The recent meeting at the Vatican between Governor JB Pritzker and Pope Leo raises troubling questions about the Church’s moral witness. It is difficult for faithful Catholics to understand why the pope would choose to sit down with a politician who has so strongly embraced the culture of death surrounding abortion and euthanasia. Earlier this year, Pritzker expanded state taxpayer complicity in abortion by allocating 23 million dollars to expand abortion services and support funds for those traveling to Illinois for abortion, making his state of Illinois a regional hub for patients traveling from restrictive states. This means taxpayer funds are directly used to subsidize abortion for the state’s residents — and those traveling from other states.

Illinois is one of the few states where Medicaid covers all abortions, including elective procedures, not just cases of rape, incest, or life endangerment. Planned Parenthood of Illinois reports that 30 percent of its revenue (about $16 million) comes from Medicaid reimbursements. To help meet that need, Pritzker announced more than $23 million in new funding for abortion access, including a hotline and expanded services to handle the influx of patients traveling from restrictive states. Since Roe v. Wade was overturned in 2022, Illinois has become a regional hub for abortion, with clinics reporting a 40–45 percent increase in patients, about 25 percent of whom come from out of state. …

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