Please Freepmail me if you want on or off my Pro-Life Ping List.
Posted on 06/06/2007 4:25:40 PM PDT by wagglebee
Washington, DC (LifeNews.com) -- Former Tennessee senator and actor Fred Thompson didn't participate in the Republican presidential debate last night. However, he appeared on a national television show and made his views on abortion known again as he repeated his desire to see the Supreme Court's landmark abortion case overturned.
Appearing on the "Hannity and Colmes" show on the Fox News channel, co-host Sean Hannity asked Thompson about his views on the key pro-life issue.
Thompson has come under some criticism from pro-life circles because he took an official pro-abortion position in 1994 when he looked to represent Tennessee in the U.S. Senate.
Hannity referring to that and asked about a survey Thompson completed at that time showing him checking a box saying "Abortion should be legal in all circumstances for the first three months."
"That wasn't your voting record, interestingly. Did you make a mistake checking the box?" Hannity asked.
"I don't remember that box. You know, it was a long time ago, and I don't know if I filled it out or my staff — based on what they thought my position was — filled it out," the former attorney responded.
Thompson then discussed the state of his current views on abortion.
"But here's what the deal is on that. I've always thought that Roe v. Wade was a wrong decision, that they usurped what had been the law in this country for 200 years, that it was a matter that should go back to the states," he said, endorsing its reversal.
"When you get back to the states, I think the states should have some leeway," he added.
Thompson then appeared to articulate a position opposing putting women in jail for having abortions -- something the pro-life movement has long opposed, and then Hannity cut off his answer and referred back to the state's rights comment Thompson previously made.
"So states' rights for you?" he asked the potential GOP presidential candidate?
"Essentially, federalism. It's in the Constitution," he responded.
Thompson's comments were similar to remarks he made to Fox News in March on the subject.
Then, Thompson told Fox News he is pro-life and wants the high court to reverse its decision in Roe -- calling it "bad law and bad medical science."
"I don't think the court ought to wake up one day and make new social policy for the country that's contrary to what it's been for the last 200 years. We have a process in this country to do that," he said about the Roe decision.
"Judges shouldn't be doing that. That's what happened in the that case. I think it was wrong," he added.
Thompson compiled a 100 percent pro-life voting record on abortion issues while in the Senate, according to the National Right to Life Committee. He only disagreed with the organization on the issue of campaign finance reform, which it said would limit its activities.
He told Hannity in the Tuesday night interview that he would support a repeal of some of the most damaging provisions, including preventing citizens groups from airing certain ads near an election -- a provision pro-life organizations strongly opposed.
During his tenure, Thompson cast two votes against a Senate resolution endorsing the Roe v. Wade decision and urging the Supreme Court to uphold it.
The former Tennessee senator voted against funding abortions with taxpayer dollars in numerous situations and he voted for a ban on partial-birth abortions, to uphold parental involvement laws, and to prohibit scientific research using fetal tissue from babies who were the victims of abortions.
Thompson also won praise from the pro-life community for helping Supreme Court Chief Justice John Roberts with his nomination bid. Roberts eventually ruled in favor of the national ban on partial-birth abortions.
Thompson served eight years in the Senate beginning in 1995 after he won a special election to complete the remainder of Sen. Al Gore's term. He won re-election in 1996.
Thompson's voting record is pro-life, he has never actively supported abortion, that's good enough for me.
Pro-Life Ping
Fred Ping
This was based on an issues survey that he doesn't even recall filling out. He has stated over and over he disagreed with that statement..
BTW, I LOVED that grin after he said "It's in the Constitution."
I am inclined to believe him.
His voting record is pretty good with the huge exception of CFR. Thompson is not perfect, but he is better than Rudy McRomney.
In before other candidate trolls post?
I would like to hear him say that he is disappointed to see what a fiasco CFR has turned into.
LLS
I wonder if the former FReeper liberals who got bug zapped are now upset that Fred is pro-life.
Yes, Fred is pro-life... and this sadly proves that some Freepers have lied about him...
