"I believe that abortion should be safe and legal in this country. I have since the time when 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 that we should sustain and support it, and I sustain and support that law and the right of a woman to make that choice." -Mitt Romney in a 1994 Senatorial debate
"I respect and will fully protect a woman's right to choose. That choice is a deeply personal one, and the women of our state should make it based on their beliefs, not mine and not the government's." -Mitt Romney in a 2002 GOP acceptance speech If that doesn't say it for you then i don't know what is. Your blinders are clearly getting in the way.
Dear SDGOP,
Ah, but Mr. Romney didn't utter the words, "I am pro-choice."
Thus, to say that he is a liar for saying, "I've never called myself pro-choice," is, as far as it goes, untrue.
At least, I think that's the point being made. * chuckle *
The writer of the article at Red State is taking Mr. Romney's words to mean that Mr. Romney is claiming that he hasn't ever been pro-choice. In that case, Mr. Romney is a total and complete liar, and should be run out of the Republican race for president.
However, your interlocutor appears to be making a more narrow point, which is that even though he may be pro-choice, indeed, he never actually used that label on himself, and thus, calling him a liar for saying it is out of bounds.
Frankly, I think the narrower interpretation is a lot of hooey. It's almost clintonian.
Unless Mr. Romney is dissembling by trying to imply one meaning while literally saying something different, a fair interpretation of his words is that he's denying he's ever been pro-choice.
And that is utterly false. Mr. Romney has, by his own admission, embraced the pro-choice view since 1970, whether he calls it "pro-choice" or "pro-dingleberry-dippy-doo."
I don't think Mr. Romney realizes how utterly alienating his actions and words are toward folks for whom life is a paramount issue. If he had evinced a real conversion, and been open about it, he may have made some headway. But time is running out for him on this issue. Every time he denies that in the past he was a pro-abort scumbag, he makes it increasingly difficult for folks for whom life is paramount to ever accept that he has had a genuine conversion.
When running for offices in liberal Massachusetts, he was clearly and adamantly pro-abort, standing fast with Roe. Now that he wants to run for the Republican nomination for president, suddenly, he claims to be pro-life, and wants to overturn Roe.
Smells like political opportunism. He should take a bath.
sitetest
Yeah, but he only said that to get elected THEN.
NOW, he's telling the truth.
(/sarc)