Obama: On Roe Anniversary, I Remain Committed To Choice

By: Brian Montopoli
Topics: Domestic Issues

President Obama has put out a statement to make the 36th Anniversary of the Roe v. Wade decision legalizing abortion.

(AP / CBS)

"On the 36th anniversary of Roe v. Wade, we are reminded that this decision not only protects women's health and reproductive freedom, but stands for a broader principle: that government should not intrude on our most private family matters," said the president. "I remain committed to protecting a woman's right to choose."

The president went on to suggest that people on both sides of the debate agree on the importance of working to reduce the number of abortions that take place.

"While this is a sensitive and often divisive issue, no matter what our views, we are united in our determination to prevent unintended pregnancies, reduce the need for abortion, and support women and families in the choices they make," said Mr. Obama. "To accomplish these goals, we must work to find common ground to expand access to affordable contraception, accurate health information, and preventative services."

The president released the statement on the same day that tens of thousands of anti-abortion activists rallied on the National Mall. Organizers have suggested that Mr. Obama's election threatened to set back their cause.

"Today, passionate Americans from coast to coast gather in Washington, D.C. to march for the rights of all," Republican National Committee Chairman Mike Duncan said in a statement. "Protecting the sanctity of every life is the responsibility of this nation. I commend the efforts of each person assembling here today, and praise those working to defend the ones who cannot defend themselves. I hope the work of those marching today leads to a renewed appreciation for every human life."

In his statement, the president tied his position on abortion rights to opportunities for women nationwide.

"On this anniversary, we must also recommit ourselves more broadly to ensuring that our daughters have the same rights and opportunities as our sons: the chance to attain a world-class education; to have fulfilling careers in any industry; to be treated fairly and paid equally for their work; and to have no limits on their dreams," said President Obama. "That is what I want for women everywhere."

Brian Montopoli
Brian Montopoli is the senior political reporter at CBSNews.com.
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by paobserver January 24, 2009 3:56 PM EST: Let''s try one more time for the Lobotomized abortion fanatics among us, and we''ll say it real slow: abortion is never safe. Not to the child, not to the woman, not to the families involved. It produces such deep scars emotionally, that, in effect, it forces the woman to "lobotomize" her memory and feelings about the whole affair. There are those who soldier on, channeling their deep anguish into a justifying deeper hatred of men, and God, but when they eventually emerge from the emotional cell to which they have consigned themselves to, they find they are released into an even deeper abyss, having trained themselves never to grasp for the truth.
Most of these arguments posted here today are so outdated, it amazes me. As far as *** education goes, no body does it better than the Catholic Church. Have you ever read anything of John Paul II''s Theology of the Body? Or, learned anything about Natural Family Planning? Very scientific, very natural and organic, very unifying for the couple. There is nothing to fear from God''s Laws in nature. We only need to obey them.
As for having babies at 15, it has been done safely many, many times around the world, and through the centuries, probably by one of your own ancestors. You may not think it advisable for yourself, but others have done it, it can be done. Just ask Mary, the young Jewish maiden, who gave birth to Jesus. Her fear gave way to trust, and her son grew into a fine, loving, fearless lad.; Reply to this comment


by violist47 January 24, 2009 2:08 PM EST: To cerogers617: Your poor sister! 15 and a botched abortion! That''s one reason to keep abortion legal: illegal abortions so often unsafe. Probably your sister''s was legal - after all, 15 is way too young to be having a child safely, either. But it was clearly not done well.

The groups we now can support once again will be trying to make conception, delivery, perinatal care, AND abortion safe, all over the world. I think that''s wonderful news!; Reply to this comment


by cerogers617 January 24, 2009 1:32 AM EST: I am one of those beloved pro-lifers and am far from against *** education. My 14 yr old has had it at his public school, and my 8 yr old already at his Catholic school.

So don''t make assumptions that have no merit. Every woman has a choice, & that choice comes before conception. Less than 2% of abortions are performed due to rape or incest. The vast majority are done in response to "oops, I screwed up".

I have a sister who underwent an abortion at 15. She is 44 now, & suffers psychologically from that decision, to this day. In fact, the procedure left her sterile. She never finished school, so has remained in relative poverty. She ended up marrying a man who was a sexual abuser. So I don''t see abortion as the answer to promoting women''s status in the world - especially not economically.

You also have to consider our country''s double standard where killing unborn children is concerned. If the mother chooses to do it, it''s OK and legal. But if someone kills a pregnant woman, they are tried for double homicide.

We all know it''s an innocent baby. We call it a fetus to desensitize us to the whole process, & we''re too politically correct to dare tell someone that they shouldn''t have had ***.

The original "Roe" in Roe v. Wade has her own commercial out now, lamenting that she ever took the decision to court. You can google it.

