John McCain Stokes Speculation Pro-Abortion Joe Lieberman Possible VP
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by Steven Ertelt
LifeNews.com Editor
January 17, 2008
Washington, DC (LifeNews.com) — John McCain is campaigning on pro-life issues in South Carolina but he’s not helping his cause by stoking the fires of speculation that he could pick pro-abortion Sen Joe Lieberman as his running mate if he wins the GOP nomination. Lieberman, who want with Al Gore in 2000, has a longstanding record promoting abortion.
The possibility of Lieberman, McCain’s friend and ally on many political causes in the Senate, as a running mate has been one of speculation since Lieberman started campaigning for him in December.
However, columnist Bob Novak cited comments from a McCain operative over the weekend who told him, "there is no possibility that Independent Democratic Sen. Joseph Lieberman would be McCain’s vice presidential running mate on the Republican ticket.”
But, McCain himself raised the possibility, according to a Wall St. Journal report, during a Town Hall meeting on Wednesday night.
“He’d be a great partner in any endeavor, including joining America together,” McCain responding to a question on Lieberman. “Let’s reach across the aisle, let’s work together for America. That’s what Joe Lieberman is all about.”
Although a pairing of McCain and Lieberman in a general election is somewhat far-fetched, McCain’s unwillingness to rule out his Senate buddy as a running mate doesn’t help him attract pro-life voters.
That’s especially because Lieberman is pro-abortion and has voted to force taxpayers to fund embryonic stem cell research.
In 2004, Lieberman said that if he were elected president, his first action would be to make sure taxpayer funds would sponsor embryonic stem cell research that involves the destruction of unborn children.
Carol Tobias, formerly of National Right to Life, told LifeNews.com that "he’s no moderate when it comes to abortion."
"Lieberman supports abortion for any reason, including partial-birth abortion. He supports stem-cell research on human embryos and has said he would try to appoint judges who would uphold Roe vs. Wade," she explained.
On his official Senate web site, Lieberman defended his decision to fight a ban on partial-birth abortion, a practice in which a baby is partly delivered, then killed.
"Let us be clear on this," Lieberman states. "Our values and our respect for the Constitution make clear that women must have the right to choose and we will continue to fight for that right."
Lieberman proudly proclaims the fact that he received a 100 percent rating from NARAL, the national pro-abortion lobbying group, in the years 2001 and 2002. He has an overall rating of 95 percent from NARAL for his entire political career.
