Adam Graham
Romney's sacrifice to the health care god
By Adam Graham
With the Stupak Amendment and the hot topic of abortion funding back in the news, some people are beginning to remember that after RomneyCare was approved in Massachusetts, it'd been appropriate to change the state welcome sign to say, "Welcome to Massachusetts: Home of the $50 Abortion."
Camp Romney responds that critics don't get it (Hat Tip: Hot Air.):
This raises a fundamental question about Mitt Romney for the most committed pro-lifers. I'll daresay that most bloggers and conservative political activists don't fit into that category. Even for many pro-life bloggers who are opposed to abortion, it's not make or break for them. However, for me, it is the issue that I always come back to because it's about our fundamental humanity and we compromise that at our peril.
I assume that Romney is an intelligent and capable man. I'll also allow, for the sake of argument in this post, that his conversion to the pro-life cause was sincere and that he now believes that abortion is the taking of an innocent human life and that the unborn should be protected in law. I also think it's fair to assume that if you subsidize abortion, the number of abortions performed will go up, and with Romney's understanding of economics, he should know this.
That in mind, the question I ask myself is if Governor Romney knew that he would have to create a regime of $50 abortions, why did he push RomneyCare? It wasn't as if this were the legislature's idea and Romney merely decided to work with a Democratic supermajority to make the bill better. He bragged of passing this bill, he owned it and he was responsible for it.
Romney made a calculation, a true Harvard Business School style cost-benefit analysis, that reforming the state's insurance laws and increasing the number of insured was worth a few hundred unborn human lives. He offered up a few hundred abortion as a sacrifice to appease the god of a better health care system. And that Romney's folks even think this is a good excuse is why pro-lifers shouldn't trust them.
Romney understands money, power, and big business. What he doesn't understand is what the pro-life movement is all about. You don't trade lives for money or some other goal.
Sincere pro-life beliefs are in action in the U.S. House right now. Congressman Joseph Cao (R-La.) and Bart Stupak (D-Mi.) both want an Obamacare bill passed. Even with the Stupak Amendment, I disagree with Obamacare, but I think these two gentlemen and the others with them are sincere pro-lifers. They understand there are some things you don't put a price on.
Too bad they didn't teach that at Harvard.
© Adam Graham
March 10, 2010
With the Stupak Amendment and the hot topic of abortion funding back in the news, some people are beginning to remember that after RomneyCare was approved in Massachusetts, it'd been appropriate to change the state welcome sign to say, "Welcome to Massachusetts: Home of the $50 Abortion."
Camp Romney responds that critics don't get it (Hat Tip: Hot Air.):
-
But Romney spokesman Eric Fehrnstrom said his boss had no choice when he pushed his health plan because he had to abide by a Supreme Judicial Court ruling mandating abortion coverage for women getting Medicaid.
"It's not something that Gov. Romney agrees with, but it's longstanding court precedent that predates his administration," Fehrnstrom wrote in an e-mail.
This raises a fundamental question about Mitt Romney for the most committed pro-lifers. I'll daresay that most bloggers and conservative political activists don't fit into that category. Even for many pro-life bloggers who are opposed to abortion, it's not make or break for them. However, for me, it is the issue that I always come back to because it's about our fundamental humanity and we compromise that at our peril.
I assume that Romney is an intelligent and capable man. I'll also allow, for the sake of argument in this post, that his conversion to the pro-life cause was sincere and that he now believes that abortion is the taking of an innocent human life and that the unborn should be protected in law. I also think it's fair to assume that if you subsidize abortion, the number of abortions performed will go up, and with Romney's understanding of economics, he should know this.
That in mind, the question I ask myself is if Governor Romney knew that he would have to create a regime of $50 abortions, why did he push RomneyCare? It wasn't as if this were the legislature's idea and Romney merely decided to work with a Democratic supermajority to make the bill better. He bragged of passing this bill, he owned it and he was responsible for it.
Romney made a calculation, a true Harvard Business School style cost-benefit analysis, that reforming the state's insurance laws and increasing the number of insured was worth a few hundred unborn human lives. He offered up a few hundred abortion as a sacrifice to appease the god of a better health care system. And that Romney's folks even think this is a good excuse is why pro-lifers shouldn't trust them.
Romney understands money, power, and big business. What he doesn't understand is what the pro-life movement is all about. You don't trade lives for money or some other goal.
Sincere pro-life beliefs are in action in the U.S. House right now. Congressman Joseph Cao (R-La.) and Bart Stupak (D-Mi.) both want an Obamacare bill passed. Even with the Stupak Amendment, I disagree with Obamacare, but I think these two gentlemen and the others with them are sincere pro-lifers. They understand there are some things you don't put a price on.
Too bad they didn't teach that at Harvard.
© Adam Graham
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