Monthly Archives: August 2020

Many Voices, One Undeniable Truth

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by Bonnie Finnerty, Education Director

A former abortion worker, a religious sister, and a Chinese exile all walk into a political convention.

And history was made.

Never before has a political convention so boldly proclaimed a pro-life message. 

Never before have such a diverse group of speakers united to proclaim what should be a self-evident truth in the United States of America:

Life is not a privilege granted by government but a right endowed to us by our Creator.

Tragically that right that has been denied to over 61 million pre-born American lives since 1973.

While too many in our country overlook the fundamental and inalienable right to life, those who spoke at the RNC do not, and they would not be silenced.

In the face of cancel culture, a hostile media, and a well-funded abortion lobby, they courageously declared on a national stage that abortion is a horrible wrong that can and must be made right.

They shared their life experiences, varied and complicated, to show that fighting for the most marginalized is the right thing to do, the American thing to do.

That is a message that has been muted in the past but is now finding its voice again.

I cannot help but think back to 1992, when my personal hero and fellow Scrantonian, the late Governor Robert Casey Sr. was denied the chance to speak at the 1992 Democratic National Convention because of his strong pro-life views, a position he refused to surrender to a political platform.

It was a turning point for many pro-lifers, including myself.

What would Governor Casey say about this Republican National Convention that didn’t just subtly whisper a pro-life sentiment but instead shouted a pro-life mandate loudly, clearly, and proudly for the world to hear?

I think he would be glad that someone finally had the courage to profess truth in a culture of lies. 

I think he would admire the Republican Party for its defense of life as our first civil right.

And I think he would agree that President Donald J. Trump is the most pro-life President we’ve ever had.  

(Check out President Trump’s pro-life record.)

Pennsylvania Pro-Life Federation PAC Endorses President Donald J. Trump

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For Immediate Release

Contact: Maria V. Gallagher, PAC Director

717-541-0034



            (Harrisburg) The Pennsylvania Pro-Life Federation Political Action Committee, representing tens of thousands of people throughout the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, is pleased to endorse President Donald J. Trump for re-election.

            “President Trump has been a tireless champion for preborn babies and their mothers,” said Maria V. Gallagher, PAC Director of the Pennsylvania Pro-Life Federation, an affiliate of National Right to Life. “He has definitely earned the title ‘most pro-life President in U.S. history,'” Gallagher added.

            President Trump restored the important “Mexico City Policy,” which ensures that hard-earned taxpayer dollars are not spent on organizations that perform or promote abortions overseas. His Health and Human Services Department issued regulations that safeguard Title X funding from facilities that perform or refer for abortions. His Administration also stopped funding for the United Nations Population Fund because of its involvement in China’s forced abortion program.

            The President has also appointed U.S. Supreme Court Justices and other federal judges who have vowed to interpret the Constitution as written, rather than writing pro-abortion law from the bench. He has appointed numerous pro-life advocates to executive positions, such as Secretary of State Mike Pompeo and Secretary of Housing and Urban Development Ben Carson.

            “President Trump also supports legislation which would ban brutal late-term abortions where babies are torn limb by limb from their mothers’ wombs,” Gallagher said. “President Trump has faithfully and consistently protected the most vulnerable among us, and for that he has our enthusiastic support!”

            Pennsylvania is considered one of the key battleground states in the November 3rd election. In 2016, the Keystone State stunned the world by contributing to Donald Trump’s upset victory against pro-abortion extremist Hillary Clinton.

            This year’s Democratic Biden-Harris duo is considered to be the most radically pro-abortion Presidential ticket in U.S. history. Biden-Harris supports taxpayer funding of abortion and vows to expand the tragic U.S. Supreme Court ruling Roe v. Wade, which has led to the deaths of more than 61 million preborn Americans.   

Un-masking the Wolf Administration

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By Bonnie Finnerty, Education Director

Vulnerable people, whatever their age, deserve protection.

But even prior to the pandemic, the Wolf Administration failed to protect our elderly by ignoring long-standing concerns in Pennsylvania nursing homes, according to a Spotlight PA expose.

“We are facing an elder care crisis. And we continue to ignore it at our own peril,” acknowledged the state Auditor General, a Democrat himself, in 2019.  

And then 2020 brought a novel virus. 

The overwhelming majority, almost 70% of COVID-19 deaths in Pennsylvania, have occurred in nursing homes, the fifth highest in the nation for deaths involving long term care residents, according to a July 30 New York Times article.

Could lives have been saved had the Wolf Administration acted upon findings from 2016?

Four years ago, Auditor General Eugene DePasquale reported several problems to the administration including:

-Low minimum staffing requirements, long criticized as “totally unsafe”

-poorly trained nursing home inspectors who were often too “cozy” with facilities

-and a low 2.7 hours of daily care per resident, substandard to the federal recommendation of 4.1 hours of daily care

While these unresolved concerns were highlighted again last year by the auditor general, to this day, the Department of Health has failed to issue the reforms they’ve long promised.

