Santorum Campaign Press Release - Mitt Romney's First Reaction Is to Say He's Opposed to a Bill that Protects Religious Freedoms -- Knowing Romney's Record, It's Troubling

Verona, PA - Senator Roy Blunt (R-MO) and Marco Rubio (R-FL) proposed legislation that would prevent the government from forcing religious institutions to provide services against their faith doctrine. Today, former Massachusetts Governor Mitt Romney said he would oppose it. When Mitt Romney had the chance, he forced Massachusetts Catholic hospitals to go against their private beliefs and provide morning after abortion pills to patients.  All the candidates are entitled to make misstatements here and there - but this is a much deeper issue.

Hogan Gidley, National Communications Director, said: "As Governor, Mitt Romney has a clear record of taking away the freedom of religion.  We all know Romney's liberal record on this, so when he's asked a question about a bill that would protect our religious freedom - and Romney's gut reaction is to say he'd oppose it - we shouldn't be the least bit surprised."

 On the other hand, Rick Santorum was asked the same question, but he wasn't confused because Rick Santorum has consistently supported religious freedoms."

ROMNEY'S GOVERNMENT INFRINGEMENT ON RELIGIOUS CONSCIENCE

Governor Romney's own hallmark achievement, RomneyCare, forced Catholic Hospitals to provide contraceptive services. "C.J. Doyle, executive director of the Catholic Action League of Massachusetts, told the Boston Globe that Romney's criticism of President Obama is hypocritical because as governor he did not lift the state-level requirement of contraception coverage.  "The initial injury to Catholic religious freedom came not from the Obama administration, but from the Romney administration," Doyle said." (Jim Meyers, "Romneycare Required Anti-Catholic Regulations Like ObamaCare," NewsMax, February 7, 2012, http://www.newsmax.com/Newsfront/Romneycare-Obamacare-Catholic-birth/2012/02/07/id/428686)

Romney "Lied" About Forcing Catholic Hospitals to Provide Abortifacients

By Quin Hillyer, The American Spectator

http://spectator.org/blog/2012/02/23/romney-lied-about-forcing-cath

This report from the "Boston Catholic Insider" is so well documented, so well laid out chronologically, that I have no reason to doubt its veracity. It shows overwhelmingly that Newt Gingrich and Rick Santorum have been correct in accusing Mitt Romney of personally forcing Catholic hospitals into the requirement to provide abortifacients (morning after pills, specifically).