Church wants government to bar contraception, Pelosi charges
February 24, 2012
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Former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi has charged that the Catholic Church wants the US government to enforce a ban on contraception.
Speaking at an event on a Texas campus, Pelosi—who identifies herself as a Catholic—observed that the overwhelming majority of Catholic women use contraceptives. She drew this conclusion: “So, in practice the Church has not enforced this and now they want the federal government and private insurance to enforce it.”
Pelosi’s statement is grossly (and perhaps deliberately) misleading, since Church leaders in the US have never suggested that the federal government should ban contraception. The US bishops’ conference has objected to a new federal policy that would require all citizens—including those who find contraception morally repugnant—to subsidize contraception.
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Posted by: Brad -
Feb. 26, 2012 2:53 PM ET USA
No Nancy Pelosi - it is the opposite. The Government wants to force Catholics to provide contraception. Here is the proof from a 2/24 Town Hall in Buffalo, NY in which I asked Rep. Kathy Hochul questions on the topic. This is SO important to them that they will trample not only on the Church but on the Constitution to get there job done. They do not represent any American and they take away their freedoms when they ignore the Constitution: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6Kmp-am_FdQ
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Posted by: John J Plick -
Feb. 25, 2012 9:36 PM ET USA
When the American Bishops finally decide to "get out of politics" and do the job of promulgating and enforcing reasonable discipline within the American Catholic Church (which includes Ms Pelosi) than this insanity will cease. A "viewpoint" is anyone's right, but let them do it as a Hindu or a Buddhist, not as a "so-called" Roman Catholic. (Isn't this an obvious thing???)
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Posted by: thx1688 -
Feb. 25, 2012 7:23 PM ET USA
If any Bishop even dared to hint of an excommunication, this is how Pelosi and crew would spin it, "So certain priests and even Bishops raped and molested children, while other priests and Bishops covered it up for decades, which lead to even more cases of serial child rape, and because I believe in coverage for preventive reproductive health care, something many Bishops already allow in their hospitals and universities, I am threatened with excommunication?" and the Bishops well know this.
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Posted by: -
Feb. 24, 2012 9:16 PM ET USA
Cardinal Wuerl, among others, failed to speak out years ago when Nancy Pelosi was being honored in his Washington archdiocese by her alma mater, Trinity College. Will some bishop come out from under his desk now and correct this self-described "Catholic"??
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Posted by: williiam ronner -
Feb. 24, 2012 8:13 PM ET USA
If this woman is allowed to spew this rubbish and denigrate the Catholic Church for political purposes without being disciplined, then no one should be disciplined. Ex-communicate her I say (and pray)!
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Posted by: parochus -
Feb. 24, 2012 8:12 PM ET USA
If the fight on the HHS mandate does not result in some excommunication (Pelosi, Sebelius), then the bishops will have lost the moment internally.
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Posted by: nedinme -
Feb. 24, 2012 6:03 PM ET USA
With all the anti-Catholic retoric from Nancy Pelosi, I was wondering if she still receives the Eucharist? By her own conduct and statements she has excommunicated herself from the Catholic Church and shouldn't call herself Catholic.
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Posted by: unum -
Feb. 24, 2012 6:00 PM ET USA
Cornelius, in San Francisco, a willingness to adhere to the Democrats extreme leftist agenda and a millionaire husband to finance winning reelection campaigns is all it takes. In Congress, all she has to do is last long enough to have seniority and raise enough funds for Democrats along the way so that she is owed enough favors to get elected speaker. Understanding the issues or whether her votes benefit "we the people" is not a factor in our "pay to play" system of government.
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Posted by: AgnesDay -
Feb. 24, 2012 5:47 PM ET USA
This lady has absolutely no shame, but then, she's in politics. What excuse have the generation of bishops who swept their responsibilities under the rug in order to be "pastoral?" The up-and-coming generation of bishops have their work cut out for them. Let's pray they live up to the challenge.
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Posted by: normnuke -
Feb. 24, 2012 3:31 PM ET USA
It's all so clear now. The pope really wants to put a police government over America so he can take away everybody's rubbers. Do liberals beleive this? No, of course not. But they'll pretend to.
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Posted by: -
Feb. 24, 2012 3:24 PM ET USA
This woman really struggles to come to even a BASIC understanding of so many public issues. How does someone rise to her level of power with such a manifest handicap?
