Coalition of Catholic StatesBoard

After an off-and-on debate spanning several months, the number of Right to Life senators, which was previously three (including the president), was increased to five (including the president and a vice president) by an amendment to the regional constitution. Opponents of the change, most notably Founder Culture of Life (Christian Democrats), argued that there were not yet enough candidates running in regional elections to justify an increase to a five-seat Senate. Proponents of the reform contended that a change in the Senate's size was appropriate for better representation of the region's increasingly large citizenry. The Senate passed the constitutional amendment 3-0 on May 1, and it was signed shortly thereafter by Culture of Life. It took effect on June 4, at the conclusion of Right to Life's June election.

CFP Retains Senate Majority (By Culture of Life)

Right to Life, on June 1-4, held an election for four seats in its Senate, an increase from two seats in the February senatorial election. The final seat in the Senate of Right to Life is held ex officio by the RCS, the region's president and a member of the center-right Conservative Federalist Party (CFP). Incumbent Senator Imperii Ecclesia (CFP) ran for reelection while Senator Cocles (Life Party) stepped down from her seat. Early challengers for the Senate were Ardaxia (independent), New Missouri (Libertarian Party), Stellonia (Life Party), and United Massachusetts (Liberals for Life Coalition). Due to concerns that the field of candidates was weak, former presidents Aawia (CFP) and Phydios (CFP) threw their hats into the ring at the last minute. Single non-transferable voting was used, and 50% of citizens turned out. The results were as follows:

Imperii Ecclesia (Conservative Federalist) -- 21.05% (elected)
United Massachusetts (Liberals for Life) -- 21.05% (elected)
New Missouri (Libertarian) -- 21.05% (elected)
Phydios (Conservative Federalist) -- 15.79% (elected)
Stellonia (Life Party) -- 10.53%
Aawia (Conservative Federalist) -- 0.00%
Ardaxia (independent) -- 0.00%
Invalid ballots -- 10.53%

Following the Founder's certification of the results, Stellonia voiced his displeasure with the region's electoral system, calling it unrepresentative. He protested the exclusion of his Life Party (right-wing) from the Senate and said that it was unfair that the Conservative Federalists controlled a majority of seats (the RCS, Imperii Ecclesia, and Phydios) with the support of only two-fifths of (valid) voters. Defenders of the status quo countered that a party that garners the backing of only one-tenth of the electorate does not deserve and should not feel entitled to representation in the regional legislature.

President RCS, after the election, appointed New Missouri to serve as vice president. In accordance with recent reforms of the regional constitution, presidential elections (April, August, and December) will select two senators: the president and the vice president. Senatorial elections (February, June, and October) will select three senators (three "regular" seats). Both sorts of elections will continue to employ single non-transferable voting, unless a new constitutional amendment is passed. Efforts by some citizens to restore a three-member Senate (a presidential seat and two "regular" seats) are unlikely to succeed.

SCOTUS Hands Down Pro-Abortion Decision (By Culture of Life)

The U.S. Supreme Court, on June 27, delivered a 5-3 opinion in Whole Woman's Health v. Hellerstedt, striking down a Texas law designed to put an end to unsafe abortions. Members of Right to Life immediately voiced their strong disapproval. "Well just another reason to get a conservative president, to appoint conservative justices," said the RCS, Right to Life's president. "So sad," another citizen commented on the regional message board. "We need a pro-lifer (preferably a pro-life liberal) on the Supreme Court." This week's decision in favor of the abortion industry and its lobbyists is the end of a three-year legal battle to improve women's health and cultivate respect for unborn life in the State of Texas.

Texas' law required abortion clinics to follow the same health and safety standards as other outpatient surgical centers, and it mandated that abortionists maintain admitting privileges at nearby hospitals to which they could send mothers or their children in cases of botched procedures. In enacting its law, Texas relied on the longstanding presupposition that the Supreme Court tolerates such reasonable regulations. After all, in Roe v. Wade (1973) (which invented the so-called "right to abortion" in the United States), the majority of justices said, "Examples of permissible state regulation in this area are requirements as to the qualifications of the person who is to perform the abortion; as to the licensure of that person; as to the facility in which the procedure is to be performed, that is, whether it must be a hospital or may be a clinic or some other place of less-than-hospital status; as to the licensing of the facility; and the like."

The present-day Supreme Court, however, is taking its abortion jurisprudence in a more extreme direction. In the recent decision, Justice Stephen Breyer, writing for the majority, opined that Texas' law imposed an "undue burden" on women of reproductive age by holding abortion providers to requirements that were "not necessary." Too many abortion clinics in Texas have been closing their doors, the Court held, because of supposedly obstructive regulations, such as basic sanitary procedures. Justice Breyer, for instance, ruled that it violates the Fourteenth Amendment's Due Process Clause for state legislatures to require abortion clinics, like other medical clinics, to have "scrub facilities" and "soiled utility and sterilization rooms" because the "natural opening" of a woman "is itself not sterile."

Justice Samuel Alito authored the main dissent. He called the majority opinion "indefensible" and predicted that it ultimately "will undermine public confidence in the Court as a fair and neutral arbiter." Justice Alito asserted that Texas, in the aftermath of the 2013 trial and conviction of abortionist Kermit Gosnell for three murders and one manslaughter, had more than enough reason to enact new laws cracking down on the poorly regulated abortion industry. Recent closures of Texas abortion clinics, he observed, had less to do with the challenged Texas law and more to do with more rigorous protocol for administering abortifacients, withdrawal of taxpayer funds from abortion providers, declining national demand for abortions, and physician retirement. Justice Alito also said that the evidence showed that no more than 5.1% of women in Texas, an acceptable number, would be seriously inconvenienced in procuring abortions as a result of the state's health and safety regulations.

