Posted on 02/03/2008 1:52:10 PM PST by Mr. Brightside
Election 2008
Misperceptions About McCain's Abortion Stance
by Julie Rovner
Weekend Edition Saturday, February 2, 2008 · Former New York Mayor Rudolph Giuliani's departure from the presidential race earlier this week means that once again, whoever the Republicans nominate will oppose abortion rights and whoever the Democrats nominate will be pro-choice. Many Republican voters, however, seem to believe, incorrectly, that the current Republican front-runner, Arizona Sen. John McCain, supports abortion rights, too.
The misperception is interesting, considering that McCain has not attempted to keep his pro-life views a secret. Here's how he put it on an appearance last year on NBC's Meet the Press:
"I have stated time after time after time that Roe v Wade was a bad decision, that I support a woman — the rights of the unborn — that I have fought for human rights and human dignity throughout my entire political career," McCain said. "To me, it's an issue of human rights and human dignity."
And while now former candidate Fred Thompson, the former senator from Tennessee, won the coveted endorsement from the National Right to Life Committee, McCain's voting record on the issue is just fine, says David O'Steen, the group's executive director.
"He's been very consistent; he hasn't changed his position," O'Steen says. He says that his group has supported McCain in every one of his senate races. "We've always considered him pro-life," he says.
Nancy Keenan, president of NARAL Pro-Choice America, says her group has always considered McCain pro-life as well. And it's not just abortion, she says.
"He voted against family planning, he voted against the freedom of access to clinic entrances — that was about violence against women in clinics," Keenan says, adding, "He voted against funding for teen pregnancy-prevention programs, and making sure that abstinence only was medically accurate. This is very, very extreme."
Yet in Florida's GOP primary on Jan. 29, McCain won 45 percent of Republican voters who said abortion should be legal. That's nearly twice the total of former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney, who used to be pro-choice, but now says he has changed his mind. And Giuliani, who says he still is pro-choice, received just 19 percent of those pro-choice voters.
NARAL's Keenan thinks it's because voters see McCain splitting with Republicans on so many other issues, they assume he must split with them when it comes to abortion as well.
"I think it comes back to that moderate maverick image that he's tried to portray," Keenan says. "But when you peel the onion back, the record shows that this is a guy who's been very anti-choice since he entered the U.S. House of Representatives back in 1983."
Those pro-choice McCain voters may also remember the very public feud McCain has had with the National Right to Life Committee. But that argument wasn't over abortion, says the NRLC's O'Steen; it was over the campaign finance measure that McCain sponsored with Wisconsin Sen. Russ Feingold, a Democrat.
"The McCain-Feingold Act limited the ability of non-PACS [political action committees] to even mention the name of a candidate within 30 days of a primary, or 60 days of a general election," O'Steen says.
In other words, the dispute was a freedom of speech issue.
McCain's pro-life record isn't totally spotless: He did vote in favor of expanding federal funding of embryonic stem-cell research. But both pro-choice and pro-life groups say that if McCain becomes the Republican nominee, they'll work hard to make sure voters know what his abortion position really is.
What has the lying Bill Clinton got to do with McCain? Or are you saying that because Clinton is a liar, that it is okay for McCain to be a liar as well?
I know that. i have a great video i made . it was snowing here and icy roads , i told frank the weather was great and we made it to dc, wanna see?
Let me put it simply: Conservatives here will not be fooled into voting for McCain under any circumstance. If that means Hillary Clinton or B. Hussein Obama are elected, so be it. That isn’t our problem.
well then ur not conservative ur a robat and dont have any scruples
No.
well its not porn *L*
You sound like the Rudybots. What you people don’t understand is that there are a lot of conservatives who vote their principles and moral convictions, not just “to win”. Hard to understand that when your candidate doesn’t have any.
“because he saw what happened under germany. walls are kind of scary to someone who knows history”
Instead of trolling your anti-American insults here by comparing our border protective wall with the Soviet wall of imprisonment, how about the next time you are visiting the vets at the VFW that your husband belongs to, you try to sell them that comparison between them and the communists they fought against.
Please learn some history before you start insulting this anti- illegal immigration site that you just signed up on.
No you dont. u listen to drug users like rush that is where u get ur info from .
Sorry, I don’t listen to Limbaugh. You are making a lame attempt to stereotype conservatives.
Freep-mail me to get on or off my pro-life and Catholic List:
Please ping me to note-worthy Pro-Life or Catholic threads, or other threads of interest.
The FACT presented in this article is big difference. What don't you understand about that?! You are doing the very thing you rant about above.
And please, don't call me a McCainiac. I'm on record here as calling him McInsane at least 100 times.
very pro life here i have every kid that entered my uterus *L* 3
>>NPR????????<<
Its not surprising that NPR would oppose McCain.
McCain strongly opposes abortion - that surely pisses NPR off.
Name the lie or stop posting your stupid drivel. Gee, just what we need more of here, emotional, fact-less ranting. Good God!
Well thank you so much Liberal Republican for confirming you actually have NOTHING rational or adult to add to this conversation. Now run back to your room and play with yourself Junior, the Adults have no time for your childish hysterics today.
Mccain has always been pro life,. if he wasnt he wouldnt have adopted his first wives two kids and when cindy and he couldnt have more he would not have adopted bridget
make room for one more at the supper table
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