Posted on 04/06/2007 9:44:30 AM PDT by veronica
COLUMBIA, S.C. - Presidential hopeful Rudy Giuliani ventured to conservative South Carolina yesterday hoping to talk about terrorism and the economy, but instead got hit at every stop with another topic - abortion.
A day after the former mayor said he supports public funding of abortion - sparking a firestorm among conservatives - local media here forced him to elaborate on the issue at events intended to underscore new endorsements.
And although Giuliani, who is seeking the Republican presidential nomination, did not waiver from his central belief that abortion is a woman's right, he responded with some of his most strident comments to date on the divisive topic.
"I'm against abortion. I hate it. I wish there never was an abortion and I would counsel a woman to have an adoption instead of an abortion," Giuliani said at the state Capitol in Columbia. "But ultimately I believe it is an individual right, and the woman can make that choice."
When pressed, Giuliani said he would not change the so-called Hyde amendment, which restricts federal funding for abortion to cases of rape, incest and to save the life of the mother. But he said he would support the right of states to make their own decisions about providing taxpayer-funded abortions, just as New York and 16 other states do now.
His preference to let states decide how they want to restrict certain rights is increasingly becoming Giuliani's favorite way around sticky issues, among them abortion and gun control.
Yesterday's discussion also included a proposed South Carolina law that would require women seeking abortions to first view ultrasound images of their fetus - a first in the nation if approved.
"The legislature of South Carolina should make its decision about that," Giuliani said when asked whether he would support the idea.
He got a much friendlier reception when he headed into the streets of Charleston, where he was mobbed by well-wishers eager to have their picture taken with the man some believe led the nation through 9/11.
"He is strong, he is determined and he does what he says," said Marsha Tokarczyk, 51, when asked why she was seeking Giuliani's autograph.
Tokarczyk, a Republican, added that she typically does not vote for politicians who favor abortion, but of Giuliani she said, "I respect his position."
And I hate abortion so much I won’t vote for Rudy.
Sure you’ve been to NYC !!!
Sure you grew up in the metro area !!!
Yeh.....
The Mayor of NYC has less WOT experience than members of congress.
Yeh....
2 extreme liberals. I don’t want either one, but especially in my own party.
Here's some more ideas about your hero Rudy.
When asked directly Wednesday if he still supported the use of public funding for abortions, Giuliani said "Yes." "If it would deprive someone of a constitutional right," he explained
Wow. So the government has to pay for the exercise of everyone's "constitutional rights"? I'll ignore for the moment the ridiculous idea that anyone has a Constitutional right to commit abortion. But let's carry that logic where it leads us. Presumably it means that the government should buy weapons for the poor, so they can exercise their 2nd Amendment rights. It also means the government should subsidize religious schools (or at least allow vouchers), so the poor can exercise their 1st Amendment rights. But wait: Rudy thinks the 2nd Amendment can be suspended by a mere city mayor. The only "right" he really wants to subsidize is abortion!
It's obvious: Rudy Kazootie is hopelessly muddled about Constitutional issues, but one thing is consistent: When it comes to taking a stand on specifics, he is on the liberal side of all these issues. Even if we ignore his amorality toward abortion, we can see that he clearly supports the redistributionist economic ideas which no conservative of any stripe should agree with.
The federal government couldn’t stop abortion any more than the feds stopped drugs, etc. It’s an issue that doesn’t belong in the justice system. Give it to the states and hopefully we will never have to hear about it again.
It's not already? We want someone who will actively work to change it. Not someone who says it's the law so the people need to fund it. When Hitlery gets elected it will continue as if Rudy gets elected.
Don’t take this personally, but that “stop Hitlery” mantra oozes with pathetic desperation.
I expect his plan is to get liberal republicans (former democrats), and crossover democrats, and marginalize the conservative wing for good and all.
Thank you for Posting that, narses; it’s Sickening how many Politicians don’t even have the Courage to Stand Up for the Most Innocent and Helpless Among us; the Unborn. I Respect Rudy for his Leadership during 911, but his Stance on Abortion is just Inexplicable.
Stick a fork in him, Rudy’s done.
Well, we can win the battle and lose the war (on abortion) or we can be shrewd and win the war (the W.H.). We can’t refuse to deal with the abortion issue in a practical way and expect to hold the W.H. Senator Orin Hatch (Utah) has stated over and over that in his opinion there is only ‘one issue’ on which liberals vote and that is the issue of abortion. He is practical and we should be also.
I Pray he is.
Where does the "right to murder" derive from?
This position is simply schizophrenic.
About 3000 people died on 9/11.
About 1.5 million babies are killed every year by abortion.
On another note, have a great Easter.
There is no way that a candidate who publicly states they wish to overturn ‘Roe’ can be elected. The numbers simply aren’t available to elect such a candidate because there are not sufficient conservatives who will take this staunch a stand.
Further, the fence-sitter leaning-left voters will solidify behind Hitlery. A strong pro-life candidate will give all of us pro-life advocates (including me) a thrill. But it will lose the W.H. We can win the battle but lose the war if we go this direction.
A Repub candidate who can defeat Hitlery/Osama will allow the abortion debate to continue. A Hitlery win puts the issue to rest for at least 8 years and runs the risk of legislation being passed (Dem controlled Congress remember) to block legal challenges to abortion at the state level. Last, but not least, Hitlery will have the power to put through an Executive Order making it illegal to challenge abortion in any manner whatsoever.
You want Hitlery?? Whew! If we take a ‘no bend’ position on abortion we are giving her the W.H.
That’s because, within the last few days, Rudy’s words on abortion have made a big buzz in the blogosphere. People are talking about what’s in the news.
Go back further, and you’ll see threads about his support for gun control, his stance on a border fence, and so on.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.