This excerpt seems to be in conflict with your comment in post #160: especially if you are pro-choice as Fred was at least thru the 1996 election.
THOMPSON WANTS DEBATE ON ABORTION DOWNPLAYED
Tennesee Commercial Appeal August 7, 1996, page A12
U.S. Sen. Fred Thompson says he seldom hears about abortion in campaign travels throughout Tennessee and hopes the issue is downplayed at the Republican National Convention.
The Tennessee Republican, an abortion-rights defender in a party with an anti-abortion tilt, is preparing for next week’s convention in San Diego. He said the party must avoid distracting issues and focus on electing Bob Dole as president.
‘’We need to concentrate on what brings us together and not what divides us,’’ Thompson said in an interview with The Tennessean published Tuesday.
Thompson said he opposes making early-term abortions a crime, as some Republicans would like to do with a constitutional amendment.
‘’But I don’t think you should bolt on one issue. I’m still not convinced platforms are a good idea. We know what we believe in and I don’t think we need to write it all down in a document,’’ Thompson said.
‘’We’re going to have to decide in this country whether we reduce the number of abortions or fight about the number of abortions. There are lots of things that we could do in terms of education and adoption to reduce the number of abortions. The two sides are so vigorous in opposing each other that they ignore the question of the number of abortions taking place.’’
Thompson, a lawyer and actor born in Lawrenceburg, is seeking to keep the Senate seat once held by Vice President Gore.
In 1994, an obscure opponent got 37 percent of the vote against Thompson in the Republican primary, which some observers attribute to an abortion backlash.
Last week Thompson got 96 percent of the Republican primary vote against another unknown opponent.
Abortion isn’t likely to emerge as an issue in Thompson’s 1996 general election campaign. His Democratic opponent, Covington lawyer Houston Gordon, favors abortion rights, said campaign manager Joyce McDaniel.
Thompson: The Supreme Court has attempted to delineate the constitutionally appropriate roles for individual and governmental decision-making on the issue of abortion. Beyond that, I believe that the federal government should not interfere with individual convictions and actions in this area