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What they have done is invent a new convoluted definition of “Pro-Choice” that applies to them only, and then claim that Thompson is “Pro-Choice” That way they get to lie and tell the truth at the same time. Its a great propaganda technique.....Goebbles and Michael Moore would be proud...
Wait until the MSM start going after him for his role as a racist in some old TV/movie twenty years ago .... just because he played a part they’re moving to brand him a racist .... just like this other actor who played a nazi propagandist in the movie “Mother Midnight” (I think that was the name) starring Nick Nolte ....
Fred Thompson has sure changed his stance since 1994, when he was Pro-choice.
Abortion
(Back to top) 9. If elected to Congress, which of the following general principles or specific proposals will you support concerning abortion?
X Abortions should be legal in all circumstances as long as the procedure is completed within the first trimester of the pregnancy.
Abortions should be legal only when the life of the mother is endangered.
Abortions should be legal only when the pregnancy results from incest or rape, or when the life of the mother is endangered.
X A woman under the age of 18 should be required to notify a parent or guardian before having an abortion.
A woman should be required to notify her spouse before having an abortion.
X States should be allowed to impose mandatory waiting periods before abortions are performed.
X Congress should eliminate federal funding for clinics and medical facilities that provide abortion services.
X Congress should eliminate abortion services from any federally funded health care plan.
X Congress should leave legislation on this issue to the states.
http://vote-smart.org/npat.php?can_id=22003#408
Some persons keep trying to paint him as a flip flopper. American Spectator had an article that traced the smear back to Romney evangelicals.
But it doesn’t matter. Romney is not going to win the nomination. And pro-life groups are solidly in FDT’s camp.
but is he too lazy to actual follow through?
This is like when they said that Reagan was a dumb, trigger-happy cowboy who slept too much.
He has said something similar to that. This is the first I knew he didn’t necessarily what to repeal the whole thing.
But expect shortly a cloud of gnats pointing to an article from 1994 that Fred is pro-choice, despite his subsequent voting record. You know, the same gnats who support candidates who either are pro-choice, or who discovered the pro-life movement once they started moving towards the White House.
It is in the Constitution. Our original founding is under the premise of inalienable rights from our Creator. The first is the right to life. The 5th amendment further states that no one shall be deprived of life, liberty or property without due process of law.
The only way one could argue that this should be a States rights issue is to deny that a fetus is not a life which since the beginning has been the advocates basis for a womens "right to choose" It is what it is anyway you want to try and couch it, murder. If you are truly Pro Life you must say so.
Before I get flamed, I understand in todays political reality that the one who speaks the truth will never be elected. And unfortunately that is the whole problem with our country.
Ah, so let's ignore his perfect pro-life voting record, his zero ratings from NARAL and Planned Parenthood, and insted look at an obscured questionaire from 1994.
Here's an egg. Please go suck it.
I believe Fred when he says that he has no recollection of taking the survey.
But the gnats have nothing else.
IMHO the abortion toothpaste is already out of the tube and most states are going to have a difficult time banning abortion outright. The states may be able to limit specific procedures, and set time frames for certain procedures, and for parental notification/consent for minors.
He wouldn’t want to repeal the part that he introduced and pushed so hard ... the increase in hard cash from $1000 to $2000 and then indexed for inflation.
Please Freepmail me if you want on or off my Pro-Life Ping List.
Plus, his voting record is the most important, and that has been 100% pro life.
Fred and other pro-life candidates should come out clearly in favor of a constitutional amendment.
Candidates for Federal office get boat loads of surveys. Who the heck knows who even filled out the survey in question? Actions speak louder than words in any case.
So you’ve gone out of your way on repeated threads to bash Fred. Since your hero Bush can’t run again (and thank God, given his immigration fiasco he wishes to foist upon this country with the help of Ted Kennedy), who do YOU like in 2008?
Yep. My guess is that some mid-level campaign staffer filled it out, didn’t know the answer and just picked what they though was the “middle of the road” answer.
