Obama to sign executive order banning federal funds for abortion

President Obama said he will issue an executive order after the House passes its controversial health care reform bill that “will reaffirm its consistency with longstanding restrictions on the use of federal funds for abortion,” the White House said in a statement.

“While the legislation as written maintains current law, the executive order provides additional safeguards to ensure that the status quo is upheld and enforced, and that the health care legislation’s restrictions against the public funding of abortions cannot be circumvented,” the White House said in the statement.

Meanwhile, Rep. Bart Stupak, D-Mich., a key swing vote announced he folded and will vote for the health care bill.