Capital Punishment, Abortion and Gavin Newsom

Capital punishment and abortion are two issues that are strongly opposed by the Catholic Church.  Both involve the taking of a human life, albeit under very different circumstances.   It is also interesting to note that Catholic politicians (both those who actively practice the faith and those who just identify as Catholic) take varying stances on these life issues.  

Capital punishment is the government’s deliberate taking of a human life as a punishment for crimes committed.  In our country, capital punishment is imposed upon a human for such crimes as murder, treason, espionage, and murder committed during the commission of another serious crime such as rape or sexual assault.  A person can only be sentenced to capital punishment by a jury, not by an individual judge or panel of judges.  Capital punishment is carried out only after the human being has been afforded due process not only in a trial court but also in various appellate courts.  Great exertions are made to protect the Constitutional rights of that human being.  Many years, even decades, transpire between the crime committed and the carrying out of the sentence of capital punishment.  Indeed, most persons sentenced to capital punishment die in prison of natural causes before their death sentence can be carried out.  One can rightfully argue that those condemned to a death sentence have brought this upon themselves through the commission of some heinous crime or crimes.  They are judged as an irreconcilable danger to society. 

 
Abortion is the deliberate taking of a human life by medical professionals, most often with the full consent of the mother, though in many cases the mother is pressured to do so by others.  The actual person whose life is being taken is the pre-born baby in the womb.  The pre-born baby is not afforded any due process or role in the decision-making process that ultimately ends his or her life before he or she is born.  Following conception, a mother may decide to abort her baby and actually carry through with that decision weeks or even days or hours after deciding to end her baby’s life.  Abortion is performed by medical professionals and business entities, most notoriously Planned Parenthood.  Indeed, abortion providers like Planned Parenthood profit off the killing of pre-born babies, all the while obfuscating what they actually do behind clever euphemisms, deceptive marketing and well orchestrated political and public relations campaigns.  Pre-born babies are the most innocent of persons.  They are helpless victims of circumstances behind their control.  They are judged as an inconvenience and a hinderance for many women who seek abortions and a source of profit for businesses like Planned Parenthood.

 
The Catholic Church rightfully opposes both capital punishment (see paragraph 2267 of The Catechism of the Catholic Church) and abortion (see paragraphs 2270-2272 of the Catechism of the Catholic Church).  “Since the first century, the Church has affirmed the moral evil of every procured abortion,” states the Catechism (paragraph 2271).  Pope Francis I in particular is a very vocal opponent of both capital punishment and abortion.  In the summer of 2018, Pope Francis I amended the Catechism to strengthen the Church’s opposition to capital punishment adding the phrase “the death penalty is inadmissible because it is an attack on the inviolability and dignity of the person” to paragraph 2267. (See https://www.archstl.org/pope-revises-catechism-to-say-death-penalty-is-inadmissible-2755  )  

 
Catholic politicians, both those who practice the faith and those who just identify as Catholic, have varied opinions on these two life issues.  Some Catholic politicians oppose capital punishment but support abortion; some Catholic politicians support capital punishment but oppose abortion.  There are also varying degrees to which Catholic politicians support or oppose one or both of these issues.

I know that Gavin Newsom is Governor of the State of California but I didn’t know that he is Catholic or maybe I forgot that he is Catholic.  

 
In mid-May 2024, Governor Newsom was a keynote speaker for the Vatican’s Climate Summit. Newsom is a very energetic proponent of efforts against climate change.  Our current Pope has made climate change a major priority for his papacy, and so Newsom’s invitation to speak at this Climate Change is not surprising.  

 
In addition to his vigorous actions on climate change, Governor Newsom is also a vigorous opponent of capital punishment, which has brought him praise from Pope Francis.   While in Rome for the Climate Summit, Governor Newsom met personally with Pope Francis.  “I was struck by how he immediately brought up the issue of the death penalty and how proud he was of the work we’re doing in California,” Newsom said following his encounter with the Pope. (See https://www.latimes.com/california/story/2024-05-19/newsom-walks-away-from-the-vatican-with-popes-approval-on-death-penalty  )

At the same time that Governor Newsom is such a vigorous opponent of capital punishment, Governor Newsom is also a vigorous promoter of abortion.  Apparently this glaring contradiction is being overlooked or ignored by Pope Francis and the Vatican.  Newsom’s zealous promotion of abortion should have been enough to bar him from speaking at any Vatican event.

 
Soon after the landmark 2022 U.S. Supreme Court decision Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization overturned the infamous Roe v. Wade decision which legalized abortion in 1973, Governor Newsom not only spearheaded efforts to keep abortion legal in California but he also led efforts to encourage, even attract, women from other states to have abortions in his state.  “Abortion is legal in California,” Newsom proudly proclaimed in a June 2022 post on X (Twitter).  “It will remain that way.  I just signed a bill that makes our state a safe haven for women across the nation.” https://x.com/GavinNewsom/status/1540440016605679616  

 
California, among other states, experienced a significant surge in abortions after the Dobbs decision.  For the twelve months following Dobbs, California had an average of over 700 more abortions per month than the state had in the twelve months preceding that decision. (See https://societyfp.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/10/WeCountReport_10.16.23.pdf  ) .  “The state of California has become home to abortion tourism, revealed a new #WeCount report released by the Society of Family Planning,” wrote Alia Doll and Nathan Silva in a October 2023 article published by USC Annenberg Media (See https://www.uscannenbergmedia.com/2023/10/24/california-sees-surge-in-abortions-reproductive-healthcare-post-dobbs/  ) .   “Hundreds of pregnant women have come to California seeking help. Since the Dobbs ruling, Planned Parenthood Mar Monte has seen a 300% increase in out-of-state patients at its clinics, with the largest increase in San Jose, Oakland, Sacramento and Fresno,” declared a June 2023 article in the Mercury News and proudly posted on the website of Planned Parenthood of Orange and San Bernardino Counties (See https://www.plannedparenthood.org/planned-parenthood-orange-san-bernardino/about-us/news/one-year-post-roe-california-abortion-advocates-forge-ahead-to-protect-access  ) 

 
Just a few days ago, Governor Newsom signed legislation enabling Arizona doctors to perform abortions in California in anticipation of the State of Arizona enacting a near total ban on abortions in Arizona. (See https://www.gov.ca.gov/2024/05/23/governor-newsom-signs-bill-to-protect-abortion-care-for-arizona-patients-in-california/  ) . So Newsom is not only attracting mothers to come to California to have abortions but also attracting and enabling Arizona abortion doctors to come to California to perform abortions. 

 
There is nothing unusual about a “Catholic” politician like Gavin Newsom rejecting Catholic teachings on abortion.  Numerous “Catholic” politicians like Nancy Pelosi, Joe Biden, and Andrew Cuomo have been rejecting these Church teachings for years.  

 
I am not surprised that Pope Francis is proud of California for its opposition to the death penalty.  Again, he is a very vocal opponent of capital punishment  I am wondering, though, if the Pope is also proud of California (and Governor Newsom) for its promotion of the death penalty for the unborn, ie. abortion.  

 
There is an appalling contradiction in Gavin Newsom’s view of the world.  Apparently in his view, it is abhorrent to put to death persons who have been convicted in a court of law of heinous crimes but it is perfectly acceptable to put to death the most innocent and vulnerable of persons — pre-born babies in the womb.