Democrats in the Senate Armed Services Committee, yesterday, voted to add a provision to the 2013 defense authorization bill, that forces taxpayers to fund abortions at U.S. military base hospitals.

Current law in effect since 1996 prohibits the performance of abortion by Department of Defense medical personnel or at DOD medical facilities. A separate provision prohibits the use of DOD funds for abortion except to save the life of the mother.

The issue of abortions done at military base medical centers has been around for two decades. When ex-President Clinton allowed abortions in military facilities from 1993 to 1996, all military physicians (as well as many nurses and supporting personnel) refused to perform or assist in elective abortions. In response, the Clinton administration attempted to hire civilians to do abortions...

Colorodo Republican Rep. Doug Lamborn is skipping Tuesday night's State of the Union speech in a protest of President Obama's policies over so-called recess appointments, rejection of the Keystone pipeline, deficit spending and "draconian" cuts to the defense budget that were negotiated in the debt ceiling deal last summer.

The three-term lawmaker said he has never passed on a presidential address to a joint session of Congress, but this year’s speech is different because President Obama is "in full campaign mode and will use the address as an opportunity to bash his political opponents"...

Seeking to outflank Democrats, House Republicans announced early Thursday morning they had introduced a new 1,219-page spending bill to keep the government open past Friday, when current funding is scheduled to run out.

At a total of $915 billion in discretionary spending, the bill amounts to $750.6 million per page and funds the vast majority of government operations, from defense to homeland security to federal parks.

The bill is a direct challenge to Democrats and the White House, which late Wednesday called on Congress to pass a short-term stopgap spending bill to buy more time to negotiate a payroll tax cut deal.

In a statement, White House communications director Dan Pfeiffer said President Obama has “significant concerns” about the broad spending bill, which he said would cut away at Mr.

WASHINGTON – The House has passed a $662 billion defense bill after the White House dropped a veto threat over provisions on handling terrorist suspects.

The vote Wednesday evening was 283-136.

The White House said Friday it was standing firm on President Obama’s threat to veto a sweeping defense policy bill approved by the Senate over language dealing with the treatment and prosecution of terrorism suspects, one day after the Senate defied Mr. Obama and passed a provision giving the military first crack at detaining al Qaeda operatives.

White House spokesman Jay Carney accused the Senate of “political micromanagement” that jeopardizes national security and the work of counterterrorism professionals in fighting terrorists.

“Our position has not changed,” Mr. Carney told reporters at Friday’s briefing. “Any bill that challenges or constrains the president’s critical authorities to collect intelligence, incapacitate dangerous terrorists and protect the nation would prompt his senior advisers to recommend a veto. So we’ll see how this progresses.”

The language in question gives the U.S.

The Senate may vote as early today on the 2011 defense authorization bill that contains language turning military base hospitals into abortion facilities.

The legislation contains the Burris amendment which would overturn longstanding pro-life law prohibiting the performance of abortions at taxpayer-funded military bases.

Earlier this year, a Senate committee approved the amendment sponsored by outgoing Sen. Rolland Burris, an Illinois Democrat. Current law prohibits abortions at the taxpayer-funded base hospitals both in the United States and abroad, but abortion advocates are rallying support for the legislation to overturn it...

A Mississippi senator says he will fight against the efforts of Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid and other Democrats to break a GOP filibuster of the Defense Authorization Act because it contains an amendment designed to repeal the 1993 law that bans homosexuals from serving in the military.

Reid has scheduled a vote next week on the Senate version of the bill, which contains language to repeal the law known as Section 654, Title 10 that says homosexuality incompatible with military service, but has often been confused with Bill Clinton's "don't ask, don't tell" policy.

Mississippi Senator Roger Wicker, a member of the Senate Armed Services Committee, opposes changing the law...

Washington, DC (LifeNews.com) -- Members of the U.S. Senate will vote next week on whether to stop a filibuster against that bill containing a provision allowing abortions at taxpayer-funded American military bases. Republicans, perhaps joined by a Democrat or two, are filibustering the bill funding the Defense Department.

They are doing so for a number of political reasons -- including the fact that the bill contains an amendment allowing abortions at all worldwide U.S. military base hospitals.

The amendment, sponsored by pro-abortion Sen. Rolland Burris of Illinois, would have the military break with current longstanding policy disallowing abortions...

(CNSNews.com) - Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) said he intends to bring the DREAM Act as an amendment to the Defense Authorization bill expected to be taken up by the Senate next week. He said Congress is unable to pass comprehensive immigration reform because Republicans who supported it such legislation during the last session “left us.”

“I think it’s really important that we move forward on this legislation I’ve tried to work on," Reid said at a news conference on Tuesday. "I know we can’t do comprehensive immigration reform. I’ve tried to, I’ve tried so very, very hard. I’ve tried different iterations of this, but those Republicans we had in the last Congress have left us,” Reid said at the Capitol Hill news conference...