Join Me in Signing the Catholic League Petition to Withdraw the HHS Mandate

The amount of time and money spent trying to reconcile the HHS mandate with legitimate First Amendment concerns has been considerable, and without a satisfactory conclusion. Indeed, almost 70 lawsuits have been filed. The only sensible outcome is for the administration to withdraw the mandate altogether. The problems inherent in ObamaCare are serious. From delaying "out-of-pocket costs" to postponing the employer mandate, it is evident that even those who support this legislation are growing weary. Add to this the more than a thousand waivers that have been granted, and the loss of support by labor unions, and the result is alarming. But none of these factors are as important as the constitutional issues that the HHS mandate presents: even if ObamaCare can be salvaged, the problems posed by the mandate remain.

P>WASHINGTON, DC (Catholic Online) - William A. "Bill" Donohue, Ph.D, the President of the Catholic League, is a pugilist who uses his words not his fists. He is the kind of man you want on your side in a real fight. And we are in just such a fight against this horrid HHS Mandate.  He is a Champion of the Rights of Catholics and the Catholic Church - and unafraid to face opposition.  Bill Donohue is also my friend.

I remember when I first met him; he seemed straight out of Central Casting. I say that with respect and brotherly affection. I grew up in Dorchester, Massachusetts, in an Irish (French) blue collar, Catholic family. As my dear mother was fond of saying, Bill has the Map of Ireland on his face. He is a scrappy looking fellow with a smile that transforms his entire face and a laugh that can fill the whole room. However, when you begin to discuss the current culture war, you know within minutes that he means business.

This is a Catholic layman absolutely committed to the mission of defending the Catholic Church, the Holy Father, the Clergy, the faithful and the Catholic mission. He is the kind of guy you always want on your side. Bill understands that Catholic is the noun and not an adjective in our active participation in the public square. He does not fight out of vindictiveness; he fights to defend the rights of the Church to engage the age with the Truth. He is a freedom fighter. He knows that in an age of lies, only the truth will set us all free and that truth has a human face, the face of Jesus Christ and the fullness of truth is found within the Catholic Church.

Bill Donohue is more than a street fighter he is a smart fighter. His adversaries often underestimate him and he uses that to his advantage like any good fighter. He is also a good steward, carefully selecting those causes and cases which will accomplish the most good in furthering the Catholic League's ongoing mission. The League just announced their petition drive calling upon the Obama Administration to withdraw the HHS Mandate. 

I invite all of our readers to join me in signing this Petition to Withdraw the HHS Mandate.You can do so by clicking the link at the end of this article.  As we informed our readers, the US Bishops, under the firm and clear leadership of Timothy Cardinal Dolan, recently reaffirmed their opposition to the HHS mandate. Efforts such as the Petition of the Catholic League, a lay Catholic organization, are vital to this effort.

Bill Donohue explains why the need for a petition below:

The Catholic community, led by the bishops, has voiced its objections to the Health and Human Services (HHS) mandate on several occasions. The Obama administration has made "accommodations" and other revisions, but the fundamental problem remains: the HHS mandate adopts a definition of what constitutes a "religious employer" that is entirely too narrow; and the religious liberty abridgement entailed in this edict represents an unfair burden on Catholic non-profit organizations, and Catholic-owned private businesses.

The amount of time and money spent trying to reconcile the HHS mandate with legitimate First Amendment concerns has been considerable, and without a satisfactory conclusion. Indeed, almost 70 lawsuits have been filed. The only sensible outcome is for the administration to withdraw the mandate altogether.

The problems inherent in ObamaCare are serious. From delaying "out-of-pocket costs" to postponing the employer mandate, it is evident that even those who support this legislation are growing weary. Add to this the more than a thousand waivers that have been granted, and the loss of support by labor unions, and the result is alarming. But none of these factors are as important as the constitutional issues that the HHS mandate presents: even if ObamaCare can be salvaged, the problems posed by the mandate remain.

The petition drive that we are launching today will end September 30. We will forward the petitions to HHS Secretary Kathleen Sebelius on October 1. Please encourage family, friends and members of your parish to sign it. To sign it, click here.

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