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April 27, 2020 (LifeSiteNews) – Catholic leaders in Michigan are speaking out forcefully against Democrat Gov. Gretchen Whitmer’s declaration that the abortion industry should be exempt from the sacrifices made by legitimate medical fields because it is “life-sustaining.”

“A woman’s health care, her whole future, her ability to decide if and when she starts a family is not an election, it is fundamental to her life,” Whitmer claimed during an interview earlier this month. “It is life sustaining and it’s something that government should not be getting in the middle of. ”

The exception, reflective of debates going across multiple states during the COVID-19 crisis, flies in the face of medical guidance that says healthcare facilities should reschedule non-urgent appointments and elective procedures, both to limit the spread of the virus and to free up time and resources to focus on infected patients. 

In response, the Michigan Catholic Conference and Bishop David Walkowiak of the Grand Rapids Diocese have issued statements stressing that abortion is anything but life-sustaining.

“Two persons enter an abortion clinic. Only one comes out,” Walkowiak said. “For those of us in Michigan who value life, the way forward remains the same. We must let our elected representatives know our opinions on this matter and do all that we can to explain to them why the Church teaches about the sanctity of life as she does.”

The bishop added that the church’s “efforts and resources remain available to all families,” including low-income mothers struggling with pregnancy.

The Conference’s statement, meanwhile, says that Whitmer’s remarks “indicate how easily candidates for higher office are pushed into a dark corner by the abortion industry,” and that her logic “is removed from reality: night is not day; war is not peace.”

“We call on Governor Whitmer to pause and reflect on the wounds her comments have created for countless people in this state and elsewhere,” the Conference declared. “We all need the governor’s sole focus right now to be on the needs of the people of Michigan, not the demands of the abortion industry.”

PETITION: Support pro-lifers threatened and arrested for praying outside of abortion facilities Sign the petition here.

By the time of her abortion comments, Whitmer had already become one of the most infamous governors in the nation for the scope of the restrictions she has imposed, from ordering grocery stores to stop selling plants and seeds (even as lottery tickets remain available) to prohibiting travel between two private residences owned by the same individual. Her lockdown provoked a protest at the state capitol drawing thousands of angry Michiganders, and two federal lawsuits asserting violations of Americans’ constitutional rights.

Most recently, Whitmer extended her stay-at-home order until (at least) May 15 while lifting some restrictions on businesses and outdoor activities. She also tried unsuccessfully to get the legislature to extend her emergency powers by 70 days.

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