Another Clinton Holdover Re-appointed by Bush
Franz Leichter, who served 30 years in the New York Legislature, has been re-appointed to a position on the Federal Housing Finance Board on which he already serves, having been appointed to the Board by Bill Clinton in 1999. According to the Swarthmore Bulletin (www.Swarthmore.edu/bulletin/archive/99/sept99/profiles.html), Leichter "exhibits pride when speaking of two legislative accomplishments that stand as bookends around his career. In 1970, a bill he introduced made New York the first state to legalize abortion. This was three years before the U.S. Supreme Court's Roe v. Wade decision and an extremely controversial move at the time — especially for a newcomer. 'It was just the right thing to do,' says Leichter of his pioneering effort."
HHS Releases Adoption Awareness Funds
HHS Secretary Tommy Thompson announced on October 15
that $8.6 million in grants have been awarded to four agencies to start a new program to raise awareness about adoption as an option for pregnant women. Grants have been awarded to:
- The National Council for Adoption in Washington, D.C. ($6,112,916)
- Spaulding for Children in Southfield, MI ($1,368,166)
- Harmony Adoptions of Tennessee in Maryville, TN ($626,430)
- Arizona Children’s Association in Tucson, AZ ($ 515,116)
The grant recipients will train health care workers at federally funded health centers and clinics to provide pregnant women with information about adoption, as well as other options, when providing counseling and other services.
HHS Assistant Secretary for Children and Families, Wade F. Horn, Ph.D., said in a statement: “These grants are an important step in making sure that every pregnant woman who is considering her alternatives understands the benefits of adoption.”
Clearly, “health care workers” employed by Planned Parenthood and other taxpayer-funded “family planning” agencies who receive this expensive training will be expected to impart their newfound knowledge to their clients, most often frightened women and girls who are generally counseled to consider abortion as their only option. We hope that along with the money, the strings of accountability and reporting requirements are attached.
China Bans RU-486
The chemical abortion agent RU-486, currently being sold in the United States, is being manufactured in the People’s Republic of China, but the Chinese government has banned its dispensation by pharmacies at home. The Beijing Youth Daily reported on October 10 that the State Drug Administration has banned the sale of abortion pills at pharmacies and said Beijing drugstores had already stopped selling the drugs. Specialists are saying unregulated use of the abortion drug could lead to incomplete abortions, major blood loss, infections and impotence.