Some piece of work she is..
I think that is the endgame. But the first step is to overturn Roe. Then smaller states (and some larger ones) will outlaw most abortion. Once those states become a sizeable majority, an amendment becomes viable.
“IMHO the abortion toothpaste is already out of the tube and most states are going to have a difficult time banning abortion outright.”
I don’t think the situation is that dire. I reckon about 1/3 of states would ban infanticide outright. Which is 1/3 better than we are right now. Most of the other states would heavily regulate it and ban specific procedures, with more banning it every successive year. And a few such as California and NY would leave infanticide legal. About where we were just before RvW.
Does he realize that would remove one of the few reasons the GOP gets votes? It’s a winner as an unresolved issue.
FReeper AmericanMade1776 is a woman.
She’s a real piece of work.. she is trolling threads trying to deceive people about Thompson.. in addition to posting this obscure survey that Thompson said he didn’t complete, she is posting his votes on LEGAL immigration issues and trying to trick people into thinking they are his votes for ILLEGAL immigration..
I wonder what candidate she is in bed with that she is so desperate to trash Fred.
Oh...okay thanks. That makes sense.
I think perhaps the amendment should come first. The pro-life states will drop out of the battle if Roe is overturned, the national movement will thus be weakened, and we may never get the amendment. It’s a toss-up, maybe, when you get to the heart of the issue: which scenario saves the most babies? I’d go for settling it once and for all.
It takes 3/4s of the states to ratify an amendment. So IMO you have to have a lot of states that already have banned abortion within their jurisdiction for an amendment to be ratified.
I still like Duncan Hunter the best.
If Fred would just talk to him some maybe we could get something going.
Hunter has all the right positions and none of the CR nonsense connected to him.
Let’s not forget, we are on the same side.. let’s not tear each other down simply because someone wants to fight for the same end goal on a different battlefield.
Hunter would be my first choice, but I am realistic enough to see that his chances of getting the nomination are virtually nonexistent. He would make a perfect running mate for Thompson and it would pave the way for him in 2016.
Hunter had one shot - run an alternative campaign harnessing the net and grassroots.
The irony is, out of all the pubbie candidates, old guy Fred has the best grasp of the potential of the new media - and how to use it effectively. The first debate, he outgunned them with a YouTube video. The second debate, as the other candidates dealt with the idiocy that is Wolf Blitzer, he outgunned them by having his own private session immediately afterwards on Fox with Sean Hannity.
If he wants Roe overturned and will nominate SCOTUS folks who will do as such then I am cool with that.
anything to help stop this abomination
I am okay with it too. I believe him because of his voting record. As to the issue, I really think the right-to-life is a federal issue already protected in the federal Constitution. States can’t decide whether you or I have the right-to-life (unless we are murdering maniacs). But since so many people can’t seem to come to terms with the fact that a pre-born baby is a human being, I am fine with making it a state issue. Roe v. Wade was a horrible decision.
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1845541/posts?page=44#34
I like Mitt....best..but I was really proud of all the Republicans on that platform, but Ron Paul and Tom Tancredo.
44 posted on 06/05/2007 9:47:33 PM EDT by AmericanMade1776
So she likes Mitt. And then turns around and tries to imply some form filled out in 1994 shows Fred is pro-choice. But apparently something Mitt said about abortion in 1994 doesn't bother her a bit:
http://article.nationalreview.com/?q=MmY1MTQyMTk0Yjk2ZDNmZmVmNmNkNjY4ODExMGM5NWE=
“I believe that abortion should be safe and legal in this country. I have since the time that my Mom took that position when she ran in 1970 as a U.S. Senate candidate. I believe that since Roe v. Wade has been the law for 20 years we should sustain and support it.”
Apparently for her, "I like Mitt" rhymes with hypocrite. I thought we wouldn't see any more such two-faced posts after the Rudy boosters were exiled to WAnkerville. Apparently some of the Mitt boosters are taking up the slack.
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