FPL Daily News Reel: July 18, 2012
The FPL News Reel is a daily round-up of the top faith and politics stories in the news. You can sign up for the email version of the News Reel here, subscribe to the RSS feed here, and follow it on twitter at @FPLNewsreel.
The Rush to Abandon the Poor
By New York Times, Editorial
While some governors and lawmakers are searching for new revenue sources, others are using the downturn as an excuse to end a long tradition of states being the final backstop for society’s neediest.
If States Opt Out of Medicaid Expansion, Over 4 Million Women Could Remain Uninsured
By Bryce Covert — The Nation
…given that many women don’t meet [Medicaid's] categorical criteria, many don’t qualify, no matter how poor they are. Over 17 million women lived in poverty last year, compared to 12.6 million men.
Democrats Propose Plan to Sidestep Anti-Tax Pledge
By Jonathan Weisman — New York Times
Senate Democrats — holding firm against extending tax cuts for the rich — are proposing a novel way to circumvent the Republican pledge not to vote for any tax increase: Allow all the tax cuts to expire Jan. 1, then vote on a tax cut for the middle class shortly thereafter.
An American Nun Responds To Vatican Criticism
By NPR Staff — NPR
“I would say the mandate is more critical of positions we haven’t taken than those we have taken,” says Sister Pat Farrell, the president of the Leadership Conference. “As I read that document, the concern is the issues we tend to be more silent about when the bishops are speaking out very clearly about some things.”
An Overview of the Nuns on the Bus Tour
By Sally Steenland, Hannah Moser and Elana Leopold — Center for American Progress, Religion & Values
Awareness of their tour and the concerns they raised about the harm the Ryan budget cuts would inflict on struggling Americans extended to all 50 states, to believers and nonbelievers, to young and old, and virtually everyone in between.
New block is sought against SB 1070
By Howard Fischer Capitol Media Services
ACLU attorney Dan Pochoda noted the high court did not specifically say the section on questioning those who are stopped is legal. In fact, Justice Anthony Kennedy, who wrote the ruling, said only that “it is not clear at this stage and on this record that the verification process would result in prolonged detention.”
GOP Spending Bill Aims To Defund Planned Parenthood, Up Abstinence-Only Funds
By Laura Bassett — Huffington Post
Rep. Denny Rehberg (R-Mont.) released a labor, health and education spending bill on Tuesday that would defund Planned Parenthood and Title X, block the implementation of the Affordable Care Act, allow any employer to deny women birth control coverage under the ACA for “moral reasons” and increase spending for abstinence-only education.
Judge tosses out contraception lawsuit filed by Nebraska, six other states
By Kevin O’Hanlon — Lincoln Journal Star
U.S. District Judge Warren Urbom of Lincoln dismissed the case Tuesday, saying the plaintiffs did not have standing to bring the action challenging part of the Affordable Care Act.
Cruel and Unusual: Georgia Set to Execute Mentally Disabled Man
By Sandi Villarreal — Sojourners, God’s Politics
Despite protests not only from jurors who conivicted him but also from his victim’s family, Warren Hill, a 52-year-old mentally disabled man convicted of murder, is scheduled to be executed by lethal injection on July 23 in Jackson, Ga.
Muslim Americans Using Comedy to Break Down Stereotypes
By Rosa Ramirez — National Journal
Comedian Dean Obeidallah, a New Jersey native whose father is Palestinian and mother Sicilian, told a small recent gathering in Washington that humor is a way to openly talk about important subjects on politics, religion, and current affairs.
Group protests chaplain’s rebuke
By Bob Allen — Associated Baptist Press
The Forum on the Military Chaplaincy says the Southern Baptist Convention is reining in chaplains who don’t toe the line in opposition to last year’s repeal of “don’t ask, don’t tell.”
Despite Protests, Boy Scouts Reaffirm Ban on Gays
By David Crary — Associated Press
The Scouts cited support from parents as a key reason for keeping the policy and expressed hope that the prolonged debate over it might now subside.
