Senator Joe Manchin of West Virginia is supposedly a pro-life Democrat. But which side is it really on?
Manchin was recently seen posing with activists on both sides of the abortion debate. He took a picture with a pro-abortion activist holding a sign saying he stands with Planned Parenthood, the nation’s biggest abortion company. Later Senator Manchin stood with with a pro-life advocate holding a sign saying she opposed to Planned Parenthood.
Senator Manchin’s staff attempted to explain away the paradoxical photos by saying that the senator is willing to stand with anybody holding any kind of sign.
Response from Manchin’s office: The Senator’s communications director, Jonathan Kott, tells me the Senator will pose for photographs with any of his constituents and that any signs he holds bear no relation to his policy positions.
Manchin’s position hasn’t changed, said Kott: The senator will vote to fund Planned Parenthood because the investigations showed no evidence that the organization was selling or profiting from fetal organs. His support for PP is also contingent on the Hyde Amendment being law, to ensure public funds don’t go to abortions. Kott also points out that the only Planned Parenthood clinic in West Virginia doesn’t perform abortions.
Click here to sign up for pro-life news alerts from LifeNews.com
But why would a senator who is supposedly pro-life stand with a sign supporting the nation’s biggest abortion Corporation? National Right to Life is wondering the same thing, as it told LifeNews:
In pro-life areas of the country, Democratic candidates must have pro-life votes in order to win, however they also must appease the pro-abortion masters of the Democratic Party. The most ridiculous evidence of this recently took place when West Virginia Democratic Senator Joe Manchin appeared in a picture holding a Planned Parenthood sign that read, “I stand with Planned Parenthood.” Manchin later appeared in a picture with a pro-life group holding a sign that read, “We don’t need Planned Parenthood.”
Manchin, who claims to be pro-life, has a 33% pro-life voting record in the 115th Congress. There are similar situations in other parts of the country where Democratic senators must have pro-life votes to win including Indiana Sen. Joe Donnelly, Pennsylvania Sen. Bob Casey, and North Dakota Sen. Heidi Heitkamp. They will seek to get pro-life votes while trying please the pro-abortion masters of the Democratic Party.
Manchin need to pick a side and be concerned about choosing the wrong one.
“The pro-abortion side cannot match the infrastructure and grassroots base of National Right to Life and its 3,000 chapters and state affiliates, which can respond quickly anywhere in the country,” NRLC president Carol Tobias said. “With this latest litmus test for Democratic candidates, the Democratic Party will continue to lose elections.”
