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Good News Tonight: IL FOCA is dead

As H. V. Kaltenborn was wont to say, “There’s good news tonight!” The good news is that the dreaded and evil Illinois Freedom of Choice Act, FOCA, also known as HB 2354, as well as “The Reproductive Health and Access Act,” is dead in this session of the Illinois General Assembly.

RHAA Has Too Few Votes

The ‘Borts-mainly Planned Parenthood and the American Civil Liberties Union-became convinced that they were at least a dozen votes short for passage. Sixty votes were required for passage and they had less than 50-thanks to our hard work and multiple prayers and sacrifices.

It’s possibly a good thing this draconian bill came up during Lent, when we were all making sacrifices and doing more praying anyway.

We surely would not have this victory to lead us into the Holy Week were it not for all of you: participating in email and phone trees, doing petition drives, meeting with your representatives, lobbying in the halls of the Capitol. The Bishops of Illinois also took a leadership role in this battle issuing statements and backing programs that took the bill down to defeat.

Our legislators got the message-the good people of Illinois do not want this to be a flagship state for radical pro-abortion legislation.

As Eric Scheidler says, “This is a great victory for life and a blessing from God”, but warns also “that doesn’t mean we can sit back and take it easy. There is still a lot to do like protesting the scandal of Barack Obama at Notre Dame, defending the health care conscience clause fighting, other bad legislation on both the state and federal levels, and saving the babies scheduled to be killed at the abortion mills around our state. But for just a brief moment, let’s stop and savor this victory.”

“Christus vincit, Christus regnat, Christus imperat.” [Christ conquers, Christ reigns, Christ rules.]

Joe Scheidler To Attend Notre Dame Protest On Palm Sunday

In other news, the tremendous objections to Fr. John Jenkins’ decision to have President Barack Obama speak at the 2009 commencement at the University of Notre Dame May 17, and to receive an honorary law degree, is heating up like you can’t believe. It is surely more vocal and hostile than Fr. Jenkins counted on.

What will eventually take place May 17 is anyone’s guess, but we are getting calls from all over the Midwest to caravan down to the University that day and demonstrate. Many will be at the Grotto of Lourdes to pray, some will hold rosary processions, and many of us will be out on the streets and highways encompassing the university to hold signs and graphic pictures.

We been given enough advice to write ten volumes on “What to do when a Catholic University invites a Militant Pro-abortionist onto its Campus.”

We’ve also been warned that this will be counterproductive, useless, make us look like kooks, turn people off, ruin the kids graduation and much more. We think it will send a message that Notre Dame should never again honor a baby-killer.

Ann and I are going down to Notre Dame this Sunday to attend Mass in the Basilica and then take part in a prayerful protest on the steps of the Main Building and meet the people who care about Notre Dame. We’ll have a report on this Action News Line on Tuesday. Call it.

Meanwhile, lots going on outside the abortion mills, in the halls of Congress and in the world at large. It’s a great and scary time to be alive, but try to relish it. As the old commercial said, “We only go around once.” This is that once, and we’ll have all eternity to figure out why we were called to this hour. God bless you.

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