Defunding Planned Parenthood
Last night state legislators passed a budget provision that requires Arizona’s Department of Health Services to apply to be the distributer of Title X funding. Currently, Arizona Family Health Partnerships receive the federal money and distribute it to health centers, including Planned Parenthood.
If the federal government awards the grant to the Arizona Department of Health Services in the future, the state will then award the grants to health centers and not to abortion providers like Planned Parenthood.
Title X funding is taxpayer money allocated for family planning services for low-income families. The money could be going to any of the 183 community health centers throughout the state that do not offer abortions, but provide even more services than the 10 Planned Parenthood clinics in Arizona.
Read CAP’s Fact Sheet on Title X funding here.
Read my statement on passage here.
Affirming the First Amendment
President Trump took the first step yesterday in signing an executive order affirming the First Amendment’s guarantee for all Americans to be able to freely exercise their religious beliefs.
As always, hysteria erupted over what the President had done – and not done.
I encourage you to read the executive order for yourself here.
Then read my statement here.
Our focus and goal remains resolute: Both executive and congressional action is necessary to fully ensure that all are free to live and work according to their beliefs without threat of government coercion. Without such protections, governments have forced and will continue to coerce businesses and individuals to violate their deeply held beliefs or face losing their livelihoods.
Congress and abortion funding
Trying to follow the ins and outs of what Congress is doing to defund Planned Parenthood, “repeal and replace” Obamacare, and a host of other issues?
I suggest subscribing to email updates from our friends at Family Research Council (FRC).
Read the FRC analysis on this week’s omnibus spending bill here.
Read the FRC analysis on the health care replacement bill here.
Timing is everything
President Trump’s signing of the religious freedom executive order coincided with the 66th annual National Day of Prayer. This year’s theme was from Daniel 9:19, “For your great name’s sake! Hear us… forgive us… heal us!” If you want to read more about the event’s theme and verse, click here.
President Trump’s National Day of Prayer proclamation included strong religious freedom language. In part he wrote, “All human beings have the right, not only to pray and worship according to their consciences, but to practice their faith in their homes, schools, charities, and businesses in private and in the public square free from government coercion, discrimination, or persecution.”
Read the proclamation here.
May we all be committed to praying regularly for our elected officials and for public policy that promoted and defends foundational principles of life, marriage and family, and religious freedom.