Hillary Clinton launched her first set of attacks against pro-life Gov. Mike Pence on Friday after Donald Trump chose him to be his vice presidential running mate.
Clinton called the Indiana governor “divisive” and “unpopular” and quickly launched an online video attacking his conservative voting record, The Hill reports. Included in the video is a clip of Pence saying, “I long for the day that Roe v. Wade is sent to the ash heap of history.” In another clip, Pence said he was willing to shut down the government rather than allow taxpayer dollars to go to the abortion giant Planned Parenthood.
Pence is a pro-life champion who has signed multiple pieces of pro-life legislation into law and led the fight in Congress to de-fund Planned Parenthood. His selection as vice president would go a long way toward mollifying concerns some pro-life voters have had about Trump, who has campaigned as a pro-life candidate but who has made some misstatements about abortion and Planned Parenthood.
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While many pro-life voters see these as strong achievements, the pro-abortion Clinton campaign used them to bash Pence. Clinton campaign chairman John Podesta said in a statement: “By picking Mike Pence as his running mate, Donald Trump has doubled down on some of his most disturbing beliefs by choosing an incredibly divisive and unpopular running mate known for supporting discriminatory politics and failed economic policies that favor millionaires and corporations over working families.”
Clinton also went after Pence’s pro-life record with these messages on Twitter:
Mike Pence: He’s Donald Trump with a different haircut. pic.twitter.com/R2hYduGaym
— Hillary Clinton (@HillaryClinton) July 15, 2016
If you had any doubts about Trump sticking with his dangerous plan for America, say hello to his VP pick. pic.twitter.com/xuFClfZeLi
— Hillary Clinton (@HillaryClinton) July 15, 2016
Clinton’s campaign manager also attacked Pence’s pro-life record: “Pence also personally led the fight to defund Planned Parenthood while serving in the House and fought to pass Indiana’s 2016 anti-abortion law, with some of the most outrageous restrictions in the country that threatened women’s privacy and limited their choice.”
The 2016 Indiana law protects unborn babies with disabilities like Down syndrome from discriminatory abortions. It also bans abortions based on the baby’s sex or race. The law also has several other abortion-related measures, including a requirement that aborted or miscarried babies’ bodies be cremated or buried and another requirement that abortionists who have hospital admitting privileges renew them annually.
“Throughout my public career, I have stood for the sanctity of life. HEA 1337 is a comprehensive pro-life measure that affirms the value of all human life, which is why I signed it into law today,” Pence said in a statement when he signed the legislation.
Pence continued: “I believe that a society can be judged by how it deals with its most vulnerable—the aged, the infirm, the disabled and the unborn. HEA 1337 will ensure the dignified final treatment of the unborn and prohibits abortions that are based only on the unborn child’s sex, race, color, national origin, ancestry, or disability, including Down syndrome.”
Planned Parenthood immediately filed a lawsuit against the law, however. The abortion business failed to convince the general public to oppose the Indiana law, so now it hopes to convince a court.
The Trump-Pence team would present a stark contrast on abortion to pro-abortion Democrat Hillary Clinton, who received Planned Parenthood’s endorsement. Clinton promised Planned Parenthood that she would try to overturn the Hyde Amendment and force taxpayers to fund abortions if elected. She also previously bashed the pro-life law that Pence signed and applauded Planned Parenthood for challenging it.