A separate, more strongly worded dissenting opinion was written by Justice Clarence Thomas, who accused the Supreme Court of threatening "the promise of a judiciary bound by the rule of law" and of "radically" rewriting its own abortion precedents to fit the justices' personal views. Recognizing that deference is ordinarily given to the states in regulation of the medical profession, Justice Thomas harshly criticized the majority for usurping democratic legislative authority by appointing itself "'the country's ex officio medical board.'" The Court has reached a point, he argued, where "nothing but empty words separates our constitutional decisions from judicial fiat." Based on their own partisan biases, the justices, he said, arbitrarily give "preferential treatment" and "special protection" to rights of their own creation, such as abortion and same-sex marriage, "while disfavoring many of the rights actually enumerated in the Constitution," including free speech and racial neutrality. (In specific, he repeated his criticism of a recent decision that allows public universities to use racial and ethnic preferences in admissions.) In the penultimate section of his dissent, Justice Thomas suggested, "The Court should abandon the pretense that anything other than policy preferences underlies its balancing of constitutional rights and interests in any given case."

Now that a majority of the Supreme Court has chosen to start uprooting all abortion laws that are "not necessary," even if they are reasonable, it is not clear how state governments that are committed to upholding human dignity will proceed. "This is a very bad blow to my home state," one Right to Life citizen lamented. "Texas has been fighting this one for so long." "Children are a gift from God!" exclaimed another resident of the region. "I'm not just pro-life because of the Bible; [abortion is] also just morally wrong." Following the U.S. presidential election in November, Hillary Clinton or Donald Trump, in all likelihood, will make an appointment to the Supreme Court to fill the seat vacated by pro-life Justice Antonin Scalia, who passed away in February. Mrs. Clinton and Mr. Trump, in the past, have both expressed support for legalized abortion; however, Mr. Trump says that he has changed his stance on the propriety of the procedure and now identifies as mostly pro-life. In the United States alone, 1.06 million children are aborted every year (Guttmacher Institute 2016).

June Economic Report (By Aawia)

Aawia is the Director of the Bank of Right to Life. He originally prepared this report on the status of the region's central bank for the Senate, which conducts a mandatory economic review every six months.

When writing this review, I want to do two things: one, I want to be completely honest about how things are doing and what I think the future for the bank looks like. Two, I want to get across a sense of hope, especially considering the future of the bank. I want the region to know that I used to be sympathetic to the voices saying that the bank should be disbanded, but being bank director has changed my perspective. Through my time as bank director I've begun to see a potential in players being able to exchange services for a regional currency.

However, there are some issues. This year, we have experienced more of the same in regards to inactivity. We see the bulk of activity happening around required events: for example, when CoL charges ‎₤50 for an advertising spot during campaign season, we see an influx of activity. Our issue is how to expand activity. Right now, our biggest hope is the implementation of business competitions, which would award no-interest loans to the best ideas. Also, once we have the Bank Officer program in place, the plan is to give them the power to award loans. I know there are good ideas for businesses in the minds of the citizens of Right to Life; we just need to get them out and get people acting on them. Another resource I'd like to see used more is the purchase of private sub-forums; potential fixes I may look into, working with CoL, is lowering the cost of purchasing a sub-forum or an advertisement campaign as to the benefits.

Finally, the state of the currency in the bank. We started the year off with ‎₤2650 and now have ‎₤4936. This has put the bank in a very healthy position, and it has allowed the increase of government wages and the alleviation of pressure so the bank can have proper discussion on the issues at hand. At the end of the summer, I will most likely do another clean-up of old bank accounts.

I think that the regional bank's greatest hope lies in getting the citizens of Right to Life to put their ideas into action. Or working on more events which can utilize the bank until such a time as those ideas come up. Once we get region members thinking about the bank more often, more ideas, I'm sure, can come to light. We have a very bright region, and I believe in our ability for entrepreneurship.

Pro-Life International Grows (By United Massachusetts)

Pro-Life International (PLI), a multi-regional alliance to protect life on the world stage, has grown and prospered due to active recruitment efforts. PLI recently welcomed a new region, the League of Conservative Nations (TLCN). With a unanimous vote of the representatives of current PLI member regions, TLCN was admitted. The region TLCN has lately since seen a huge spike in membership, going from 9 members when the region was admitted to over 50 nations today. Other applications from the Christian Republic, the Traditional Catholic Empire, and the Conservative Christians are pending votes on membership, while negotiations are under way. Right to Life's Foreign Minister and PLI Representative United Massachusetts has expressed excitement about PLI's growth, calling the acceptance of TCLN "a great step forward."

If your region is interested in joining PLI, or just helping out, please send a telegram to First Secretary Aawia (Right to Life) or Second Secretary Frustrated Franciscans (Catholic). They are happy to work to help new regions join and are pleased to help your region stand up for the cause of life.

Interest Group GOAL Opens (By Ovybia)

The Governmental Openness and Accountability League (GOAL) is the latest interest group to open in Right to Life's diverse community. GOAL was founded by former Senator Stellonia, and its mission is to lobby "to make the government of Right to Life accountable to the people." It states that this can be accomplished by (1) requiring all governmental agencies to meet in publicly viewable forums, (2) switching the region's voting system to proportional representation, (3) electing regional ministers as opposed to letting the president appoint them, (4) and improving and utilizing the region's public petitions process.