HB 574, SB 3, & Judicial Elections

Dear Fathers and Monsignors,

With God's help, House Bill 574 passed the Pennsylvania house. As per the 5/9/11 notice from the Pennsylvania Catholic Conference,

• "House Bill 574 would hold abortion clinics to the same fire and safety standards, personnel and equipment requirements, and quality assurance procedures as other freestanding ambulatory surgical facilities."

In the final tally in the Pennsylvania house, Bucks County representatives Clymer (145th), Galloway (140th), Quinn (143rd), & Watson (144th) voted in favor of HB 574, as did Representatives DiGirolamo (18th), Farry (142nd), O'Neill (29th), and Petri (178th). Despite their Catholic educations, two Bucks County represenatives scandalously voted against HB 574:

• Davis (141st; graduate of Cardinal Dougherty & LaSalle)


• Santarsiero (31st; M. Ed. from Holy Family)

To those following these matters, those repugnant votes by Davis & Santarsiero certainly came as no surprise. Planned Parenthood is our nations's "leading" abortion provider. In the 2010 elections, Planned Parenthood Pennsylvania PAC listed both Davis & Santarsiero as "pro choice endorsed candidates."

As per the aforementioned 5/9/11 notice from the Pennsylvania Catholic Conference,

• "Senate Bill 3 would clearly prohibit taxpayer supported insurance plans from covering elective abortions in the insurance exchanges set up under the federal Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act."

Of Bucks County senators, Mensch (24th) and Tomlinson (6th) are among the co-sponsors of Senate Bill 3; Greenleaf (12th) gave it a positive vote vote in the Banking and Insurance Committee. Like Representatives Davis & Santarsiero, however, Senator Chuck McIlhinney (10th; parishioner of Our Lady of Mt Carmel in Doylestown & member of the Ancient Order of Hibernians) was listed by Planned Parenthood Pennsylvania PAC as one of their "pro choice endorsed candidates."

Looking at McIlhinney's abysmal record on life and marriage/family issues, we can count on his continued betrayal with Senate Bill 3 - unless the clergy, the laity, & all people of good will speak up! We owe this support to the children and parents victimized by abortion, as well as to the concern which we must have for our brother's eternal salvation. In 2004, Joseph Cardinal Ratzinger (who subsequently got a promotion!) reminded us that "Apart from an individual's judgment about his worthiness to present himself to receive the Holy Eucharist, the minister of Holy Communion may find himself in the situation where he must refuse to distribute Holy Communion to someone, such as in cases of a declared excommunication, a declared interdict, or an obstinate persistence in manifest grave sin (cf. can. 915)."

This Tuesday, we will have the opportunity to vote for

• one Judge of the Superior Court,


• one Judge of the Commonwealth Court, and


• one Judge of the Court of Common Pleas.

According to the Pennsylvania Family Institute information on candidates for Judge of the Superior Court, only Paula Patrick answered the posed questions in a manner consistent with Catholic Teaching.

According to the Pennsylvania Family Institute information on candidates for Judge of the Commonwealth Court, both Anne Covey & Paul Panepinto answered the posed questions in manners consistent with Catholic Teaching.

According to the Pennsylvania Family Institute information on candidates for Judge of the Court of Common Pleas in Bucks County, neither James McMaster nor Michael Rubin answered the posed questions.