Momentum on Scott Walker’s Side as Recall Battle Closes

State   |   Andrew Bair   |   May 25, 2012   |   5:00PM   |   Madison, WI

A little over a week remains in the critical Wisconsin recall race. Pro-life Governor Scott Walker will face off against his 2010 Democratic opponent Milwaukee mayor Tom Barrett on Tuesday, June 5th. The contrast between the two candidates could not be clearer. Walker has stood up for unborn children and their mothers at every opportunity while Barrett stands by his votes as a Congressman to keep partial-birth abortion legal and to expand taxpayer funding of abortion.

While the initial thrust behind the recall was collective bargaining and other labor issues, Democrats and the pro-abortion movement have made abortion a central issue in the campaign. In its endorsement of Barrett, NARAL Pro-Choice Wisconsin employed the now-cliché “war on women” rhetoric to attack Walker’s pro-life legislative gains. “Walker has led the charge in the War on Women in Wisconsin, signing into law more anti-choice and anti-women legislation than any Governor in more than a generation in our state.”

As LifeNews reported earlier this month, the scope of the race has changed significantly from purely a debate over unions to a debate over the right to life in Wisconsin as well. “Collective bargaining is not moving people,” said Graeme Zielinski, a Democratic Party spokesman. Zielinski openly admitted his party would have to broaden the scope of the election if they were to be victorious. He added, “The gender gap is something we can exploit.” The tactic has followed the national strategy of the pro-abortion movement to corral female votes by inciting gender division.

Pro-abortion activists held a “Unite Against the War on Women” rally in Madison where they lambasted Governor Walker’s pro-life record. In addition to Walker, they targeted Republican presidential nominee Mitt Romney and his wife Ann. Ruth Conniff, a writer for The Progressive, spoke at the rally and defended comments made by Democratic strategist Hilary Rosen about Ann Romney. Rosen infamously said that despite being a stay-at-home mother of five, Romney had “never worked a day in her life.”

The rally also featured some special musical entertainment, which consisted of activists singing the Battle Hymn of the Republic, the patriotic hymn authored by pro-life suffragette Julia Ward Howe. However, the pro-abortion version modified the lyrics, changing such lines as “His truth is marching on” to “We need Planned Parenthood.”

Wisconsin Right to Life PAC has thrown its support behind Walker, pro-life Lieutenant Governor Rebecca Kleefisch and several pro-life Republican state senators who also face voters in the recall election.  Susan Armacost, Wisconsin Right to Life PAC Director said, “Governor Walker’s deep belief in the sanctity of all human life is evident in the courageous actions he has taken to build a culture of life in Wisconsin. His concern for the most vulnerable members of the human family is reflected in the common sense and compassionate laws he has signed into law. Those initiatives will greatly benefit unborn children, women who are considering abortion and the taxpayers of our state.”

“Lieutenant Governor Kleefisch has consistently and courageously spoken out on behalf of those who cannot speak for themselves and has urged the passage of compassionate legislative initiatives that would protect the unborn, the elderly and the infirm,” Armacost added.

Kleefisch also earned the backing of the Susan B. Anthony List, a pro-life organization that works to elect pro-life female candidates. “Lieutenant Governor Rebecca Kleefisch has proved she is a strong advocate for Life and the pro-life taxpayers of Wisconsin,” said SBA List President Marjorie Dannenfelser. “Thanks to her leadership along with Governor Walker and the pro-life state legislature, Wisconsin has defunded Planned Parenthood of more than a million dollars.”

The most recent polling shows Governor Walker with the edge in the race. According to a Reason-Rupe poll, Walker leads Barrett by eight points.  The Barrett campaign and Democratically-affiliated polling firms have found him to be within striking range, some even within the margin of error.

Wisconsin Right to Life PAC is working tirelessly to deliver the pro-life vote on Election Day. The group’s most recent ad, entitled “Tom Barrett’s Neighborhood,” envisions the pro-abortion Democrat as Mr. Rodgers but in Barrett’s neighborhood it is not such a beautiful day for unborn children. The ad hits Barrett on his opposition to the Unborn Victims of Violence Act, the ban on partial-birth abortion and parental involvement.