Contact: Thomas C. Strobhar, 937-306-1402

FRONT ROYAL, Va., Dec. 20, 2016 /Christian Newswire/ -- Any good pro-life activist who has read the December 7, 2016, statement by 2ndVote is certainly filled with Christmas joy. And not just because it is that time of year. The announcement that Macy's Inc. has agreed to stop funding Planned Parenthood, including through its corporate Matching Gift Program, was a virtual "Miracle on 2ndVote Street." But according to Thomas C. Strobhar, chairman of Life Decisions International (LDI) and a corporate investment specialist, "2ndVote has not been completely open and honest" with pro-life advocates. He pointed to several problems with the "fake news" being generated by the relatively new group.

2ndVOTE: "In the spirit of thankfulness and celebration that comes this time of year," reads the 2ndVote announcement, "we have a special update that our research team recently made to the company scorepage for Macy's and our Planned Parenthood resource page…Macy's confirmed with 2ndVote last week that the company no longer gives and no longer matches donations to Planned Parenthood."

FACT: Macy's has not given direct grants to Planned Parenthood for more than a decade. Macy's has not matched employee donations to the abortion-committing group for over a year. Due to mandated cost-cutting, Macy's decided to end all grant-making in two general categories. Planned Parenthood happened to be in one of the categories. It was done across-the-board so the decision affected many nonprofits; not just Planned Parenthood. As noted, this took place more than a year ago.

2ndVOTE: Per LifeNews, "After today, pro-life customers can resume shopping at Macy's… But today representatives of a pro-life group that tracks corporate donations to the Planned Parenthood abortion organization says Macy's has ended his [sic] relationship with it."

FACT: The statement infers the company decision was made just days ago. As noted above, it was not. Similar statements regarding the false timing of the Macy's decision appear in virtually every statement released on matter.

2ndVOTE: Per LifeNews, Macy's "had been on a list of corporate contributors to the Planned Parenthood abortion company for some time."

FACT: Including Macy's on any list of Planned Parenthood supporters is grossly inaccurate and, thus, unfair to a company that long ago decided to do the right thing. Needless-to-say, such inaccuracies significantly damage the reputation of pro-life activists who believe basic Christian integrity calls us to release only 100 percent factual information to the public.

2ndVOTE: "In the spirit of thankfulness and celebration that comes this time of year, we have a special update to share with you… Well, we are happy to report that we can take another company off that list—Macy's, who confirmed with 2ndVote last week that they no longer give nor match donations to Planned Parenthood."

FACT: Once again, the implication is that the "update" is based on new information. It is not. 2ndVote also implies it had something to do with the corporation's decision. It did not. In fact, 2ndVote has opened Macy's up to a possible pro-abortion backlash, such as that experienced by the Komen Foundation several years ago. Every time a group openly claims "credit" for a corporate decision, it puts pro-abortion activists in a "we can't let them get away with this" mode. Pro-lifers become their own worst enemy; not by shooting themselves in the foot, but by shooting themselves in the head.

2ndVOTE: "You may remember how four companies (AT&T, Coca-Cola, Ford, and Xerox) publicly distanced themselves from Planned Parenthood last year after our research exposed forty-one companies with direct financial ties to the abortion giant. At that time, another company on our list, Macy's, was making donations to Planned Parenthood."

FACT: Every one of these corporations asked that they not be identified as corporate supporters of Planned Parenthood, but it was not to "distance themselves." They asked because they had not supported Planned Parenthood and reporting otherwise was flatly wrong.


Coca-Cola said it has not contributed to Planned Parenthood, nor has it match employee contributions. The Ford Motor Company said it has been at least ten years since the company stopped matching employee gift contributions. Xerox Corporation has not given to Planned Parenthood in more than 20 years. AT&T stopped giving direct grants to Planned Parenthood in the early 1990s. All four corporations had been accused of supporting Planned Parenthood in list 2ndVote released in 2015.

"It is not surprising that 2ndVote took credit for orchestrating this 'recent victory,'" Strobhar said. "But it is unconscionable that 2ndVote would issue a press release touting victory over Macy's while simultaneously urging pro-life activists to do business with corporate supporters of Planned Parenthood."

One of the most egregious examples in which 2ndVote's actions are greatly harming the pro-life cause is its 2016 "2ndVote Christmas Shopping Guide," which includes four confirmed supporters of Planned Parenthood.

On July 28, 2015, LDI released a full statement analyzing the accuracy of 2ndVote accusations against corporations. The report also addressed the "standards" used by 2ndVote when determining which corporations should be labeled a "Planned Parenthood supporter." Strobhar said the tremendously eye-opening report may be read in full on LDI's website (fightpp.org/news/07-28-15).

"LDI has been doing this work for more than 25 years," said Strobhar. "From the start, LDI has believed success is far more important than publicity, despite the fact that publicity brings donations and media attention. This method of operation has allowed many CEOs to view us as reasonable. And if they consider us reasonable, they are willing to communicate. Yet they also know we never compromise."

If a CEO agrees to make Planned Parenthood ineligible for funding, the case is closed and kept confidential. (The alternative would result in a pro-abortion backlash. CEOs want to avoid the negative publicity a public announcement would bring.) "LDI provides a 'way out' for corporate executives—and they have expressed their appreciation," Strobhar said.

If the CEO will not make Planned Parenthood ineligible for grants, LDI continues talking with corporate officials, often in person, and provides still more information about Planned Parenthood and the damage any association with the group is bound to create. If the CEO still refuses to stop supporting Planned Parenthood, the company is added to LDI's list of boycott target.

Boycotted corporations that eventually "see the light" are removed from the list of targets. The update is discretely announced. LDI never stands on a mountain and brags about successes. "In fact, LDI allows a corporation to give any or no reason for its decision to stop funding Planned Parenthood," explained Strobhar. "We never dispute what corporate officials say to the public. These practices have led many corporations to stop funding Planned Parenthood because they are shielded from a backlash."

LDI's highly successful strategy has convinced at least 337 corporations to stop backing Planned Parenthood. "And that success speaks for itself," said Strobhar. "We all like to report successes but let's be wholly honest when doing so."