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October 15, 2004
Bush's Abortion Evasion
During Wednesday's presidential debate when asked if he would overturn Roe v Wade, Bush tried to side-step the question and focus on judicial nominations: "What he's asking me is, will I have a litmus test for my judges? And the answer is, no, I will not have a litmus test. I will pick judges who will interpret the Constitution, but I'll have no litmus test."
And then it was Kerry's turn. "Well, again, the president didn't answer the question. I'll answer it straight to America. I'm not going to appoint a judge to the court who's going to undo a constitutional right whether it's the First Amendment or the Fifth Amendment or some other right that's given under our courts today under the Constitution." Hallelujah! A president willing to protect our reproductive rights! Imagine that!
Check out the Boston Globe's awesome editorial on Bush's Abortion Evasion critiquing his response.
"[Bush's] nonanswer is chilling. It raises the possibility of overturning Roe v. Wade and letting states decide what's legal. Women in 30 states would be at risk of losing their right to an abortion..."
"While Bush says he has no litmus test for judges, he praises Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia, who opposes abortion rights. In a 1992 dissent in the case Planned Parenthood v. Casey, Scalia argued that abortion is not a right protected by the Constitution because "(1) the Constitution says absolutely nothing about it, and (2) the longstanding traditions of American society have permitted it to be legally proscribed."
"The court's ruling offered a wise rebuttal: 'It is a promise of the Constitution that there is a realm of personal liberty which the government may not enter.' The opinion added that marriage is not mentioned in the Bill of Rights but that the court has correctly ruled that interracial marriage is 'an aspect of liberty protected against state interference" by the 14th Amendment's due process clause. The Constitution places no limit on the liberties that are protected, the opinion added.'
For more information on *YOUR* constitutional right to privacy and reproductive freedom AND how Bush wants to undermine this right, check out the Price of Four More Years. This awesome resource from NARAL Pro-Choice America outlines how a second Bush term would yield "both an end of right to choose and increase in number of abortions." Scary, Scary, Scary!
Posted by at October 15, 2004 10:14 AM
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