Charmaine sends this out to the AUL good-guy list,

It's nearly Independence Day, and, here in the Yoest household, that means a road trip!

Friday afternoon, Jack and I are filling up our black Suburban and taking our 'Penta-posse' -- our five kids -- to Charlottesville, VA, for our 14-year-old son John's all-star baseball tournament. How wonderful to spend July 4th in a city steeped in American history near the University of Virginia (my alma mater!), which was founded by Thomas Jefferson just a few miles from his Monticello home.

John Yoest, age 14
[Pitched a no hitter on his JV team -- as an 8th grader]
Photo Credit: Hannah Yoest

But although the calendar -- and the heat index -- says it's July 4, in my heart it feels like late November.

Independence Day has always been a kind of early Thanksgiving for me. I think about the sacrifices made by the Founding Fathers and their families, and of the blood shed by patriots so that America could be free, and I am so very thankful to be able to raise my children in the greatest country in the world.

The Founders wrote in the Declaration of Independence: "We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness."

In naming three inalienable rights as endowed by humanity's Creator, the Declaration's authors were recognizing something unique and beautiful about being human. Taken together, those rights enable all the goods necessary for human flourishing.

More than that, the order in which the Founders listed the rights carries special meaning; it reveals the way one right flows from another. The right to liberty -- the freedom to thrive -- flows from the right to life, and from that liberty flows the ability to seek the happiness that will give one's life meaning and purpose.

I'm so honored to be working with the AUL team to further the understanding that the right to life enshrined in our Declaration extends to all humanity and includes the unborn.

The right to life is the foundation of all the freedoms we enjoy as Americans. This is what we must teach our children on this family holiday, so that they and their children and their children's children may continue to live in a free country long after you and I have left this world.

My friend and AUL colleague Bob told me today about a wonderful Fourth of July tradition in his family. Every year, he and his wife host a barbecue that is highlighted by having one of the children present, usually his own daughter, read out loud the entire Declaration of Independence.

Jack and I like that idea so much that we are adopting this as a Yoest family tradition. I think we'll have Helena, our 12-year-old who has a dramatic flair, read the Declaration of Independence before we watch the fireworks after John's baseball game. If you'd like join us in that tradition, click here for a printable copy of the Declaration.

Wishing you and your family a happy and healthy Fourth,

Charmaine, and the Yoest family

P.S. On Monday, the AUL team will be back at the job of defending the right to life, all the way up to the U.S. Supreme Court. For the latest news on President Obama's high-court nominee, visit Sotomayor411.com. It's a one-stop resource we've created to share in-depth background and analysis from our legal team on Judge Sotomayor, including detailed information on why she is worse on life issues than retiring Justice David Souter.

Join Fight FOCA

Thank you (foot)notes:

Follow us on Twitter.

Pro-Abortion Hispanic Group: Sotomayor Set Policy, Not Involved in Legal Briefs, by Steven Ertelt, LifeNews.com Editor, July 1, 2009,

"Although the Senate will have a significant amount of materials to wade through, Charmaine Yoest, the president of Americans United for Life, has seen enough to say Sotomayor is pro-abortion and worse than Justice David Souter, whom she would replace.

Yoest points out that, during Sotomayor's time on the PRLDEF's board, its efforts "included no less than six briefs in five abortion-related cases before the Supreme Court -- pushing aggressively for an interpretation of abortion rights that would eliminate most or all state and federal abortion regulations while requiring state and federal funding of abortion."

In two of the legal briefs, "the PRLDEF's briefs took positions more extreme than those of Justice Souter, who joined with the court's majority to uphold restrictions the fund wanted struck down," Yoest added.

Ultimately, "Justice Sotomayor has never disavowed any of the PRLDEF's briefs, which are packed with the kind of extreme rhetoric more typical of left-wing blogs than of serious legal documents." "

U.S. appeals court upholds Virginia's ban on partial-birth abortion, By Catholic News Service

RICHMOND, Va. - Virginia's ban on partial-birth abortion is constitutional, the 4th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals ruled in a 6-5 decision June 24.

"The head of Americans United for Life, which filed a friend-of-the-court brief in the case and assisted the state with the litigation, said the "ban protects not only the unborn, but also the health and welfare of women."

"We are thrilled that the 4th Circuit followed clear U.S. Supreme Court precedent and upheld Virginia's ban on partial-birth abortion - which is more accurately called partial-birth infanticide," said Charmaine Yoest, president and CEO.

