“Lauding pro-abortion Catholics such as Gov. Sebelius is an entirely individual action that does not necessarily reflect on their Catholic employers, but it does highlight the problem of Catholic universities being used as platforms for pro-abortion politics. Moreover, it speaks to the need for careful faculty hiring that considers the moral judgment and example of professors.”
The pro-Sebelius open statement, organized by the pro-Obama group Catholics United, cites Sebelius’ “successful efforts at reducing abortion.” Sebelius has said that she personally believes abortion is wrong.
However, Kathleen Sebelius vetoed pro-life legislation on four separate occasions as governor of Kansas. After she vetoed the pro-life Comprehensive Abortion Reform Act in April 2008, Bishop Joseph Naumann told the Los Angeles Times that she “should stop receiving Communion until she publicly repudiates her support of abortion.”
According to Robert Novak in a May 2008 article entitled “A Vice President for Abortion”, Sebelius was “allied with the aggressive Kansas branch of Planned Parenthood in a bitter struggle with anti-abortion activist District Attorney Phill Kline. There is substantial evidence she has been involved in laundering abortion industry money for distribution to Kansas Democrats. Kansas is the fiercest state battleground for abortion wars, making Kathleen Sebelius the national pro-choice poster girl.” Novak also writes, “In May 2007, Sebelius was featured at a Planned Parenthood fundraiser in Kansas City, Mo.”
“Given Gov. Sebelius’s abortion record and the concerns of her own bishop, it is sad that some of her strongest supporters are speaking out from their platforms on Catholic campuses,” noted Reilly.
This is especially true given the important Catholic values that may very well come under assault by the Obama Administration. For instance, in an article published on the website of First Things, papal biographer George Weigel noted that the next Secretary of HHS will shape key policy on a number of questions:
“Will conscience-rights protection for pro-life physicians and health-care workers be sustained, amended, or eliminated? Will over-the-counter abortifacients in the guise of ‘Plan B’ contraceptives be available to minors without a doctor’s prescription or counsel? Will the government continue to sanction the sale and use of RU-486, the ‘abortion pill’ that has killed seven women since the Clinton administration rammed its approval through the Food and Drug Administration shortly before leaving office?”
Catholic scholars who signed the statement, with their Jesuit Catholic university affiliations, include:
Lisa Sowle Cahill – Boston College
Julia Dowd – University of San FranciscoFr. David Hollenbach, S.J. – Boston College
Delores Leckey – Georgetown University (Woodstock Theological Center fellow)
Fr. Thomas Massaro, S.J. – Boston CollegeVincent Miller – Georgetown University
David O’Brien – College of the Holy CrossFr. Thomas Reese, S. J. – Georgetown University (Woodstock Theological Center fellow)
Link (here) to the full Cardinal Newman Society article.
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