The Republican platform panel reaffirmed support for amending the constitution that will ban abortion with no exceptions for those who were raped. The platform committee concluded their two days of deliberations in Tampa yesterday. They completed a 60 page draft of political positions and principles that will be deliberated upon when the Republican National Convention starts August 27.
Virginia Governor Robert McDonnell is the chairman of the said panel. He, along with other Republican leaders, wanted to emphasize the document’s focus on proposals to promote economic growth as the party has to deal with a comment about rape made by a Republican candidate for US Senate in Missouri.
The Republican’s support for blanket ban on abortion is nothing new but it was placed in the spotlight after Todd Akin, Republican senatorial hopeful in Missouri, said that legitimate rape rarely leads to pregnancy. He has already apologized for the remark. He said it as he argued that abortions should not be allowed even for rape victims.
The panel got language contained in the 2004 and 2008 Republican platforms, which stated that an unborn child has a fundamental individual right to life that can’t be infringed. Romney, who was once an advocate of abortion rights, said in his recent comments that he opposes abortion.
But the platform is different from Romney’s opinion on the subject. In his pro-life pledge posted on the National Review magazine’s web site, he stated that he is pro-life and believe that abortion should be limited to instances of incest, rape, or to save the life of the mother.