"It is a law that the vast majority of Americans are justified in supporting," she said. Opponents of the ban are expected to ask the U.S. Supreme Court to review the appellate court's decision.

The 2003 Virginia law makes it a felony to perform a partial-birth abortion, but it never went into effect because its constitutionality was challenged by a Richmond doctor who said the procedure can be necessary to protect the life of the mother. He also said the ban could prevent doctors from performing legal procedures for fear they would be prosecuted. "

From PA Pundits - International
"the relentless pursuit of common sense" - A Variety of Opinions From Various Writers -
"Only the pro-life group Americans United for Life has made a significant campaign against Sotomayor's ascension to the high court, calling her record on abortion rights "worse than [current Justice David] Souter's." Still, the fight should pick up once Sotomayor's confirmation hearings begin July 13."

Posted at 4:05 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Following are the PowerPoint presentations used in Your Business Blogger's(R) Small Business Management class at the Northern Virginia Community College. Syllabus and the management course outline here.

ch01_entrepreneurship.ppt

ch02_ideas_to_reality.ppt

ch03_strategic_mgt.ppt

ch04_business_plan.ppt

ch05_forms_of_ownership.ppt

ch06_franchising.ppt

ch07_buying_a_business.ppt

ch08_guerrilla_marketing.ppt

ch09_e-commerce.ppt

ch10_pricing.ppt

ch11_financial_plan.ppt

ch12_managing_cash_flow.ppt

ch13_sources_of_finance.ppt

ch14_location_layout.ppt

ch15_global_aspects.ppt

ch16_leader_mgt_succession.ppt

Posted at 10:50 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

At a recent funeral -- they seem to come faster and faster as we get older and older -- Charmaine and I talked about burials. Cremation, well, lights our fire and speeds up that dust-to-dust transition.

Charmaine asked what we'd plan to do with the ashes, where on earth to put them. We talk about the extended family's burial plots.

"Where do you want to get buried?" She asks.

"37º18'N, 137º55'E," I say.

"What?"

"The Sea of Japan," I remind her.

She just looks at me. Women!

"What's there?" she wonders.

Bonefish.

June 18th is the day we remember the loss of USS Bonefish.

This piece was originally published by The Virginian Pilot and the Courier Post.

My father, then only a teen-ager from Jersey, left high school, went to war and was assigned to the submarine, USS Bonefish. Just before the final mission of the Bonefish, my father walked off the gangplank - transferred to another assignment. Another man took his place.

On its eighth mission, on June 18, 1945, Bonefish was lost fighting the enemy in the Sea of Japan, with the loss of all 53 officers and men. It was the last U.S. submarine sunk in World War II...

Article at the jump.

Follow us on Twitter: JackYoest and CharmaineYoest

Continue Reading »

Posted at 11:25 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

LifeNews reports that Kim Gandy is leaving the leadership of the National Organization for Women (NOW) to spend more time with her family. Maybe...

It is more likely that she will join the liberal feminists running the Obama administration.

Charmaine has crossed paths with NOW's Gandy a time or two. The most memorable was in November 2005. At the time Your Business Blogger(R) noted the altercation,

I was in the middle of drafting an article on the glass ceiling for women. And got a first person account instead.

Click on image to enlarge; Charmaine on Right in red.

Today I thought I'd give the little woman a respite from the laundry and the kids. "Go play in the Nation's Capital," I said to Charmaine this morning. "Have a fun lunch with the girls!"

Then on the radio I hear Rush talk about a smack down at the Supreme Court and see a photo of Charmaine in her red power suit at Rush Limbaugh EIB Extra... .

She had Kim Gandy in a half-nelson. Elbowing Gandy aside at a press conference.

I have sat through a number of cantankerous board meetings. Adversarial budget negotiations. Hardball sales presentations. Terminations. Giving and getting.

But no one actually got spanked.

I thought the gathering of girls today would be a powder puff tea party of cooperation. Sweetness and light and reason and 'Please' and 'Thankyou.'

I was wrong. No one fights like a woman on a mission.

I'll have to rewrite the glass ceiling article.

(It is a joy to marry over your head.)

