Obama Has Pro-Abortion Supreme Court Litmus Test Despite Debate Remarks
by Steven Ertelt
LifeNews.com Editor
October 16, 2008
Washington, DC (LifeNews.com) — Listening to the presidential debate, Americans might be inclined to think Barack Obama has no litmus test when it comes to the Supreme Court. Yet, Obama has made it clear in prior comments that he will not appoint any judge who doesn’t agree with keeping unlimited abortions legal.
Obama claimed he wouldn’t have a pro-abortion litmus test for the high court– “I think it’s true that we shouldn’t apply a strict litmus test."
“I would not provide a litmus test. But I am somebody who believes that Roe versus Wade was rightly decided,” Obama added.
Yet Obama’s own words contradict his claims on Wednesday night.
During a November, 2007 debate with Democratic primary candidates, Obama confirmed he would only back pro-abortion Supreme Court picks.
"I would not appoint somebody who doesn’t believe in the right to privacy," he said.
Leading pro-life attorney Matt Bowman also noticed the contradiction.
"He says he has no pro-abortion litmus test for appointing judges," Bowman explains. "But he has said that his judges must share his “broad vision” of the Constitution and be willing to preserve constitutionally protected rights — he unequivocally thinks abortion is one of those."
"He voted against Alito and Roberts for failing these tests," Bowman added. "That’s not just a pro-abortion litmus test–it’s a pro-abortion litmus test combined with an attempt to deceive people into thinking he doesn’t have one."
Meanwhile, the Obama campaign recently emailed a pro-life advocate with language making it clear there is a pro-abortion litmus test.
“While I have no litmus test for judges, my bottom line is confidence that a judicial nominee will respect the constitutionally protected rights of all Americans and resist the temptation to substitute personal ideology for legal reasoning," the campaign said for the candidate.
"I believe, however, that a judicial nominee with a history of undermining settled law like Roe v. Wade deserves greater scrutiny," the email continued. "Nominees to the federal bench who are out-of-step with mainstream America should not be confirmed. That is why in the past I have opposed the nominations of Supreme Court Justices Roberts and Alito."
Mario Diaz, the policy director for legal issues for the pro-life group Concerned Women for America, says Obama’s campaign denies he has a litmus test and then puts forward a pro-abortion mandate for judicial picks.
"It’s actually ironic that Sen. Obama would claim to have no litmus test and then mention his ‘mainstream test’ and his reverence of Roe v. Wade in reference to his no vote for Chief Justice John Roberts," he explains.
"Call it litmus test, an ideological test, a mainstream test, or call it what you want, but if it is up to Sen. Obama and Sen. Biden, judicial nominees must share the two senators’ ideology or they are not ‘fit’ to serve our country," Diaz concludes.
The issue of judicial picks is important for the pro-life community because the next set of Supreme Court judges will likely determine whether America has another 35 years of 50 million abortions.
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