And what if Obama''s mother had not chosen life? See catholicvote.com.; Reply to this comment


by paobserver January 23, 2009 6:37 PM EST: Well, let''s sort out some facts here.
First, Oh, that Men would really stand up loudly against abortion, since it is their commission from their Creator to protect life. In most circles, over the years since Roe, men are not allowed any credibility or standing in the abortion debate and struggles, including no say in law as to whether their unborn child is destroyed. Instead, they have been encouraged to slink back to their own reduced, utilitarian world, to enjoy pornography and the newly sexually liberated women around them as subjects of their selfish desires. Never are they to cultivate and care for, let alone learn from, the objectively beautiful spiritual beings with whom they are meant to share a life.
Second, not caring about the truth of life and its goodness does not make you a man, just the opposite.
Thirdly, To claim that the abortion and contraception movement have reduced abortion, reduced abuse of women and children, and promoted happy marriages, while the lack of sexual instruction (where has that happened?)has led to the increase of STD''s, is laughable on its face. All the statistics in all of these areas, have proven just the opposite, over and over again. To claim otherwise, is not just fuzzy thinking, it is a deliberate misreading of the data, if it was consulted at all, for misleading purposes. You can''t have it both ways: claim to be sexually free, yet the defense against disease.; Reply to this comment


by hu_mans January 23, 2009 3:34 PM EST: Being a man myself it''s really sad to see so many other men trying to decide what is right for a woman. It''s plain as day that these men are the same ones who have internal power struggles and are pro war, pro violence, along with racist and homophobic tendencies.
Men have always been the ones who yell loudest against abortion. Obama is not an innocent man, but he is a man who knows that he is has never been in a woman''s shoes. He is also smart enough to know that the pro-choice movement is one which in the end reduces the amount of unwanted pregnancies thus reducing the amount of abortions in our country. Do you really think not teaching kids about *** and not providing access to contraception will keep them from having ***? Kids will have ***, it''s a fact. This technique has only created a huge jump in USA''s STD transmission. Read some medical reports look at some facts. I have no idea what it''s like to not be in control because I am a man and men have always been in control.; Reply to this comment


by hu_mans January 23, 2009 3:33 PM EST: Being a man myself it''s really sad to see so many other men trying to decide what is right for a woman. It''s plain as day that these men are the same ones who have internal power struggles and are pro war, pro violence, along with racist and homophobic tendencies.
Men have always been the ones who yell loudest against abortion. Obama is not an innocent man, but he is a man who knows that he is has never been in a woman''s shoes. He is also smart enough to know that the pro-choice movement is one which in the end reduces the amount of unwanted pregnancies thus reducing the amount of abortions in our country. Do you really think not teaching kids about *** and not providing access to contraception will keep them from having ***? Kids will have ***, it''s a fact. This technique has only created a huge jump in USA''s STD transmission. Read some medical reports look at some facts and put your feet in some woman''s pumps if your can take the pain. I have no idea what it''s like to not be in control because I am a man and men have always been in control.; Reply to this comment


by cebling-2009 January 23, 2009 2:22 PM EST: A woman''s decision to carry a pregnancy to full term is between her and her God. It is no one else''s business; especially the government or men. As James Watt (Reagan Interior Secretary) once said, "you no playa da game, you no maka da rules".; Reply to this comment


by paobserver January 23, 2009 2:11 PM EST: I agree, it is about power and freedom. Once you let the state have any say in this sacred area that is God''s domain, they will tell you what to do. So far, in the US, the proponents of abortion have thought that by giving the state the power to make laws in this area they are gaining "freedom". They are not. They have ceded freedom to the state, who under the socialists (I''m sorry, progressives in America) will soon move to enforce how, when, and why you can have *** and children, and it will all be sterile. It is not Pro-Lifers who have let the state in the bedroom. But the area of sexuality is God''s original covenant with man, and the state, our US founders, recognized that the role of the state was to support and defend the Laws of God and leave this morality to the Church. They warned that an immoral people can never survive under our government, nor evade history, where stepping on God''s laws in this area has always meant the ruin of that nation.; Reply to this comment


by paobserver January 23, 2009 4:42 AM EST: Sorry, I did not mean for this to post repeatedly. When I went to post it, it kept saying the post button was disabled.; Reply to this comment


by paobserver January 23, 2009 4:23 AM EST: Mr Obama''s view of women, men, marriage, unborn children, and the family is philosophically stunted, and on a collision course with itself, and the demographics of population growth, as demonstrated in many famous books on the topic over the past several years. Leaving this last aside, his view that abortion is necessary to elevate women economically is myopic at best, and brutal in reality, and destructive of the family. His notion that you can ignore the moral basis of society and of the human person, and that we can proceed on some morally neutral plane of practicality, is a foundation of blind ruin, which starts from unblinking irrational selfishness and ends with artificially imposed global limitation, and which cannot sustain itself, will destroy the human spirit, and implode in mass human misery.
When you ignore the truth of the human person, there is nothing left. When you are unwilling to sacrifice to support and to defend that, you will not sacrifice for anything.
Human life is good, the human person is meant for virtue, and self-giving. Recognizing and obeying God''s laws protecting life is not a limitation, but a growth in human virtue, the only thing that satisfies the soul. The strength of a people is measured by their ability to sacrifice for virtue. Their capacity for self-sacrifice is built from defending life, and the truths about life. Abortion destroys everything, and with it, any chance for peace.; Reply to this comment