From: jaw@owlnet.rice.edu (Joseph A. Watters)
Newsgroups: tx.politics,rice.galor,rice.politics
Subject: Re: Houston Defending Choice Coalition needs you
Date: 18 Aug 92 15:40:12 GMT
Distribution: tx
Organization: Rice University

In article <1992Aug17.213416.4391@tamsun.tamu.edu>, wrr3118@tamsun.tamu.edu (Rick Russell) writes:
|> 
|> Operation Rescue has no power to enforce their will on the populace,
|> but if you'll take a gander at the Republican Party 1992 platform,
|> you'll find that the Republican party advocates a constitutional
|> amendment (!) banning medically unnecessary abortions *of any kind*.
|> Yes, their amendment would prevent victims of rape, incest and other
|> forms of molestation from aborting unwanted pregnancy. (Documentary
|> note: No, I haven't read the platform document itself, I received this
|> information from the news media. CNN, if you must know.)
|> 
|> So while OR != federal government, OR's views = official views of
|> Republican Party. That's what scares people.

Fortunately, we can draw some comfort from the fact that Republican
Party != Congress.  Unfortunately, Republican Party ~= Supreme Court,
and it seems that Republican Party ~= many State legistatures.
However, there is a bill in Congress, I forget the name, that if passed
would make medically safe abortions available by federal law.  The idea
is that if Roe v. Wade is ever overturned, Congress could immediately
keep abortions legal through non-constitutional means.  I think that's
partly why the Republican platform wants a constitutional amendment -
it would take precedence over any law that Congress could pass.

|> 
|> >From what I have read most government types wish to distance themselves from
|> >OR.
|> 
|> Think again. President Bush has stated publicly that he fully supports
|> the current draft of the Republican Party platform, including the
|> anti-abortion amendment.

I read in more than one source recently (and I remember this now that
my memory is refreshed) that George Bush was pro-choice up until 1980.
He then flipped and swallowed the Republican platform whole in order
to be selected as Reagan's vice-presidential running mate.  He has
officially maintained the party line ever since.  George Bush - a man
willing to abruptly drop what he supposedly believes in and actively
work to see the opposite happen in his country in order to attain
higher levels of political power.  And he wants to talk about vision
and character and integrity in Presidential candidates.

Apparently a few days ago, Mr. Bush was being interviewed by the media
and they asked him the same question they have asked Bill Clinton and
Dan Quayle:  If his young, unmarried daughter/granddaughter got
pregnant and could not support/did not want the baby, would he prevent
her from having an abortion?  President Bush, in his carefully
practiced roundabout way of answering questions, eventually came down
to (I paraphrase) "she's the only person who can really make the choice
to bear the baby or not."  Gee, sounds like a pro-choice position to
me.  Yet this man is busily trying to find ways to deny women legal,
safe abortions if they so choose.

-- 
Joseph A. Watters, Jr.		jaw@owlnet.rice.edu
Rice University
Houston, Texas