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DUBUQUE, Iowa -- Mitt Romney’s stance on abortion is being called into question a week out from the Iowa caucuses.
Republicans in Iowa received a text message to their cell phones very early Tuesday morning questioning Romney's anti-abortion credentials.
“Romney exposed at 2012 caucuses. Romney pro life??” the text one Iowan received at 4:00 am CST reads.
Upon calling the 515 area-code number the text message lists, an automated message on the other end includes hearing Romney’s answer during a debate when he ran for U.S. Senate 17 years ago.
“Mitt Romney on life,” an unidentified man’s voice says as the automated message begins.
“As a nation, we recognize the right of all people to believe as they want and not to impose our beliefs on other people,” Romney’s voice is heard saying next –- this comes from an Oct. 25, 1994 Massachusetts senate debate.
“I believe that abortion should be safe and legal in this country,” Romney continues. “I have since the time that my mom took that position when she ran in 1970 as a U.S. Senate candidate. I believe that since Roe v. Wade has been the law for 20 years that we should sustain and support it. And I sustain and support that law and the right of a women to make that choice.”
In 2005, Romney changed his position from supporting abortion rights to opposing them.
Neither the text message nor the automated message gives any indication who sent or paid for the messages.
The abortion issue plays very big with conservatives in Iowa. 2008 Iowa caucus winner, Mike Huckabee, even held a forum and movie premiere in Des Moines this month focusing on abortion. Romney did not attend, although Newt Gingrich, Rick Santorum, Michele Bachmann, and Rick Perry did.
Here is video from C-Span from that '94 Massachusetts Senate debate where the response from Romney originates.
*** UPDATE *** Per NBC's Michelle Perry, Romney Communications Director Gail Gitcho responded on MSNBC's "Andrea Mitchell Reports" to these text messages questioning Romney's abortion stance.
Gitcho said abortion is the one substantial issue he has admitted he has changed his position. He is now pro-life, she said -- not something he is going to change his position on.
Leave a Comment:
...but Citizens United was a great decision by the Supreme Court, wasn't it, Conservatives?
You Betcha, especially since the TeaPeople voted down the disclosure bill in the House!
...They expect to be told everything, but will tell nothing......
......Karma!
The most intriguing part of Romney's flip flops is when he said he's more conservative now than before. Please, after how many years of ones life do one realize what ones principles are? Romney is so fake, a bogus liar, a flip flopper and seriously out of touch. I hope he's nominated as GOP candidate..............guys, keep your surgical knives ready.
I can't believe Romney changed his position on a topic of such importance to republicans in general, has he ever done this before on any other important issues?
Better question...has he ever NOT changed his position?
Hope you and the missus have the sign language worked out cause I don't think there'll be a separation of tongue and cheek for a long time after that one.
Hey, he changed his mind...that's all. Wait till the general election - he'll probably turn moderate again just to lure some of those independents his way. Because we all know you can't be a bible-thumping conservative if you want to attract more than 50% of voters.
I want to know how these chuckleheads got MY cell phone number. I'm not Republican, and I sure as hell am not happy that he changed from pro-choice to anti-choice/pro death to women...so who are these people and why don't they have the GUTS to stand by what they put out there? Why should I have to pay for a message from some spammy dirtbag Rethuglicans?
Not sure about text messaging, but polling is done by computer-generated phone numbers. That way unlisted, cell phones, etc. can be included. I imagine it's not terribly expensive to text the 515 area code.
That's not my area code, and it said it targetted Republican Iowans. Very odd. Very obnoxious.
i was for it, before i was against it, before i was for it............! mr weather vane.
For God's sakes, are we re-visiting the abortion controversy again?? This is getting tiresome. Most of us know by now his view view on abortion, he was for it a long time ago and recently changed his mind based on circumstances that happened. Yeah, yeah, yeah, he is a flip flopper, ok, whatever. There is no revelation in this article that changes anything so why revisit it again? I have said time and time again, enough with the abortion controversy, lets get someone to fix this economy. That is all I care about right now!
