The administration is also “lavishly” funding embryo-destroying stem cell research, he added, and organizations including Planned Parenthood are now titled “partners” of the U.S. government.
In addition, Congressman Smith warned, the pro-life movement is being threatened by the president’s “systematic undermining of conscience protections.”
He pointed to a federal contraception mandate that was finalized by the Health and Human Services Department on Jan. 20, as one of those actions by the Obama administration that is targeting people with pro-life convictions.
HHS Secretary Kathleen Sebelius said on Jan. 20 that the administration would not expand a religious exemption for employers who object to a requirement that insurance plans cover contraception as part of “preventative services.” The policy requires free coverage for sterilization and contraception, including some drugs that can cause abortions.
“Everyone must comply regardless of moral objections or religious tenets simply because Obama says so,” Rep. Smith said.
He also noted that the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops was recently “thrown out” of a federal grant program to aid human trafficking victims because it would not offer referrals for abortion and contraception.
The congressman emphasized the importance of the 2012 presidential election and said that if President Obama is elected to a second term, he will work “aggressively” to force “conformity and complicity” on the matter of abortion.
“No one who values life can sit this one out,” he said.
Michelle La Rosa is deputy editor-in-chief of Catholic News Agency. She has worked for CNA since 2011. She studied political philosophy and journalism at the University of Dallas.