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"Stimulus" Giveaway to Abortion and Contraception Likely Nixed

By Kathleen Gilbert

WASHINGTON, D.C., January 27, 2009 (LifeSiteNews.com) – Following the revelation that hundreds of millions of dollars of the pending U.S. economic stimulus bill were set aside to fund contraception and the abortion industry, the Obama Administration has quickly called for the removal of the controversial provisions.

According to Fox News, Democratic House leaders have already nixed the "family planning" line items in the $825 billion stimulus plan, although final confirmation is still expected today. 

Reportedly President Obama himself personally called Democratic leaders to urge them to remove the controversial provisions, in order to ensure the support of Republicans, many of whom had objected to spending hundreds of millions on “family planning” during a global economic crisis.

The items had been met with harsh criticism from House Republicans.  "How you can spend hundreds of millions of dollars on contraceptives – how does that stimulate the economy?" House Republican Leader John Boehner (R-OH) said.

"Regardless of where anyone stands on taxpayer-funding for contraceptives and the abortion industry, there is no doubt that this once little-known provision in the congressional Democrats’ spending plan has nothing to do with stimulating the economy and creating more American jobs," he said.

House speaker Nancy Pelosi explained Sunday on ABC's This Week that there would be "no apologies" for provisions designed to indirectly relieve state budgets burdened with children's education and health care expenses.

"Well, the family planning services reduce cost. They reduce cost," said Pelosi.  "The states are in terrible fiscal budget crises now and part of what we do for children's health, education and some of those elements are to help the states meet their financial needs. One of those -- one of the initiatives you mentioned, the contraception, will reduce costs to the states and to the federal government."

Pelosi’s remarks were picked up by the Drudge Report, where they were prominently featured for several days, fueling the growing backlash against the abortion funding. Drudge wrote on the website that Pelosi, “seemed to imply babies are somehow a burden on the treasury."

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