he should not receive communion until he repents.
Broglio implored Catholics to advocate for unborn babies in the wake of the Biden administration’s radical pro-abortion policies. He also urged Catholics to support mothers and families in need and show mercy to post-abortive women.
“… human life is a gift to be praised, shared and celebrated joyfully,” he wrote. “Each human person is a treasure, uniquely formed and known by God (see [Psalm] 139:14-16). Each life deserves to be protected and loved, at every stage, from conception to natural death.”
