Washington, DC (LifeNews.com) -- The guessing game about the possible running mate for presidential candidate John McCain can't be any hotter, but the announcement that independent Sen. Joe Lieberman will speak at the GOP convention makes it appear McCain won't select him as his running mate.

Pro-life voters have been calling on McCain to select a vice president who is pro-life and McCain aides and GOP officials appeared to have ruled that out on Tuesday.

The Lieberman announcement -- putting him on the docket for a speaking role at the convention instead of keeping his name in reserve for the vice-presidential prime time slot -- is the best indication yet he won't become McCain's number two.

That's good news for pro-life advocates who want someone running with McCain who shares his views in opposition to abortion.

"If John McCain wants to win, he needs to be the only authentic pro-life candidate," Susan B. Anthony List president Marjorie Dannenfelser tells LifeNews.com. "Choosing a pro-life vice presidential candidate will earn the support of the pro-life women voters he needs to prevail on Election Day."

Wendy Wright, the president of Concerned Women for America, called on McCain to "get serious" about the abortion issue and put down the rumors that he will pick a pro-abortion running mate.

"In recent days, John McCain appeared at a major evangelical church where he seemed to stand firm on pro-life principles," she said.

Wright worried he's following that up poorly by not squelching rumors he may select abortion advocates Lieberman or former Pennsylvania Gov. Tom Ridge.

"A running mate, the person who would be one heartbeat away from the presidency, must be as serious about protecting innocent life as the person on the top of the ticket," she told LifeNews.com.

"As the nation's largest pro-life women's organization, CWA calls on John McCain to validate his pro-life credentials by choosing a running mate that supports his party's pro-life position. Anything short of a 100% pro-life running mate will lead to conservative women staying home on Election Day," she said.

 

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