Join Fight FOCA

Thank you (foot)notes:

Be sure to follow us on Twitter: jackyoest and charmaineyoest

Press Release: AUL Senior Counsel Clarke Forsythe Publishes new book.
Dr. Charmaine Yoest, AUL President & CEO said, "Politics for the Greatest Good is a critical book for the pro-life movement at this time in history. This important focus on the achievable in political strategy...AUL Action

FOXBusiness reports, Americans United for Life Senior Counsel Clarke Forsythe Publishes Politics for the Greatest Good is now available at bookstores and Amazon.com.

Posted at 11:29 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Americans United for Life is a public interest law firm that works to protect life in law.

AUL also works to protect the freedom of conscience of health care providers.

And the freedom of conscience of school-age children.

Alert Readers will recall the trauma inflicted on The Diva caused by our union-backed local elementary school. Watch her tell her story of harassment in her own words:

Student harassed for Pro-Life T-Shirt See AUL's overview and philosophy of Rights of Conscience,
Healthcare Rights of Conscience Overview

"Legal protection for healthcare freedom of conscience affirms the need to provide quality care to patients, but also acknowledges that certain demands of patients, usually for procedures that are life-destructive and not life-saving, must not be blindly accommodated to the detriment of the rights of healthcare providers. Individuals and institutions do not lose their right to exercise their moral and religious beliefs and consciences once they decide to enter the healthcare profession.

Those who oppose laws protecting freedom of conscience, primarily pro-abortion advocates and groups, increasingly couch their arguments with references to women's right to healthcare access (including access to contraception) and seek to compel providers to act in violation of their consciences. However, the use of the term "access" is a red herring, as there is no real problem, when a conscientious objection is made, with a patient going to another (willing) healthcare provider for service."

It is not certain that the Sotomayor "empathy" would extend to The Diva.

Join Fight FOCA See original post Pro-Life Student Forced to Remove T-Shirt

Thank you (foot)notes:

Be sure to follow us on Twitter: Jack and Charmaine

Potomac Flacks: Producer for Lars Larson Named Communications, By Matt Mackowiak

Heather Smith has been hired as Director of Communications at Americans United for Life. Smith most recently was a producer for "The Lars Larson Show," a nationally-syndicated radio program. (CQ's "People on the Move" column)

Americans United for Life will be alerting the public about the Pro-Abortion-Choice affinities of Sotomayor and the abortion agenda of president Obama. AUL has published a new website www.Sotomayor411.com .

Also responding to the vote was Charmaine Yost, Ph.D., president and CEO of Americans United for Life . "If this act becomes law, it will be a grave injustice to women around the world," Yost said.

Posted at 9:50 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Most people know very little about Supreme Court nominee Sotomayor. Americans United for Life will be alerting the public about the Pro-Abortion-Choice affinities of Sotomayor and the abortion agenda of president Obama.

AUL has published a new website www.Sotomayor411.com.

Click on the banner for outstanding research and analysis to learn about Sotomayor's judicial activism and the personnel policies of president Obama.

Alert Readers know that Charmaine served in presidential personnel in the (real) West Wing of the White House in the Ronald Reagan Administration. The direction from The Gipper was to hire carefully. Personnel is Policy.

President Obama shares more that oratorical elegance with Reagan. Obama also knows that Personnel is Policy.

Sotomayor is the personification of Obama's abortion policy.

Follow us on Twitter: jackyoest and charmaineyoest

Posted at 7:55 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Management is getting things done through the active support of others.

These "others" are more than your direct reports. And they are key to the Manager's success.

In this six week course we will review how the experienced manager,

1) Gains the support of his network,
2) Practices followership as well as leadership, and

3)Trains his staff to be self-reliant, not boss-reliant

We will review strategies that women can use to break the glass ceiling.
Your Business Blogger(R)
interviewed in The Washington Post

Watch the video clips at the end for a preview: The One Minute Manager Meets The Monkey.

The class is perfect for the manager looking for his next assignment.

The best time to look for a job is when you have a job.

Question: But what if you don't have a job?

How to look?

And what to do meanwhile?

Answer: Go back to school.

Alert Reader, FaceBook and Twitter Friend, Janet, asks Your Business Blogger(R) about a common challenge:

What do I do about gaps in employment history; gaps on my resume?

If you are in this situation here's what the job seeker can do to 'mind the gap.'

Enroll in a course at your local community college.

Continuous learning is, well, continuous.

And it doesn't have to be expensive.

Here are three F.A.B.'s, the Features, Advantages and Benefits of going back to class.

If you have a job or not.

