Monday, November 05, 2007

Romney and Abortion, Again   [Byron York]

The Romney campaign has sent Jim Geraghty a response after Jim's remarks concerning Romney's record on abortion.  Part of the Romney response is this:

Governor Romney Supports Parental Notification Laws And Opposed Efforts To Weaken Parental Involvement.  (John McElhenny, "O'Brien And Romney Spar In Last Debate Before Election," The Associated Press, 10/29/02)

According to the AP report cited, Romney did indeed argue, in October 2002, that girls under 18 should be required to receive parental consent before having an abortion.  But reading deeper into the article shows Romney reportedly arguing strongly that he was just as pro-choice as his Democratic opponent, who was once pro-life, had become pro-choice, and was accusing Romney of advocating a pro-life position, something Romney denied:

Romney, the former Winter Olympic chief, and [Shannon] O'Brien, the state treasurer, disagreed over whether girls aged 16 and 17 should be allowed to receive abortions without their parents' permission.

O'Brien said girls of that age are legally allowed to have sex, so they should also be allowed to get abortions without parental consent. Romney said girls should be at least 18 before being allowed to get abortions without parental consent, as is currently required under state law.

The discussion over parental consent evolved into a more general debate over which candidate is the stronger abortion-rights advocate.

O'Brien, a former lawmaker who early in her career opposed abortion except in cases of rape, incest or a threat to the mother's health but now supports abortion rights, accused Romney of being "multiple choice" on the issue. She said he was endorsed by an anti-abortion rights group during his unsuccessful 1994 U.S. Senate run.

Romney personally opposes abortion but says he would support current laws protecting abortion rights. He said there is no difference between his stand and O'Brien's.

11/05 02:51 PMShare