Prominent Pro-Lifer Appointed to Key HHS Post

And the left wing is going nuts:

President Barack Obama has tapped an anti-abortion activist to a senior Health and Human Services "faith-based" position just a week after the murder of prominent abortion doctor George Tiller.

Alexia Kelley is executive director of Catholics in Alliance for the Common Good (CACG), and will head the Center for Faith-Based and Neighborhood Partnerships at the Department of Health and Human Services.

According to The American Prospect, a liberal magazine, "Kelley is a leading proponent of 'common ground' abortion reduction -- only CACG's common ground is at odds with that of Obama. While the administration favors reducing the need for abortion by reducing unintended pregnancies, Kelley has made clear that she seeks instead to reduce access to abortion."

Kelley's appointment appears yet more salient in lieu of the fact that President Obama has expanded the faith-based project of the executive branch to include public policy -- with an eye toward reducing the need for abortions.

But a Prospect blogger, Sarah Posner, points out that opposition to the nomination can be found simply in an argument that "reproductive health is a public health, not a religious issue."

"Obama finds himself now in the difficult position of having elevated the importance of religion to making policy, and having appointed a religious figure whose opinions on policy conflict with his," the blogger notes.

Catholics for Choice criticized the pick in a press release, Posner notes.

"The Department of Health and Human Services is responsible for providing and expanding access to key sexual and reproductive health services," the group said. "As such, we need those working in HHS to rely on evidence-based methods to reduce the need for abortion. We need them to believe in men's and women's capacity to make moral decisions about their own lives. Unfortunately, as seen from her work at CACG, Ms. Kelley does not fit the bill."

News of the announcement also comes as some liberals are questioning Sotomayor's pro-choice credentials. Her silence on the issue has drawn support from key figures on the right -- among them conservative activist Bill Donahue has said he'll "quietly root" for Sotomayor.

This is all kind of fun to watch.