First Feature

Meet a professor

Advantage

Learn subject matter.
Learn presentation -- interview -- life skills.
Get referrals.

Benefit

Cheaper than a personal coach.
Get a character reference letter.
Get employed faster

Second Feature

Meet other inquisitive minds

Advantage

Expand your Friend contact database.
Challenge assumptions.
Increased network of contacts for job referrals.

Benefit

Faster learning.
Cheaper than a job placement agency.
Get employed faster

Third Feature

Regularly scheduled class times.

Advantage

Encourages the student to get out of bed, out of the house.
Provides structure to the job seekers' week.
Forces the student to walk past career counselors' office.

Benefit

Get more done in less time.
Spend less time in Starbucks.
Get employed faster.

The purpose of continuing education is the gaining of new knowledge, skills and abilities. But this is even more important when one is out of work. A perspective employer is going to ask you a number of questions.

The first interview question will be, "What are you doing now?"

The perfect answer is, "As I look for my next position, I am taking a business refresher course at my local community college."

Remember: the best time to find a job is when you are working -- going to class is your job.

You may be unemployed, but you are busy: You are using your time wisely while you look for work.

As it happens, the Northern Virginia Community College has the perfect solution to help you find your next job.

Sit in my class.

NOVA has openings in my Business 200 class, Principles of Management. We will meet every Monday & Wednesday nights at the Arlington Campus, near the Ballston Metro. Beginning July 1 for six weeks.

Alert Readers know that Your Business Blogger(R) charges outrageous fees for a two day management seminar.

The same instructor at NOVA will set you back about 100 bucks a credit hour or about 500 bucks fully loaded for a three credit-hour class.

Course topics covered in Principles of Management:

1. Intro to Management
2. History of Management
3. Organizational Environments and Culture
4. Ethics and Social Responsibility
5. Planning and Decision Making
6. Organizational Strategy
7. Innovation and Change
8. Global Management
9. Designing Adaptive Organizations
10. Managing Teams
11. Managing Human Resource System
12. Managing Individuals and a Diverse Workforce
13. Motivation
14. Leadership
15. Managing Communication
16. Control
17. Managing Information
18. Managing Service and Manufacturing Operations

Call now to register. Operators are standing by.

Or apply on-line.

JYoest@NVCC.edu www.Yoest.com

This after hours, summer evening class is the perfect career-management strategy and allows the attendee to job-hunt early in the day.

Come join my class. And get employed faster.

Thank you (foot)notes:

For more on your job search: tattoos, lying, resume enhancement and trick questions follow links below.

Read Job Search? PASS This Test

See how "Sarah" is getting it right. To get your next job, assignment or project PASS this test! See how the mythical composite Sarah learned new behaviors to find new opportunities.

As first appeared in The Daily Progress, Charlottesville, Virginia, January 20, 2002

To get a job, first get a plan and then get busy...

Your Business Blogger(R) is of a certain age from a certain generation with teenage children and is confused by various body art. I do not understand tattoos. (Except on my dad, who was in the Navy...) A future employer also may not understand body art. Not even Starbucks. Tiny URL: http://tiny.cc/4FMr3

What is the first question hiring managers ask themselves? Get a Blog; Get Hired -- And the First Question

Be sure to ask some questions in your job interview, Job Interview: 3 Questions for Your Prospective Boss.

The Lie: A Guide to Fibbing in the Job Interview, it's not what you think.

Here's what your interviewer is really looking for, Job Interview: How To Tell If the Candidate Will Lie, Cheat, Steal?

There is actually controversy on hiring competence, Hiring Super Stars vs Tolerating Turkeys

Yes, High School still counts. Forever. What's the One Best Question to Ask a Job Candidate?

Why Were You Really Hired? The Two Qualities That Count.

Follow me on Twitter: @jackyoest

Watch The One Minute Manager Meets the Monkey; short video
Part One

Watch the other videos at the jump.

Continue Reading »

Posted at 9:35 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

The Editorial page writer at The Washington Times has done some valuable research that will advance the debate on Sotomayor. The nominee is not Pro-Life.

EDITORIAL: Sotomayor's abortion ties, Don't believe disinformation that she's pro-life

The most basic evidence of the judge's support for Roe comes in the triple combination of White House assurances to that effect, of pro-choice senators declaring after meeting with her that they are sure she agrees with them, and of her entire jurisprudential approach of broadly construing anything characterized as "women's rights."



