I’m not defending robocalls as a genre of campagning. Nor am I saying it’s politically wise for the McCain campaign to be spending much time on the “born alive” issue. But I will say this: the language of the robocalls on born-alive is close-to-accurate and that piece of legislation is a legitimate issue for those concerned about abortion policy.
In the taped message, apparently coming to voters in key battleround states, a woman says:
“Barack Obama and his Democrat allies in the Illinois Senate opposed a bill requiring doctors to care for babies born alive after surviving attempted abortions.”
The ad does not say (as many other Republicans have) that Obama “supports” the “killing” of infants. It actually hews pretty close to the details of the proposed law. No, it doesn’t offer Obama’s key stated rationale — that the law already required such medical intervention for babies — and is somewhat misleading that way. Nor does reveal some of the nuance that makes Obama’s behavior seem less egregious.
But that’s probably a bit much to expect, and in any event this ad is far more accurate than others on this topic and others that the McCain campaign has put out.
My full take on the “born alive” bill and Obama here.
posted October 20, 2008 at 1:39 pm
But it ain’t getting past the voicemail delete button.
posted October 20, 2008 at 4:04 pm
Yes, the assertion in the McCain robo-calls, as reported in the press, are accurate.
Also accurate (except for a minor mix up on chronology, which does not affect the substance) is an RNC mailer on the issue that is reproduced and discussed here:
http://www.jillstanek.com/archives/2008/10/breaking_news_r_1.html#more
Obama now claims that he did not support the Illinois Born-Alive Infants Protection Act (BAIPA) because Illinois already had a law to protect babies who are born alive during abortions. That claim is highly misleading, because the old law to which he refers did not apply at all to most of the live-birth that were occurring. The claim also conflicts with statements Obama made at the time (2001-2003), which show that he understood very well that the BAIPA would protect babies not then currently covered, and that he opposed this on pro-abortion ideological grounds. Specifically, Obama explained that he was opposed to the bill because he thought it to be an infringement on abortion to define what he called a “previable fetus” as a “person,” even though the bill only did this for babies who were entirely born, and alive.
This is explained in detail here:
http://www.nrlc.org/Election2008/Release101608.html
What follows is the FULL TEXT of the Born-Alive Infants Protection Act that Obama killed, in the committee that he chaired, on March 13, 2003.
***
AN ACT concerning infants who are born alive. Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois, represented in the General Assembly:
Section 5. The Statute on Statutes is amended by adding Section 1.36 as follows: (5 ILCS 70/1.36 new)
Sec. 1.36. Born-alive infant.
(a) In determining the meaning of any statute or of any rule, regulation, or interpretation of the various administrative agencies of this State, the words “person”, “human being”, “child”, and “individual” include every infant member of the species homo sapiens who is born alive at any stage of development.
(b) As used in this Section, the term “born alive”, with respect to a member of the species homo sapiens, means the complete expulsion or extraction from its mother of that member, at any stage of development, who after that expulsion or extraction breathes or has a beating heart, pulsation of the umbilical cord, or definite movement of voluntary muscles, regardless of whether the umbilical cord has been cut and regardless of whether the expulsion or extraction occurs as a result of natural or induced labor, cesarean section, or induced abortion.
(c) Nothing in this Section [the bill] shall be construed to affirm, deny, expand, or contract any legal status or legal right applicable to any member of the species homo sapiens at any point prior to being born alive as defined in this Section.
Section 99. Effective date. This Act takes effect upon becoming law. [end of bill text]
****
An earlier version of the Illinois BAIPA contained a different paragraph (c), which read, “A live child born as a result of an abortion shall be fully recognized as a human person and accorded immediate protection under the law.” In a memo issued on August 19, 2008 — yes, 2008 — the Obama campaign quoted that sentence and labeled it, “Language Clearly Threatening Roe.” The sentence is inconsistent with Roe only in the mind of somewho who believes that the “right to abortion” extends even beyond the womb.
Douglas Johnson
Legislative Director
National Right to Life Committee
Legfederal // at // aol-dot-com
website: www-dot-nrlc-dot-org
posted October 20, 2008 at 11:42 pm
Steven Waldman is wrong about “Barack Obama and his Democrat allies in the Illinois Senate opposed a bill requiring doctors to care for babies born alive after surviving attempted abortions.”
There was already a law making it a felony in Illinois to not care for a baby born alive. The falsity of McCain’s attacks have been proved wrong by several independent sources.
There Robocalls have been answered by children, which resulted several very angry mothers and upset children.
Factcheck:
‘Born Alive’ Baloney September 24, 2008
An abortion survivor claims she would have died if Obama had his way. She’s wrong.
http://tinyurl.com/4bhb7n
Obama and ‘Infanticide’ August 25, 2008 http://tinyurl.com/69yu3t
The facts about Obama’s votes against ‘Born Alive’ bills in Illinois.
“A Matter of Definition
What we can say is that many other people – perhaps most – think of “infanticide” as the killing of an infant that would otherwise live. And there are already laws in Illinois, which Obama has said he supports, that protect these children even when they are born as the result of an abortion. Illinois compiled statute 720 ILCS 510/6 states that physicians performing abortions when the fetus is viable must use the procedure most likely to preserve the fetus’ life; must be attended by another physician who can care for a born-alive infant; and must “exercise the same degree of professional skill, care and diligence to preserve the life and health of the child as would be required of a physician providing immediate medical care to a child born alive in the course of a pregnancy termination which was not an abortion.”"
PolitiFact
“Born alive” votes fuel abortion fight October 9, 2008
Because of the older law, Jessen is wrong when she says “if Barack Obama had his way, I wouldn’t be here.” According to the medical records provided by the organization that produced the ad, Jessen was born at 29 weeks, which would have been a viable pregnancy and subject to the older Illinois law requiring that she receive medical care. So it’s not correct to say that Obama opposed that.
http://tinyurl.com/3v6a7c
False McCain ad:
Barack Obama opposed a bill that would have saved Gianna Jessen’s life.
http://tinyurl.com/4t4zxe
The site below includes the voting record for all Illinois Senators, including Republican voters that voted against the bills
The Truth Behind False, Outrageous Lies about Obama and ”Born Alive” Legislation
August 19, 2008
http://tinyurl.com/5jq6ak
BornAliveTruth.org plays loose with the facts in targeting Obama
http://www.mediatransparency.org/story.php?storyID=248
CNN Fact Checker
http://tinyurl.com/6h6v5k