As this column is being written, Virginia Democrat Governor Ralph Northam finds himself immersed in terribly hot water because of a 35-year-old photo appearing in his medical school yearbook. The photo shows one student in blackface and another depicts a companion student in a Ku Klux Klan costume.
At first, Northam said that he was indeed one of the young men in the photo and he sought to laugh off his appearance as a college-level joke. One day later, he changed his story and claimed he was not the subject in the now-famous photo.
On another topic, one week prior to news breaking about this yearbook display, the same Doctor Northam publicly stated his approval of abortion at any point, even up to birth. He even added that if birth occurred during an attempted abortion, the “infant would be resuscitated if that’s what the mother and the family desired, and then a discussion would ensue between the physicians and the mother.“ In other words, the live baby could be killed outside the womb. President Brent Bozell of the Media Research Center pointed out that Northam had effectively condoned both killing a full-term infant and terminating the life of a baby who had survived the abortion process.
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Democrat politicians have demanded Northam’s resignation — but not because of his current attitude regarding abortion and infanticide. Democrats, many of whom have already announced their candidacies for the presidency in 2020, have ignored that topic. The pandering Democrat bigwigs have said nothing about Northam’s barbaric attitude regarding life in or out of the womb.
Meanwhile, pro-life members of Congress continue efforts to cancel federal grants to abortion providers especially including Planned Parenthood, the nation’s largest terminator of life in the womb. Three measures have been introduced in Congress. Each immediately gained a large number of co-sponsors. These measures are:
• H.R. 296 The Abortion Provider Prohibition Act introduced by Rep. Virginia Foxx (R-Va.). This bill seeks to terminate all Title X funding sent to Planned Parenthood and smaller abortion providers. Foxx stated, “None of the funds appropriated as a result of Title X shall be used in programs where abortion is considered a method of family planning.” H.R. 296 has 86 co-sponsors.
• H.R. 369 The Title X Defund Planned Parenthood Act introduced by Rep. Vicki Hartzler (R-Mo.). This bill seeks to put an end to the funding of Planned Parenthood via Medicaid. It targets the huge disbursements to Planned Parenthood, an amount that has, over many years, provided billions of dollars to the organization that aborts more infants than any other organization. This measure has garnered 112 co-sponsors.
• S. 105 The Defund Planned Parenthood Act introduced in the Senate by Senator Marsha Blackburn (R-Tenn.). This bill is a duplicate of the measure introduced in the House by Representative Vicki Hartzler. It has garnered 25 co-sponsors.
Regarding her measure, Senator Blackburn stated, “Tennesseans and the American people do not want their tax dollars funding abortions. They have made this position clear time and again.” Joining the discussion, National Right to Life Legislative Director Jennifer Popik added: “Most Democrats in Congress think Planned Parenthood can do no wrong. Congresswoman Hartzler [and Senator Blackburn] know better … Planned Parenthood received $543.7 million last year.”
About her H.R. 296 bill, Representative Foxx pointed out that the Title X Family Planning Program (created in 1970) made clear that “abortion was not a form of family planning,” the reason for its creation. Yet, she noted that Planned Parenthood receives huge amounts of federal funding that fuels the organization’s abortion business.
Leading Democrats have made Governor Northam’s 35-year-old college yearbook photo a huge issue. But in their minds, his support for abortion, even for infanticide, doesn’t deserve even a brief mention. It is hoped that the hypocrisy of Democrat leaders — and also a few Republican lawmakers — will impress constituents all across the nation.
John F. McManus is president emeritus of The John Birch Society.