Other evidence is more direct. Consider that from 1980 until October 1992, Judge Sotomayor served on the board -- at times as vice president and at times as chairman of the litigation committee -- of the Puerto Rican Legal Defense and Education Fund. The New York Times in 1992 described her as "a top policy maker on the board." During that time period, the fund filed briefs in not one, not two, but at least six prominent court cases in strong support of "abortion rights."

Join Fight FOCA

Thank you (foot)notes:

Read Sotomayor: Who Sleeps Better at Night, AUL or NARAL?

Follow Jack and Charmaine on Twitter: @jackyoest and @charmaineyoest

Posted at 9:26 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Alert Readers following Your Business Blogger(R) on Twitter know that Charmaine has recently hired some world-class talent.

Where does she look for the best people?

The blogosphere.

Dawn Eden Senior Fellow, Publications and New Media Outreach

Start a blog. Follow on Twitter. You might find a job. An employer might find you.

From an AUL press release,

Author and Blogger Dawn Eden Joins Americans United for Life,

Washington, DC -- Dawn Eden has joined Americans United for Life (AUL) as Senior Fellow, Publications and New Media Outreach. Her focus will be on writing and research to promote AUL's legal expertise through both traditional media and "new media" outlets.

Dr. Charmaine Yoest, AUL President & CEO commented: "I am very pleased Dawn is joining our team. As a best-selling author and award-winning journalist, she brings a strong set of skills to the AUL team. With her dedication to the pro-life cause, Dawn will be a key part of our efforts to protect human life."

Miss Eden said: "It is my honor to join the team at AUL, America's oldest national pro-life organization. AUL is known for its unparalleled expertise across the spectrum of life issues and for its demonstrated success in motivating the grassroots. My goal as Senior Fellow is to expand the organization's publications and media presence in ways that will increase the public's recognition and support of not only AUL, but the entire pro-life movement."

Miss Eden is author of The Thrill of the Chaste (2006), a guide for young adults on being counterculturally virtuous. Now in its eighth printing, the book has been translated into Spanish, Polish, and Chinese.

A graduate of New York University, Miss Eden began her career as a music journalist in New York City. In 2004, she was awarded the Associated Press' top award for her work as a copy editor and headline writer for the New York Post.

In February 2002, she became a pro-life blogger (The Dawn Patrol), and has since contributed articles on politics and culture to the Wall Street Journal and National Review Online. In addition, she has been featured on NBC's "Today" and on EWTN, and has spoken throughout North America, England, Ireland, Poland, and Australia.

Get a job, start a blog.

Be sure to follow Jack and Charmaine on Twitter; jackyoest; charmaineyoest

Posted at 9:52 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Alert Readers following on Twitter know that Americans United for Life is making numerous key, high talent, hires,

Top Radio Talk-Show Producer Heather Smith Joins Americans United for Life.

Washington, DC -- Heather Smith has joined Americans United for Life (AUL) as Director of Communications. Her focus will be to oversee corporate communications including traditional media, internet, and new media.

Dr. Charmaine Yoest, AUL President & CEO commented: "I am very pleased Heather is joining our team. As a veteran producer of radio, television, and film, she brings a wealth of experience and an insider's perspective to our communications efforts."

Miss Smith said: "It is a great honor to join the foremost pro-life organization in the country. I look forward to expanding AUL's media outreach and working with the AUL legal team toward our goal of seeing a nation in which everyone is welcomed in life and protected in law."

She has produced three top-10 nationally syndicated radio programs: The G. Gordon Liddy Show, The Laura Ingraham Show, and most recently, The Lars Larson Show. She has also worked at FOX News Channel, where she produced Weekend Live with Tony Snow and FOX News Live, and booked guests for FOX's breaking news special programming. In addition, she has produced film documentaries hosted by former Speaker of the House Newt Gingrich and by Dick Morris. Previously she booked interviews for WFLA-AM's The Shannon Burke Show and worked on several documentaries for PBS and History Channel.

Miss Smith has been in front of the microphone as well, having begun her media career in 1997 as an alternative rock disc jockey and radio talk show host. She has also been interviewed on FOX News Channel, CNN, MSNBC, and nationally syndicated talk radio programs about grassroots-activism campaigns she oversaw in Florida.

Please join us in welcoming Heather Smith to the Pro-Life professional legal-eagles at Americans United for Life.

