Possible 2012 Obama Challengers Blast Passage of Pro-Abortion Health Care
by Steven Ertelt
LifeNews.com Editor
March 22, 2010
Washington, DC (LifeNews.com) — Five of the top potential Republican challengers against President Barack Obama in 2012 have spoken out against the pro-abortion health care bill the House passed on Sunday night. Mitt Romney, Sarah Palin, Mike Huckabee, Rick Santorum, and Tim Pawlenty all opposed the bill in comments after it passed.
Former Arkansas governor Mike Huckabee didn’t mine any words in his condemnation of Obama and his Democratic allies.
"For months, President Obama, Nancy Pelosi and Harry Reid have insisted that they know best when it comes to health care reform," he said. "With this vote, Congress decided what kind of health care you have access to and how much it will cost. They also decided not to respect us and take us for fools."
He urged pro-life advocate to hold those who voted for the bill accountable at the polls.
"Get personally involved to dump them. Let’s replace this Congress with Republicans that will listen to the people," he said.
Sarah Palin, the former Alaska governor and vice-presidential candidate, got into the action of condemning the pro-abortion bill.
"In the weeks to come, we can expect them to try to change the subject, but we won’t forget," she said. "Though they’d like us to forget, we will remember the corrupt deals, the corrupt process, the lack of transparency, the deceptive gimmicks to game the CBO score, and the utter disregard for the will of the American people."
"Elections have consequences, and we won’t forget those who promised to hold firm against government funding of abortion, but caved at the last minute in exchange for a non-binding executive order promised by the most pro-abortion president to ever occupy the White House," she added.
"This is just the beginning of our efforts to take back our country. Consider yesterday’s vote a clarion call and a spur to action. We will not let America sink into further debt without a fight," Palin said in her FaceBook post.
Minnesota Gov. Tim Pawlenty, who is pro-life, was clear in his opposition.
"Democrats rejected needed, common sense reforms in favor of an overreaching, extraordinarily expensive, government-centric plan that gives more and more control to an already bloated and bankrupt federal government," he said in a statement.
Romney, who signed into law a government-run health care bill that detractors say is similar to the measure the House approved, is calling for it to be repealed.
He said Obama "has betrayed his oath to the nation" by failing to address health care in a bipartisan manner in a statement published on the National Review web site.
"America has just witnessed an unconscionable abuse of power. President Obama has betrayed his oath to the nation – rather than bringing us together, ushering in a new kind of politics, and rising above raw partisanship, he has succumbed to the lowest denominator of incumbent power: justifying the means by extolling the ends," he said.
"His health-care bill is unhealthy for America" and "the act should be repealed. That campaign begins today," Romney added.
Former Pennsylvania Sen. Rick Santorum, a pro-life advocate, also opposed the passage of the bill.
"This day will go down as either the day that America turned its back on our unique system of democratic capitalism or the day that ignited a firestorm to reclaim the vision that has made our country the greatest in the history of the world," he said.
"Today is owned by those who believe that an all powerful federal government is the future of our republic, tomorrow freedom-loving patriots will begin the fight against this tyranny to reclaim our birthright," he concluded.
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