So who pays for the messaging charges?
I do. I pay per message. So does my husband. We don't text so we have per message plans, and we just had to pay for the messages. Lovely, innit?
Anna,
Try calling your cell phone carrier and ask them to delete the charge, as this was an unsolicited text. They will most likely remove the charge. You also might want to ask them to block the number of the text sender.
There is no question on abortion. Abortion is murder unless the termination occurs under one of the following exceptions:
1.The terminated pregnancy would result in both the mother and childs death as a result of complications during the pregnancy.
2.The mother is infected with HIV which could possibly be passed onto the child thus continuing the spread of the HIV virus.
3.If the child has a malformity such as which would create a disabled person. The termination of the pregnancy in this case is not to rid the world of deformed children but to eleviate the burden that will be beset upon the child because of the childs deformity. We all know that there are people in the world who desire power over people and would play on such a deformed childs emotions only to make them feel more grand than if the deformed employee did not work for them. The termination of the pregnancy in this case would keep the child from going through a life of constant harassment and belittleing that would occur. The child would never be able to fully live life without the thought of those around them making fun of them for being less perfect which happens everyday. These children are always groomed to be slaves. Whens the last time that you saw a deformed actress or actor as the star in a movie? Whens the last time you heard of an Hollywood actor or actress being on the front page of E having one arm or one leg deformed to point of being noticeable?
4.Rape - The child would go through a life of being harrased in the same manner as the deformed child never being able to fully live life but always being labeled "The Mother's Bastard." The child would most likely grow into a criminal where criminals always accept such indivuals. In this case the mother and child are not at fault and if the mother thinks that she can keep the vampires at bay that feed off of such births then the termination or exception of such a life is her decision.
5.Incest - Abomination! When discovered that a child a has been conceived through incest the physician should report the find right away to the proper authorities who would then determine the course of action to take. The child when born would go through the same harassment and cruelties as the deformed and raped created child. The very thought process that conceived the child in the first place are rarely consistent with educated thoughts and would continue to cause a degeneration of the human thought process on the whole. If the state deemed the pregnancy to far along to abort then after the child was born the child would become a ward of the state until their 18th birthday. The state would raise the child telling them how their existance came to be and the reason why they were taken away from their incestial parents.
These laws for abortions may sound like a monster but I have taken into account how the child would be treated in all cases where termination of life did not occur because of an inherited disease such as HIV or in cases where the mother and child would both die due to the process of the birth of the child.
To bring a life into being without regard to that childs well being based upon the circumstances of their birth just so they can be used in a political ploy for one group to have more brainwashed voters is none the less likened to children being born into slavery for the purpose of political group only namely the GOP.
according to whom?
this is the law:
ABORTION IS A CIVIL AND CONSTITUTIONAL RIGHT SUPPORTED BY THE RIGHTS TO PRIVACY, THE EQUAL PROTECTION CLAUSE OF 14TH AMENDMENT, AND THE 13TH AMENDMENT.
no human has a right to life or any due process rights by the 14th amendment to use another human's body or body parts AGAINST their will, civil and constitutional rights: that's why you are not force to donate your kidney---the human fetus is no exception; this is protected by the equal protection clause of the 14th amendment.
consensual sex =/= a legal, binding contract for an unwanted fetus to live.
so i will kill any unwanted, parasitic life-form that needs my body to live---including your precious fetus...period, get over it.
