"First we passed a comprehensive bill in the state Senate with flying colors.  We sent it over to the state House of Representatives.  Now if I was trying to be politically correct, I would say there was a great deal of `political maneuvering' going on.  But the truth is . . . we were lied to repeatedly.  Promises were made and then broken . . . over and over and over again.  It wasn't until we put on a full court press, mobilizing public outcry from every corner of the state, that we finally prevailed."

Since Mrs. Listing is a class act, she didn't name names.  But then again, she didn't have to because RTL of MI's lack of endorsement of Dillon speaks volumes as to who was doing the lying.

Speaker Dillon - another "Catholic" going the way of Governor Jennifer Granholm when it comes to abortion - has acted shamefully and betrayed his unborn sisters and brothers.  

The reason for Dillon's betrayal is two-fold.  First, he knew that the ban would pass and be sent to pro-abortion Gov. Granholm, who would be "forced" to veto it in order to appease her masters in the Michigan abortion industry (which she ended up doing).  

If Gov. Dimwit actually acted like the Harvard lawyer she now-and-then claims to be and let the constitutionally-permissible ban become law, her pro-abortion supporters would have an aneurysm and she would lose what remaining base of support she has in the state.      

Secondly, Dillon knew that unless he played games with RTL of MI on the partial-birth abortion ban, he would face a nasty challenge from a pro-abortion lunatic (read Rep. Alma Wheeler-Smith from the 54th District) for the Speakership after this November's general election.  

For example, when over 300 pro-life activists showed-up at the capitol this spring, the supposedly pro-life Dillon sent none other than Rep. Rebekah Warren (D-53rd District) out to negotiate with them! (See pro-life state Rep., and now U.S. Senate candidate, Jack Hoogendyk's blog post: http://coreprinciples.blogspot.com/2008/05/cost-of-getting-good-pro-life.html)

Say what?  "Pro-life" Dillon sent Warren - the former executive director of the Michigan Abortion Rights Action League - to negotiate with grassroots pro-lifers over getting the partial-birth abortion ban passed!  

That's like sending a wolf to talk to the sheep over what the wolf is going to eat for dinner - it's a one-sided conversation that inevitably ends up badly for the sheep.  Shame on Dillon for treating pro-lifers with such disrespect!          

Dillon may still face a fight for his job as Speaker of the House, if the Democrats maintain control of the House, but the battle may be more of a nuisance than a serious challenge to his power, given his willingness to buck RTL of MI while at the same time throwing just enough crumbs to the pro-abortion fanatics to keep them off his back.  

In the end, Dillon earned RTL of MI's lack of endorsement this year.  

As Jesus said, "For what does it profit a man to gain the whole world, and forfeit his soul?" Mark 8:36.

Think about that one, Speaker Dillon, next time you are at Sunday Mass, staring into space and fantasizing about your next political move.

About the author: Andrew Shirvell, Esq., is a pro-life citizen activist who writes a weekly column that is published every Thursday for RightMichigan.com in which he focuses upon Michigan pro-life issues. He is the co-author of "Michigan Law and the Scales of Justice, Life in the Balance," a white paper published by Americans United for Life (2007).  Shirvell attended Ave Maria School of Law - Ann Arbor, where he served as president of the school's Bioethics Society, from 2004-2005.  He also served as president of Students for Life at the University of Michigan - Ann Arbor, from 2000-2002.