Posted at 10:51 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Following is a movie review by Your Business Blogger(R) originally published by the Scripps Howard News Service. Get updates on Twitter.

WHY SAVING PRIVATE RYAN FALLS SHORT

By JOHN WESLEY YOEST JR.

"Please tell me I've been a good man," Private Ryan tearfully begs his wife when, as an old man, he visits the grave of the man who died for him. "Tell me I've led a good life."

Well frankly, Ryan, your life probably wasn't all that special. At least not good enough for another man to die in your place. No man is "good enough," no man is truly worthy of the ultimate sacrifice. In his heart, Ryan knows this. And so do we.

But as Hollywood prepares to honor the depictions of sacrifice in the movie "Saving Private Ryan," it's worth reflecting on true worth of that ultimate gesture. ...

...There is an Unknown God that we all seek. Speilberg was on to truth in depicting Captain Miller as "the teacher," a rabbi, a Christ-figure. In its final moments, the movie reveals its allegory of man's yearning for Christ. Only in this context does "Saving Private Ryan" make sense. Private Ryan cheated death, but he didn't cheat eternity. Was he good enough? No man is good enough.

In the end, Ryan falls to his knees before his savior's grave feeling his unworthiness. Asking in anguish the movie's central question: was I worthy? The only answer Speilberg leaves us with is a silently waving flag and Ryan's hollow cry ... I tried to be a good man! The difference between saying "I was a good man" and admitting, "I am not worthy" may seem slight. But traversing the chasm between the two provides the true liberation Ryan was seeking.

In Spielberg's movie, Ryan is saved by Everyman. But the captain's grave provided no ultimate answers. For salvation, Ryan should have kneeled before an empty grave.

Read the rest at the jump.

Dog tags with P38
Service Number blurred

Thank you (foot)notes:

Originally published by
the Scripps Howard News Service






Also titled

The Salvation of Private Ryan by The Virginian Pilot.

Continue Reading »

Posted at 8:04 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Alert Readers following on Twitter know that Charmaine has been in a number of media interviews.

Sometimes as a source.

Sometimes as a target.

See her quote in USA Today this morning on the Sotomayor nomination,

Sotomayor, a trial judge for six years and appellate judge for 11, has not ruled on a case involving Roe v. Wade. She has decided a few cases at the fringes of the issue, yet those defy predictions.

On Wednesday, Feinstein explained why she will persist on the abortion rights question: "I remember what it was like when abortion was illegal, and the lives of young desperate women were in jeopardy." She said she worries that "Americans no longer appreciate what it would mean if (abortion rights) were taken away."

Nominees usually elude such questions during their hearings.

"I don't have concerns about this nominee in the sense that I think there is something on the record (against abortion rights)," says Nancy Northup, president of the Center for Reproductive Rights. "We just think it's important for Supreme Court nominees to say where they stand."

Charmaine Yoest, president of Americans United for Life, agrees. While observing that she and Northup both see nothing definitive in Sotomayor's record, Yoest says, "I think Nancy's probably sleeping a little better at night."

JULIE HIRSCHFELD DAVIS at AP interviewed Charmaine for GOP leader doesn't rule out Sotomayor filibuster

Abortion-rights opponents circulated a 1988 legal brief joined by the PRLDEF that took a position in strong support of abortion rights and argued strenuously against dismantling the underpinnings of Roe v. Wade, the 1973 ruling that established a woman's right to end her pregnancy.

The brief, submitted to the Supreme Court to support a challenge to a Missouri law making it illegal to use public officials or facilities for abortions, warns of "the danger of tampering with the core framework of Roe v. Wade." The brief said doing so would disproportionately harm poor women of color. The high court ultimately upheld the Missouri law in the case, Webster v. Reproductive Health Services.

There is no evidence or indication that Sotomayor had any role in drafting the brief, or the PRLDEF's decision to join it. Cesar A. Perales, now the group's president, said its board has never been involved in deciding which cases the organization takes on or matters of litigation. Board members sometimes do, however, help decide which legal issues the organization should focus on, Perales said.

But abortion-rights opponents said the brief raises questions about Sotomayor's stance on Roe.

"It's explicitly a pro-abortion argument," said Charmaine Yoest of Americans United for Life. "That specific case makes it very difficult for her to say that she doesn't have a position" on abortion rights.