Incredibly, it was into this already stressed system of elder care that the state ordered “stable” COVID-19 hospital patients, putting other residents and the staff themselves at great risk.

And it was in the following month we saw the COVID-19 death toll peak in Pennsylvania, with the highest count at 186 deaths on April 26.

In between, the Secretary of Health, Dr. Rachel Levine, removed the Secretary’s own mother from a long-term care facility.

Initially, an emergency response plan was developed for nursing homes. It was never fully implemented. Rather, a far more limited effort was activated in mid-April, but significant outbreaks had already taken hold.

In addition, the administration waived existing requirements, allowing nursing homes to operate even if they fell below state staffing levels.

At the same time, the safety net of in-person inspections has been suspended, replaced mostly with “virtual inspections.”

Family visits have also been halted, leaving little to no accountability for the facility, no advocacy for the residents, and an isolated population of elderly trapped.

Those in the twilight of their lives, highly dependent on others, certainly deserve better than this. And nursing home staff, dedicated to caring for them, deserve more support.

It’s difficult to understand why the Wolf Administration placed recovering patients into an already strapped system without an adequate plan to protect the parties involved.

It’s difficult to understand why for four years deficiencies were not addressed.

And it’s difficult to understand that while so much time, energy, and resources have been put into stopping the spread of COVID-19 among the general public, comparatively less effort has been spent protecting the elderly population experiencing the highest rates of death.

It seems the Wolf Administration has not just been wearing a mask, but blinders as well.

The lives of the elderly have an inherent value and dignity and the state has a duty to protect them from known harm.

To not do so amounts to passive euthanasia.

Biden’s Running Mate Represents Extreme Pro-Abortion Politics

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HARRISBURG, Pa. – Democrat Joe Biden’s selection of California U.S. Senator Kamala Harris as his running mate demonstrates that, when it comes to abortion politics, the Democratic ticket is extreme.

            “Kamala Harris voted to use our hard-earned tax dollars to pay for abortion,” said Michael Ciccocioppo of the Pennsylvania Pro-Life Federation Political Action Committee. “Harris has also voted for taxpayer funding of abortion providers.

            “Public opinion polls have shown, time and time again, that Americans do not want their taxpayer dollars to pay for abortion. As a result, Harris is clearly out of the mainstream,” Ciccocioppo added.

            Biden’s running mate supports the policy of abortion on demand for any reason during all nine months of pregnancy. Harris co-sponsored a bill that would invalidate nearly all state and federal limits on abortion. She even voted against the Born-Alive Abortion Survivors Protection Act, which would ensure medical care for babies who survive botched abortions.

            “The Biden-Harris ticket is just what the abortion industry ordered,” Ciccocioppo said. “They want to subsidize abortion businesses, threatening the health and safety of women and their preborn children. A Biden-Harris Administration would be a disaster for women and babies throughout the U.S.”

The Daily Death Count that Goes Unreported

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By Bonnie Finnerty, Education Director

Out of sight is out of mind.

When we can’t see something, or perceive it by some other sense, we can forget that it exists.

That is not the case with Covid-19. Each day we hear about rates of infection and lives lost. Heart-wrenching stories broadcast by news outlets and shared on social media put a human face on the pandemic. Maps and graphs help us visualize trends so our decisions are better informed.

But there’s another death count not represented at daily press conferences. No news stories detailing the agony that families experience. No charts or graphs or maps. No mitigation efforts ordered by the Governor. The victims remain invisible, out of sight and out of mind to the general public.

But they do exist. Even if you and I can’t see them.

Yesterday, 12 deaths were attributed to Covid-19.  Eighty-three were due to abortion.

Today, 38 deaths were attributed to Covid-19. And again, eighty-three were due to abortion.

While tomorrow’s count for Covid-19 deaths remains unknown, we know the approximate number of deaths from either surgical or chemical abortion. Based on 2018 statistics released from the PA Department of Health, over 30,000 abortions occur annually in our state, an average of 83 every single day.

While Pennsylvania has lost 7282 precious lives to Covid-19, in the same time frame we have lost 12,699 precious lives to abortion, as abortion facilities remained open even when other non-essential businesses were closed.

Some lives are ended by a dangerous virus, others by a dangerous mindset that some humans are simply disposable. And should remain unseen and uncounted. As if they never existed.

But we know they do. The science is clear.  Human life begins at the moment of conception. Vulnerable, fragile, dependent, yes. Living, human, unique, and worth protecting, absolutely.

Ironically, in his remarks on April 18, Gov. Wolf reminded us, “There is no higher service than helping each other survive.”

That should include the littlest among us, even if hidden from view.

Let us not forget the victims of the abortion pandemic, during which a total of 1.5 million Pennsylvanians have been denied the most basic of all human rights.

Their lives should count too, after all.