John Kerry’s Wife Backs Abortion, Says it "Stops the Process of Life"
by Steven Ertelt
LifeNews.com Editor
April 25, 2004
Washington, DC (LifeNews.com) — In an interview with Newsweek magazine, Teresa Heinz Kerry, the wife of presumptive Democratic nominee John Kerry, says she backs abortion. She also retracted a previous statement indicating she wasn’t fully 100% committed to the pro-abortion cause.
"I’m more old-fashioned than a lot of women … I don’t view abortion as just a nothing. It is stopping the process of life," Heinz Kerry told Newsweek contributing editor Melinda Henneberger in a recent interview.
Henneberger followed the Democratic senator’s wife around to various campaign events over a three week period to obtain a profile of the potential First Lady.
When it comes to abortion, Heinz Kerry told Henneberger, "My belief — and I maybe am very wrong — is that women, generally speaking, do not want to have abortions."
"With the exception of people who are mindless — and there will always be mindless people of both sexes — most women wouldn’t want to," Heinz Kerry explained. "So starting on that premise, I’d say it’s our duty as a society to help women arrive at the best conclusion."
Five years ago, Heinz Kerry gave an interview in which she called herself "not 100 percent pro-choice."
Now, she accepts the political realities that come with being married to a presidential candidate who kowtows to the abortion lobby.
"She says she is no longer allowed the luxury of such qualifiers," the Newsweek editor writes.
"Ultimately you’re either for choice or you’re not, so I am" for abortion, Heinz Kerry says. "I ask myself if I had a 13-year-old daughter who got drunk one night and got pregnant, what would I do. Christ, I’d go nuts."
Meanwhile, when Henneberger asked Senator Kerry whether his wife’s views on abortion are different from his own, he dodges the question.
"I do not know the answer to that. We’ve never — she’s never had to vote."
The Newsweek profile shows that Heinz-Kerry may be open to the abstinence message.
"We should start emphasizing mystery; save it for another day," she tells Henneberger about sex. "I came from a more romantic time."
During another conversation, she expands on the topic: "It would be interesting to show young people that sexuality and sensuality are very different, and that being sensuous is more charming, more sustainable, more beautiful."
The story, "Teresa – Is John Kerry’s Heiress Wife a Loose Cannon or Crazy Like a Fox," appears in the May 3 issue of Newsweek that will appear in stores on Monday.