Other citations on Sotomayor,

CitizenLink reports,

In a recent poll commissioned by Americans United for Life, 69 percent of respondents said they do not want a Supreme Court justice who opposes "making it illegal for someone to take a girl younger than the age of 18 across state lines to obtain abortions without her parents' knowledge."

Charmaine Yoest, president of Americans United for Life, a public-interest law and policy organization, said in a statement that "for all the president's talk of finding 'common ground,' this appointment completely contradicts that hollow promise." Without explaining why, Yoest said Sotomayor's "judicial philosophy undermines common ground" and called her "a radical pick that divides America."

Be sure to follow on Twitter, Jack and Charmaine.

Posted at 6:57 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Here is a tactic that Saul Alinski, mentor to president Obama and author of Rules for Radicals, would endorse: ridicule. This is difficult -- comedy is hard work -- and does not come easy for the good-guys to use. But Dr. George pulls it off.

"I am personally opposed to killing abortionists. However, inasmuch as my personal opposition to this practice is rooted in sectarian (Catholic) religious belief in the sanctity of human life, I am unwilling to impose it on others who may, as a matter of conscience, take a different view.

Of course, I am entirely in favor of policies aimed at removing the root causes of violence against abortionists. Indeed, I would go as far as supporting mandatory one-week waiting periods, and even non-judgmental counseling, for people who are contemplating the choice of killing an abortionist.

I believe in policies that reduce the urgent need some people feel to kill abortionists while, at the same time, respecting the rights of conscience of my fellow citizens who believe that the killing of abortionists is sometimes a tragic necessity--not a good, but a lesser evil.

In short, I am moderately 'pro-choice.'"

--Prof. Robert P. George

Posted at 12:05 PM | Permalink | Comments (1)

Be sure to get Charrmaine's media updates on Twitter from Your Business Blogger(R) and @charmaineyoest

Pro-life leaders, groups condemn murder of Kansas abortion doctor, By Chaz Muth at the Catholic News Service reports,

WASHINGTON - Pro-life advocates universally condemned the May 31 murder of a Kansas abortion doctor, with officials from several U.S. right-to-life groups saying such extreme acts only hurt the pro-life cause.

"We condemn this lawless act of violence," said Charmaine Yoest, president of the Americans United for Life. "The foundational right to life that our work is dedicated to extends to everyone. Whoever is responsible for this reprehensible violence must be brought to justice under the law."

Dr. George Tiller, 67, of Wichita, Kan., was fatally shot while serving as an usher at the city's Formation Lutheran Church during morning services, according to The Associated Press

David Brody at CBN reports, Randall Terry Is Not Spokesman for Pro-Life Movement,

Let's start with a reality check. Randall Terry does not speak for the broader pro-life movement. It's important to note that just because Randall Terry from Operation Rescue speaks out forcefully againt abortion doctor George Tiller that does not mean his sentiment is shared among mainstream pro-life groups.

You don't need to believe me. Just compare Operation Rescue's website with Concerned Women for America or Americans United for Life and on and on. The sanctity of life message is the underlying theme but the tactics and language are different. Much different.

Colleen Raezler at NewsBusters reports
Media: Tiller a Martyr, Abortion Not Killing and Pro-Lifers are Crazy

Tiller as Abortion Rights Martyr

Broadcast networks painted Tiller as a man willing to die in defense of women's rights.

All of the broadcast coverage noted past attempts people have made to disrupt Tiller's work - a bombing of his clinic in the 1980s and a 1993 attack in which he was shot in both arms - which, while pertinent to the story, also increased the aura of martyrdom that now surrounds him.
...
Statements from major pro-life organizations revealed a different story: that the pro-life community truly views all loss of human life as a tragedy.

Charmaine Yoest, president and CEO of Americans United for Life, said "The foundational right to life that our work is dedicated to extends to everyone."

Opposing Views has Murder Not Justified, Pro-Life Leaders Say, By Baptist Press , News With a Christian Perspective

Among those issuing statements condemning the killing were representatives of the Southern Baptist Ethics & Religious Liberty Commission, National Right to Life Committee, Americans United for Life, Family Research Council, Focus on the Family, Concerned Women for America, Care Net, Susan B. Anthony List, U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops, American Life League, Operation Rescue, Christian Defense Coalition, 40 Days for Life, Stand True, Priests for Life and Pro-life Action League.

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Thank you (foot)notes:

Follow Jack and Charmaine on Twitter, @jackyoest and @charmaineyoest

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