Texas Pro-Life Group Chides Kay Bailey Hutchinson for Pro-Abortion Stance

State   |   Steven Ertelt   |   Jan 14, 2010   |   9:00AM   |   WASHINGTON, DC

Texas Pro-Life Group Chides Kay Bailey Hutchinson for Pro-Abortion Stance

by Steven Ertelt
LifeNews.com Editor
January 14
, 2010

Austin,TX (LifeNews.com) — Texas Senator Kay Bailey Hutchison came under fire today from a pro-life group that is backing Gov. Rick Perry in his bid for re-election. Hutchison is willing to give up her seat in the Senate to take on Perry but her less-than-pro-life position has earned her opposition from Texas Right to Life.

Hutchison is a Republican who frequently votes pro-life on abortion limits and restrictions but she has never been fully pro-life.

While Perry has built a long pro-life record, Hutchison supports legal abortions, including the Roe v. Wade case in 1973 that allowed about 50 million of them.

"My view on abortion has been the same, I do not think there should be government intervention on abortion before viability, but I do think states should have the right to make reasonable restrictions such as parental consent," Hutchison says in an old video from her first campaign for the Senate.

"That has been my position all along," Hutchison adds. "I am very comfortable that Roe v. Wade is working very well."

In an email LifeNews.com received today, Texas Right to Life warns pro-life voters to "not be fooled" because Hutchison has "strident pro-choice views."

The email encourages pro-life voters to "your support for pro-life incumbent governor Rick Perry in the race for governor" by signing up to support him on his web site.

Dr. Joseph Graham, the president of Texas Right to Life, responded to the comments in the video.

“Senator Hutchison has always been forthright with Texas Right to Life about her views on life," he explained. "While she favors some restrictions on abortion, she has steadfastly held to her ‘viability’ position throughout her political career."

"Additionally, Senator Hutchison has personally told us in meetings that she favors embryonic stem cell research. While we have enjoyed a cordial relationship with her, her views on life are not appropriate for one seeking to be the governor of our pro-life state," Graham added.

This isn’t the first time Texas Right to Life has criticized Hutchison. The pro-life group, in December, chided her for missing an important pro-life vote.

Texas Right to Life referred to the cloture vote on President Barack Obama’s nomination of pro-abortion federal judge David Hamilton to serve on a federal appeals court. Hutchison was the only senator to miss the vote.

"Texas passed the Woman’s Right to Know law in 2003, and our law has never been challenged in the courts. If it were, would you be comforted to know that Senator Hutchison let someone like Judge Hamilton slide onto the bench?" the pro-life group asked in its email.

"In contrast, Governor Perry has appointed more men and women to Texas benches than any other governor in Texas history. All his judicial appointees adhere to the Founders’ philosophy that the Constitution is the rule of law and not subject to one’s own ideology," the group said. "Would Senator Hutchison appoint someone like Judge Hamilton? Why take the chance on human life?"

The criticism of Hutchison comes after another Texas pro-life group, the Texas Alliance for Life, endorsed Perry.

Related web sites:
Video of Hutchison –
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G9KgSKA84JY
Texas Right to Life – https://www.TexasRighttoLife.com

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