Thank you, Dwight. It's very hard to discuss the abortion issue, especially among Christians like Catholics and evangelicals. I would have to consider myself 1/2 pro-life and 1/2 pro-choice. I'm pro-life because that is how I was raised, and allowing someone to just terminate somebody else's life just for the heck of it is just wrong. But, as for my pro-choice side, I believe that a woman ought to be able to save herself (and the baby, in the case of rape, incest, or deformities) by doing an abortion. And contrary to what some people say, people who go through abortions do not necessarily do it willingly. After-the-fact many women feel depressed; some from health conditions, others from the thought that they killed someone. I'm for abortion as long as it is controlled. And doesn't the Declaration of Independence state that "all men are created equal." That includes the unborn, because if we can apply that phrase to minorities and children, why can't we apply it to the unborn. The Declaration also gives everybody the right to life (including the unborn), but if the mother AND the baby will die it is best to save the mother than to have two people dead.
And gale routh, although I respect your opinion, you might not want to say that you would kill anyone, nor should you call a human fetus a parasite. You yourself were a parasite that feed on your mother's womb. I'm not trying to convert you, I'm just exposing you to reality. All of us were parasites. Many of us were unexpected, others planned. But we all deserve a right to live, like the unborn and the mother. Plus there are other options, like adoption, that should be promoted or at least given to pregnant woman. Don't refer to the unborn as parasites, because that only makes you seem cruel and sadistic to others, especially the young and expectant mothers.
Oh and FWY: abortion is both constitutional and unconstitutional given the fact that few people are given the authority to end another's life (including doctors, mothers, and policemen unless absolutely necessary); then again, all people are given the right to life, including the mother (and the unborn).
fres
maybe you should read the law; your morality against abortion IS moot to the will and legal rights to abort, period.
and when did i say, i would and want to kill just anyone?
"so i will kill any unwanted, parasitic life-form that needs MY body to live---including your precious fetus...period, get over it."
and that's a fact, just because you have a hard-on for my unwanted, human-parasitic fetus, doesn't stop my MY will and legal rights to abort it (for whatever reason) from MY body...deal with it.
the human fetus is a parasite--i posted the proof already on this page, it's up to you to prove me wrong; and just because WE all were parasitic-fetuses at one time, doesn't stop my freedom of speech to say it; doesn't stop abortion rights of women, too.
i'm sick n' tired of speech being censored because it hurts of your guys' little feelings, and completely destroys you guys' illogical arguments.
FYI 'Declaration of Independence state that "all men are created equal." That includes the unborn,' is wrong. the DOI is not a legal document and it didn't stop slavery, so why do you think it would stop a woman's rights to abort...when forcing her to stay pregnant is a violation of her rights to liberty?
and abortion is not unconstitutional, because the fetus is not a legal person with due process rights to life under the 14th amendment, reproductive slavery is UNCONSTITUTIONAL, duh.
you pro-life, schizophrenic fascists have no clue what you guys are talking about.
Freshieee, I agree. While I am personally pro choice I do not believe I have the right to dictate to another person what she can and cannot do with her body or her fetus. We tried to legislate morality at the beginning of the last Century and all it did was cause people to die from home made hooch and for the Mafia to expand from small regional thugs to nation wide organized criminal organizations.
Traditionally chldren have no rights under our laws. You cannot, for example, sue a kid but you can sue his parents for something he did. It is expected that the adults know what is best for the children. This is not always true, of course but that has been how our laws work. If we prosecute a woman for having an abortion who is already under stress from the whole thing in the first place what do we accomplish? I doubt any woman just willfully has an aborton just because. It goes deeper than that.
Finally, I would rather a woman, if she is going to do it anyway, have her abortion in a clean, well lighted place, with medically trained personnel on hand than in a dark dirty alley, with a coat hanger or in a filthy room with some guy who says he can do it cheap and is a faux doctor at best.
