The abortion issue returned to the
fore of the presidential campaign Wednesday as Mitt Romneyreaffirmed his
opposition and said he would act from theWhite House to reduce the incidence of
abortion in the United States and around the world.
"I think I've said time and again, I'm a
pro-life candidate. I'll be a pro-life president," the Republican
presidential nominee told reporters at a campaign stop in this central Ohio
suburb.
"The actions I'll take immediately are to
remove funding forPlanned Parenthood. It will not be part of my budget,"
Romney said. "And also I've indicated I'll reverse the Mexico City
position of the president. I will reinstate the Mexico City policy."
That was a reference to a ban on taxpayer
funding for international groups that perform abortions or provide abortion
counseling, a policy named after the city where it was announced. The ban has
routinely been repealed under Democratic presidents and reinstated under
Republicans.
The abortion issue, which became a brief focal
point of the presidential campaign over the summer, resurfaced after a Romney
interview with the Des Moines Register in which he seemed to downplay its
import. He told the newspaper that there was "no legislation with regards
to abortion that I'm familiar with that would become part of my agenda."
Soon after his remarks were posted online
Tuesday, a Romney spokeswoman told the Associated Press, "Mitt Romney is
proudly pro-life, and he will be a pro-life president."
"Gov. Romney would of course support
legislation aimed at providing greater protections for life," spokeswoman
Andrea Saul said.
Weighing in from the White House on Wednesday,
President Obama accused Romney of deliberately fuzzing up his position.
"Four weeks before the election, he is trying to cloud the question when
it comes to women's right to control their own healthcare decisions,"
Obama said in an ABC News interview.
"The one thing that I think people —
Republicans as well asDemocrats — can say is that there has been consistency
with me from the time that I started running for president to today," said
Obama, who took the day off the campaign trail. "And there will be
consistency all the way through the next four years of my presidency. People
will know where I stand, what I believe, what I'm fighting for. And that's part
of leadership."
As the governor of left-leaning Massachusetts,
Romney supported legal abortion — one reason he has been viewed with distrust
by many social conservatives. He took a firm antiabortion stance during the
Republican primaries both times he ran for president, opposing abortion in all
instances except for cases involving rape or incest or to save the life of the
mother.
Romney said he would appoint Supreme Court
justices he hoped would overturn Roe vs. Wade, the decision legalizing
abortion, and said in a 2007 debate that if Congress passed an abortion ban,
"I'd be delighted to sign that bill."
Social conservatives pointedly reminded Romney
of that position Wednesday. The Susan B. Anthony List, an antiabortion group,
distributed an article Romney wrote vowing to prohibit federal funding for
Planned Parenthood and backing legislation that would "protect unborn
children who are capable of feeling pain from abortion." In the June 2011
article, Romney also reiterated his support for overturning Roe vs. Wade.
"We have full confidence that as
president, Gov. Romney will stand by the pro-life commitments," said
Marjorie Dannenfelser, president of the group.
But Romney's positions on abortion and birth
control have alienated more moderate women, contributing to a gender gap that
has benefited Obama. Romney has worked to make up some of that ground in the
aftermath of his strong debate performance last week.
The abortion issue flared over the summer
after Republican Rep. Todd Akin of Missouri, a candidate for U.S. Senate, said
women had the ability to avoid pregnancy in cases of "legitimate"
rape. Romney was among Republicans who urged Akin to quit the Senate race, to
no avail.
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