Pro-Life Groups Bash Barack Obama For "Don’t Punish With a Baby" Comment 
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by Steven Ertelt
LifeNews.com Editor
April 1, 2008
Washington, DC (LifeNews.com) — Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama is drawing more fire today for his comment that his daughters shouldn’t be "punished" with a baby should they become pregnant as teenagers. Pro-life groups say Obama’s comments are hurtful when it comes to stopping both teen pregnancies and abortions.
In recent remarks during a Pennsylvania campaign stop, Obama responded to a question about AIDS and meandered his way into talking about teen pregnancy.
The Illinois senator said: "I’ve got two daughters, 9 years old and 6 years old. I am going to teach them first of all about values and morals. But if they make a mistake, I don’t want them punished with a baby."
Concerned Women for America president Wendy Wright responded in a statement sent to LifeNews.com.
Despite her group’s desire to see a reduce in the number of teen pregnancies, Wright made it clear that castigating mothers and condemning their babies to abortion is not the answer.
"Stigmatizing the babies conceived by teenagers is not the way to reduce teen pregnancies. Instead, it provides an excuse for aborting them," she said.
"Regardless of their parentage, all human beings should be treated with respect and dignity," Wright explained. "Our society would take a dangerous step backward from the Judeo-Christian belief that we are all created equal if we were to treat one class of humans – those born to teenagers – as a curse."
Wright called on Obama to recognize this fact and to "recant" his statement that a baby is a "punishment."
Rev. Patrick J. Mahoney, the head of the Christian Defense Coalition, agreed and said Obama’s remark is a "slap in the face" to every child born to a young mother.
He said the comment also "diminishes the great joy that children bring to their families regardless of the circumstances in which they were born.
"We call upon Senator Obama to issue a public apology for these profoundly misguided statements and also address his anti-child and anti-compassion mindset," Mahoney said.