Once you said it is ok in the case of rape, you made pregnancy a punishment. In other words, once that slut got knocked up on her own, then she MUST suffer by continuing the pregnancy. If she was raped, then the poor innocent angel shouldn't have to bear the burden of having a 'bastard' if it wasn't her fault. So you think that an 'innocent' fetus deserves to die because in this case, mommy wasn't a disgusting filthy whore. That's pretty twisted. So is the disabled thing. Why don't you just go around and slaughter all the disabled living people to keep them from suffering? Start with my son, I would imagine his life has no value to you. He can't be a hollywood star, so let's end his suffering now. He's nine, come and try it. What a sicko.
this is science:
fetus (NOT A BABY, THEY ARE BORN…GOOGLE THE HUMAN DEVELOPMENT CHART) is a parasite because the classification of the biological relationship that is based on the behavior of one organism (the fetus) and how it relates to the woman's body:
as a zygote, it invaded the woman's uterus using its Trophoblast cells and hijacked her immune system by using Neurokinin B—-so her body won't KILL it, and stole her nutrients to survive and causes her harm or potential DEATH!
"it is also possible for a symbiotic relationship to exist between two organisms of the same species."
—–Gale's Science of Everyday Things:
Symbiosis
"an animal or plant that lives in or on another (the host) from which it obtains nourishment. The host does not benefit from the association and is often harmed by it"
pregnancy causes women harm:
if a man can kill his tapeworm at anytime, so should a woman abort her unwanted human parasitic fetus at anytime, too.
so i will kill any unwanted, parasitic life-form that needs my body to live---including your precious fetus...period, get over it--and go worry about some dying child in africa
gale routh ---- i bet a case of beer and 1/2 bottle of jack under your belt would mellow you out a bit.
"Romulian Romney" has never taken a stance on any issue! This is not shocking at all America. The "Romulian" has no clue of what taking a "Stance" means. The "Romulian" has done so much filp flopping in his poltical views. That even the most "Gross" and "Odd" Tea Beggers are left more mentally confused than they already are! That is fact! Now the "Romulian" loves his very rich Wall Street friends, and they have been promised many economic gifts. Like no new financial regulations, no new taxes, and the continuing of the Bush Tax Cuts. Now the "Romulian" loves to take the "Goofy Grover" Tax Pledge to greedy economic heart. Getting ready to vote yet America?? I hope so!
Good ol' Mitt. He never held a position that he didn't change.
As to Rupublican and Abortion .
This is the kind of issue that politican take on when they are corrupt . No President or lawmaker should make laws concerning Abortion in this country except where the is a business in having an aborted child .
As you know aborted fetus is used for old age research for problem relating thereof . The best you can or should do is to make the woman indicate why she wants an abortion in general terms, e.g. she can not afford to bring the child up as a single parent , or she conceived the child with a man that seduced her , and or fooled her , so that he was not what he pretended to be . etc.
Story in the Bible about Human needs .
The story is about two women , both are hungry as there is no food in the land of Samatra.
Both women make a pact to eat each others babies . They in fact eat one child . The point of this
story as to abortions is G-d set up the conditon of hunger here . The fact is that He knows
that which will cause peope to act contra to His Laws and produces the condition or allow The Satan to produce the conditon , is His Option . The same is true of Abortions and the Reason for the Abortion by mothers .
Mo Romney is such a phony, lying, pretender, flake!
LTC Rattus, USA, ret.
You wonder how someone could go thru 50+ years and never have a position he's maintained longer than one election cycle..
In the case of rape or safety of the mother, it should be completely up to the woman to abort. A) For being violated against her will and having to endure unwanted pregnancy as a result, and B) so she will not die during child birth to save the life of a 9 month old, when she likely has a spouse, partner, other children, and family that rely on her living through her pregnancy. I'm of the stance where if you must sacrifice a 9 month old or the mother of 18+ years (threw out random number), the grown woman takes precedence because you can always try again, or stop trying if there are health complications.
In all other cases, I'm in favor of putting a baby up for adoption.
Funny a bunch of 50+ year old men want to tell half of the population that they know what it is like to deal with the aftermath of a rape or be on their death bed while giving birth. Morons - stop changing your position to gain votes, it exposes your integrity and lack of empathy for women.