The
abortion issue returned to the fore of the presidential campaign Wednesday as
Mitt Romneyreaffirmed his opposition and said he would act from theWhite House
to reduce the incidence of abortion in the United States and around the world.
"I
think I've said time and again, I'm a pro-life candidate. I'll be a pro-life
president," the Republican presidential nominee told reporters at a
campaign stop in this central Ohio suburb.
"The
actions I'll take immediately are to remove funding forPlanned Parenthood. It
will not be part of my budget," Romney said. "And also I've indicated
I'll reverse the Mexico City position of the president. I will reinstate the
Mexico City policy."
That was a
reference to a ban on taxpayer funding for international groups that perform
abortions or provide abortion counseling, a policy named after the city where
it was announced. The ban has routinely been repealed under Democratic
presidents and reinstated under Republicans.
The
abortion issue, which became a brief focal point of the presidential campaign
over the summer, resurfaced after a Romney interview with the Des Moines
Register in which he seemed to downplay its import. He told the newspaper that
there was "no legislation with regards to abortion that I'm familiar with
that would become part of my agenda."
Soon after
his remarks were posted online Tuesday, a Romney spokeswoman told the
Associated Press, "Mitt Romney is proudly pro-life, and he will be a
pro-life president."
"Gov.
Romney would of course support legislation aimed at providing greater
protections for life," spokeswoman Andrea Saul said.
Weighing
in from the White House on Wednesday, President Obama accused Romney of
deliberately fuzzing up his position. "Four weeks before the election, he
is trying to cloud the question when it comes to women's right to control their
own healthcare decisions," Obama said in an ABC News interview.
"The
one thing that I think people — Republicans as well asDemocrats — can say is
that there has been consistency with me from the time that I started running
for president to today," said Obama, who took the day off the campaign
trail. "And there will be consistency all the way through the next four
years of my presidency. People will know where I stand, what I believe, what
I'm fighting for. And that's part of leadership."
As the
governor of left-leaning Massachusetts, Romney supported legal abortion — one
reason he has been viewed with distrust by many social conservatives. He took a
firm antiabortion stance during the Republican primaries both times he ran for
president, opposing abortion in all instances except for cases involving rape
or incest or to save the life of the mother.
Romney
said he would appoint Supreme Court justices he hoped would overturn Roe vs.
Wade, the decision legalizing abortion, and said in a 2007 debate that if
Congress passed an abortion ban, "I'd be delighted to sign that
bill."
Social
conservatives pointedly reminded Romney of that position Wednesday. The Susan
B. Anthony List, an antiabortion group, distributed an article Romney wrote
vowing to prohibit federal funding for Planned Parenthood and backing
legislation that would "protect unborn children who are capable of feeling
pain from abortion." In the June 2011 article, Romney also reiterated his
support for overturning Roe vs. Wade.
"We
have full confidence that as president, Gov. Romney will stand by the pro-life
commitments," said Marjorie Dannenfelser, president of the group.
But
Romney's positions on abortion and birth control have alienated more moderate
women, contributing to a gender gap that has benefited Obama. Romney has worked
to make up some of that ground in the aftermath of his strong debate
performance last week.
The
abortion issue flared over the summer after Republican Rep. Todd Akin of
Missouri, a candidate for U.S. Senate, said women had the ability to avoid
pregnancy in cases of "legitimate" rape. Romney was among Republicans
who urged Akin to quit the Senate race, to no avail.
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