8mm
Posted on 08/06/2007 4:32:56 PM PDT by wagglebee
Des Moines, IA (LifeNews.com) -- During Sunday's Republican presidential debate, pro-abortion former New York City mayor Rudy Giuliani was asked to defend his position on abortion. He did so by repeating a dubious claim about the supposed exponential growth of adoptions during his tenure as mayor of one of the most pro-abortion cities in the nation.
"I believe the best way we can have common ground in this debate that you're hearing is if we put our emphasis on reducing abortions and increasing the number of adoptions, which is something that I did as mayor of New York City," he claimed.
"But I think ultimately that decision that has to be made is one that government shouldn't make," Giuliani said, restating his pro-abortion views. "Ultimately, a woman should make that with her conscience and ultimately with her doctor."
With more abortion businesses than most states in the nation, New York City is the abortion capitol of the country.
The mayor has previously claimed that adoptions went up 67 percent during his mayoral tenure, but the nonpartisan political watchdog Web site FactCheck said that number is inflated and put the rise at only 17 percent during his terms in office.
Although there were more adoptions during Giuliani's time in office than that of his predecessor David Dinkins, adoptions under Giuliani decreased five out of his final six years in office.
Even ABC News, which has frequently drawn criticism for its unbalanced portrayal of abortion issues, featured a blog from Tahman Bradley of the ABC News Political Unit asking, "Is Giuliani Exaggerating His Record on Adoptions?"
"Giuliani may have put a special emphasis on increasing adoptions during his 8 years as mayor, but he may not have been all that successful," Bradley wrote. "Perhaps the former mayor is overstating his accomplishments just a bit."
In a May appearance on Laura Ingraham's national radio program, the radio talk show host pressed him on the issue -- so much that he said he wouldn't come back to the show for a second interview unless she asked him about other topics. "I would love to come back, but you're going to have to ask me about the war on terror and what we do about the economy, which is after all what most citizens ask me about."
"Well, conservatives are citizens, too, Mayor Giuliani!" Ingraham responded. "We're citizens, too.
During the campaign, Giuliani has also come under fire for several donations to Planned Parenthood, the nation's largest abortion business, during the 1990s. The former New York City mayor defended those donations saying he only wanted to promote adoptions.
"Planned Parenthood makes [adoption] information available," Giuliani told Ingraham on her radio show. "It's consistent with my position."
"I think it's wrong [but] I think there should be a choice. If there is going to be a choice, there are organizations that are going to give people information about that choice."
"I just as strongly support the idea that a woman should have information about adoption at that time," he added.
However, Planned Parenthood's own figures show that it rarely refers pregnant women for adoptions and the number of adoptions referrals it does make are on the decline.
In its FY 2004-2005 annual report, the latest available to the public, Planned Parenthood did 255,015 abortions in 2004 (up 4.3% from 2003), generating an estimated $95 million. A scant 1,414 customers were referred to adoption agencies; down more than 20% from 2003.
Does Roody actually expect us to believe this crap?
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Giuliani is an abortionist scumbag.
Giuliani is an [fill in the blank with ANY liberal agenda] scumbag.
Yes he does, and so does the GOP leadership. Well actually they don’t probably care. To them, its Rooty or else.
Believe it or not?
No its “Believe it or else you get Hillary”. No difference, different sex, well most of the time anyways.
One has b*lls and one is comfortable wearing a dress.
LOL! So true!
.
He expects you to be frightened enough about terrorism to buy his phony tough-guy image and not worry about anything else.
Anytime a candidate tries to scare you, watch out. Appeals to emotion always hide a sinister agenda.
Yep. If Roody was the ONLY candidate who was tough on terrorism everything would be different, but that's not the case and this is something that neiter he nor his supporters seem to understand.
I do believe adoptions are increasing - but international adoptions, not domestic. And that’s a function of couples dealing with infertility - which is on the increase.
Rudi/abortion/et al has nothing to do with it.
Mr. Ghouliani is pretty sure he can fool all of the people all of the time.
Pro-life bump!
The whole aim of practical politics is to keep the populace alarmed (and hence clamorous to be led to safety) by menacing it with an endless series of hobgoblins, all of them imaginary.
- H. L. Mencken
You are absolutely correct. There are lots of American couples adopting babies and most of them are from overseas. They are doing this because THERE AREN’T ANY AMERICAN BABIES TO ADOPT, the abortuaries are slaughtering over 3500 per day.
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