Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney interviewed on the Fox News show hosted by former GOP presidential hopeful Mike Huckabee and the former Massachusetts governor insisted he is pro-life on abortion. Huckabee, the former Arkansas governor who sparred with Romney during the 2008 presidential election, wasted no time asking Romney the question on the minds of some pro-life advocates who still have doubts about Romney following his conversion to the pro-life position.
“There’s still concerns that some of the social conservatives have,” Huckabee said. “Would you be a pro-life president and what would that mean for you? How would you give some assurance that that’s not something they have to worry about if Mitt Romney is president?”
Romney answered by saying he would appoint conservative to the Supreme Court who would not make law from the bench in the same way seven justices did in 1973 with the Roe v. Wade decision paving the way for virtually unlimited abortions.
“I’d make sure the progress that’s been made to provide for life and to protect human life would not be progress that is reversed,” he said. “I’d make sure that justices that go to the Supreme Court are justices that have a conviction that their job is to follow the law and not to create the law from the bench.”
“Would it be wonderful if everyone in the country agreed with you and me that life begins in conception and that there’s a sanctity of life that’s part of a civilized society and that we’re all going to agree there should not be legal abortion in the nation? That’d be great,” Romney said. “But I don’t think that’s where we are right now. But I do think where the majority of the American people would go is say let the states make the decisions.”
Romney said “the Supreme Court should reverse Roe vs. Wade and send back to the states the responsibility for deciding whether they are going to have abortion legal in their state or not.”
He also defended the health care plan he signed into law in Massachusetts, which has caused Romney to be on the receiving end of criticism over its funding of abortions. He said he would have gladly supported a provision eliminating the abortion funding in the program, but indicated the state Supreme Court had ruled that the state must fund abortions despite the objections of pro-life people. Romney said he would support an amendment to the state constitution to overturn that decision, but added that Democrats in the state legislature made that impossible to pursue.
“Our bill had no mention whatsoever of abortion,” Romney said. “This was something which existed even before our bill was passed. They said people who were receiving care that was in any way subsidized by government had the right to get abortion as part of that care. They said that was constitutionally required.”
“Our plan in Massachusetts was about caring for the 8 percent of our population that didn’t have insurance. For 92 percent of the people in my state nothing changed. The president’s plan is taking over healthcare for 100 percent of people. It’s changing healthcare in this country for everyone,” Romney told Huckabee. “The bill works pretty well, not perfectly. If I were governor it would work better.”
Romney also repeated his pledge to overturn Obamacare if elected president.
“I will direct the secretary of Health and Human Services to grant a waiver for Obamacare to every single state,” he said.
He also said he has no problem if other Republicans join the race for the nomination to face pro-abortion President Barack Obama.
“I don’t begrudge the fact that people are taking a good, hard look and if there’s someone else willing to get in the race,” he said. “Come on in, let us take a look at you, put you and under the microscope and see who has the best shot of replacing President Obama and getting the country on the right track again.”
