It hasn’t made much national news, but the Illinois House Bill 2354 was defeated today, without even enough support to be brought up for a house vote. Known as “Illinois FOCA,” the bill would have made abortion a fundamental right, outlawed parental notification for minors, expanded public funding for abortion, removed the conscience clause for doctors and nurses who oppose abortion, and mandate comprehensive sex education in every public school. In many ways, it was a test case for the national FOCA. Its leading supporters were, unsurprisingly, Planned Parenthood and the ACLU.
The victory is temporary in a sense, since the bill is simply shelved for the year. But the defeat of the bill is a result of many people speaking with one voice, including leadership from Illinois bishops. See below the video from Cardinal George.
April 3, 2009 at 11:27 pm
Thanks for the good news. I need to see how my state representaive did with this bill. We need to be grateful to God because we have many apostate Catholic politicians in Illinois.
Some may have remembered where their first loyalty belongs today. For those we say especially, “Thanks and God bless you!”
April 4, 2009 at 12:48 am
Praise God.
April 5, 2009 at 1:49 am
A small victory maybe, but I think this is a good sign. IL is very liberal and has the highest abortion rate in the midwest (last time I checked the stats, anyway), so if they can’t get this junk passed there, I see it as a good sign.
Praise God!