Steven Waldman

Obama and the Born Alive Controversy

Sunday August 17, 2008

The media and the Obama campaign have been focusing on the hundreds of charges against Obama in Obama Nation. But in terms of evangelicals one vote is doing Obama the most harm: his position on the "born alive" legislation protecting babies accidentally born during an abortion. I

've gotten a no comment from the Obama campaign. There's no explanation on his website. Obama missed a huge opportunity by not attacking it head on during the Saddleback forum. I was beginning to think the Obama campaign was clueless as to how damaging this single issue is to his hopes of winning evangelicals or centrist Catholics.

In an interview with Christian Broadcasting Network's David Brody, Obama finally attacked the issue more emphatically. It's a start but they haven't come close to defusing this issue.

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Comments
Anonymous
August 18, 2008 10:39 AM

Steven,

What is he going to attack? he called pro-lifers liars, but he is the one that was lying. Please get more informed on the issue.


latest:

Obama now admits he voted against the version of BAIPA (thats was identical to the federal version), which even Barbara Boxer and Ted Kennedy for.

http://www.jillstanek.com/archives/2008/08/breaking_news_o.html#comments

john
August 18, 2008 2:53 PM

Yeah Obama votes clearly against the bill that would protect babies born alive from being left to die or thrown in the garbage after a failed abortion. The bill was identical to the federal law that was even supported by the pro choice lobby including all of the democrats in Washington. Obama is misleading and he said that his very first act as president will be to sign the freedom of choice act, legalizing partial birth abortion, and ending regulations such as waiting periods prior to an abortion, pre abortion counseling, parental notification for underage teens seeking abortions etc..

Robert
August 18, 2008 5:34 PM

Wait a minute.

If the Born Alive bill passed in the US Senate in July 2002, and Obama wasn't in the Senate at the time, exactly how did he vote against it?

The Raving Atheist
August 18, 2008 9:53 PM

I am truly puzzled by your post, Mr. Waldman.

You must be aware by now that the issue is very simple: Obama falsely claimed that he voted against the Illinois born alive bill because it had a provision granting the fetus personhood rights, when in fact he was fully aware that it had been amended to delete that provision. The amendment made the state bill identical to the federal bill that Obama has earlier said he would have voted for. There is no controversy -- NONE WHATSOVER -- about that, and it is a documented legislative fact that you should have made clear at the very top of your post.

Instead, you talk about Obama missing an opportunity to "attack" the issue, and then state that he finally attacked it emphatically. The plain implication of your language is that Obama is the victim of some false accusation, and although he has fought back, his response has been inadequate to fully address the smears of his critics. As noted above, however, they are not smears and there is no defense.

Particularly misleading is your failure to explain the nature of his "emphatic" attack, which was nothing more than a reckless, evidence-free accusation that the National Right to Life Committee was "lying." His campaign today conceded that NTLC was correct regarding the legislative record. You owe your readers an emphatic correction.

Scott
August 19, 2008 2:03 PM

So Obama called other people "liars" in the process of lying about his abortion record himself?

I'm a pretty independent voter who tends to agree more with the Democrats on issues like war and economics. But, the more I seem from Sen. Obama, the more impossible I'm finding the possibility of voting for him.

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