Pro-Life Senator Responds to Barack Obama Comparing Him to Terrorist
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by Steven Ertelt
LifeNews.com Editor
April 25, 2008
Washington, DC (LifeNews.com) — A leading pro-life U.S. senator has responded to comments pro-abortion Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama made during the most recent presidential debate. Obama compared Sen. Tom Coburn of Oklahoma to a terrorist he knows in an attempt to defend his relationship.
During last week’s presidential debate between Obama and Hillary Clinton, Obama was asked a question about his friendship with William Ayers, a member of a group responsible for bombing government buildings.
"He’s never apologized for that," moderator George Stephanopolis told Obama.
Obama explained that his friendship with Ayers shouldn’t be construed as implying he endorsed the terrorist-like tactics Ayers used to drive home his political point.
Then, the Illinois senator brought up a pro-life colleague to apparently make the point that he’s friends with other people who take "extreme" positions or would use terrorist tactics.
"The fact is, is that I’m also friendly with Tom Coburn, one of the most conservative Republicans in the United States Senate, who during his campaign once said that it might be appropriate to apply the death penalty to those who carried out abortions," Obama said.
"Do I need to apologize for Mr. Coburn’s statements? Because I certainly don’t agree with those either," he added.
On Friday, Coburn told The Hill, a Congressional newspaper, that he thinks Obama made a mistake in comparing his pro-life views with a terrorist and that it was "absolutely not" a fair comparison.
Coburn said he still considers Obama “one of my friends, and we’ve talked.”
“Everybody makes gaffes. Period," he added.
Rep. Tom Cole, a pro-life colleague from Oklahoma, told the newspaper he thought the comparison was inappropriate as well.
“I don’t think it was a fair comparison,” he said.
But, Sen. Dick Durbin, Obama’s Illinois colleague and the number two Democrat in the Senate, told The Hill he thought pro-life advocates were making too much of the comment.
“They are friends, and that’s the point he tried to make, and that he might see these issues differently,” he said.
The pro-life lawmaker turned abortion advocate said pro-life people were being "too sensitive" and that Obama did not throw Coburn under the bus.
