Thank your Catholic senators for the end of the Mexico City policy

By Phil Lawler ( bio - articles - email ) | Jan 29, 2009

 When President Obama ended the "Mexico City policy" he cleared the way for the use of American taxpayers' dollars to promote and subsidize abortion in other countries. The President took that action by himself, by means of an executive order.

However, Congress had an opportunity to reverse the President's awful decision. Senator Mel Martinez of Florida promptly offered an amendment to pending legislation that would have, in effect, reinstated the Mexico City policy. Unfortunately the Martinez amendment was defeated in a 60- 37 Senate vote.

Now let's take a closer look at that vote.

There are 25 Catholics in the US Senate. Only 6 of them voted in favor of the Martinez amendment. One (Kennedy) was absent, and the other 18 voted in favor of exporting abortion. 

If all the Catholic senators had cast pro-life votes, the Martinez amendment would have passed by a comfortable 55-42 margin, and the Mexico City policy might have been revived.