Santorum says Obama health law encourages abortions
Republican presidential candidate Rick Santorum pulled into debates over prenatal testing, contraception, abortion and other social issues as the leader in GOP polls.
Santorum says Obama health law encourages abortions
Thomas Fitzgerald, Inquirer Politics Writer
While he seeks to emphasize his coal miner grandpa and industrial tax policy in the fight for Michigan and the Midwest, Republican presidential candidate Rick Santorum is finding it hard to avoid the social issues that have defined his career as one of the nation’s most prominent conservative cultural warriors.
On CBS’ Face the Nation Sunday, Santorum criticized President Obama’s health-care law for requiring health insurance plans to cover prenatal tests that are used to detect fetal abnormalities and thus “encourage abortion.” He has expressed the same idea in recent campaign appearances.
“The bottom line is that a lot of prenatal tests are done to identify deformities in utero and the customary procedure is to encourage abortions,” Santorum told host Bob Schieffer. He said he was referring specifically to amniocentesis, in which fluid from the amniotic sac is drawn to test chromosomes for birth defects.
“Amniocentesis does, in fact, result more often than not in this country in abortions,” Santorum said. “That is a fact.”
Americans should have the right to have the the prenatal testing done, he said. “but to have the government force people to provide it free, to me, is a bit loaded.” The former Pennsylvania, author of a federal ban on late term abortions, told Schieffer that he believes some forms of prenatal testing should be provided free, including sonograms, as well as general prenatal care.
Santorum and his wife, Karen, have a 3-year-old daughter Bella, with the genetic disorder Trisomy 18.
In response to a question about whether Obama “looks down” on the disabled, Santorum cited the president’s support for access to legal late-term abortions.
“Well, the president supported partial-birth abortion, and partial-birth abortion is a procedure used almost exclusively to kill children late in pregnancy when they’ve been found out to be disabled,” Santorum said.
He added: “The president has a very bad record on the issue of abortion and children who are disabled who are in the womb. I think this simply is a continuation of that idea.”
On the show, Santorum also clarified remarks he had made Saturday during a Christian conservative conference in Ohio, where he said that Obama’s policies were based on a “phony theology, a theology not found in the Bible.”
Obama adviser Robert Gibbs said that Santorum had “stepped over the line” in criticizing the president’s religious faith.
On Sunday, Santorum said he accepts that Obama is a Christian, and his remarks were meant to refer to what he said was the president’s secularized policies and support for “extreme environmentalism,” in which the earth is “elevated” over mankind.
- You are right. BDA gives a cryptic but accurate recap of the past four years (eight?) If you disagree, then go to the library and read newspapers going back several years until now. Do you just not want it to be true, PhillyTru?
— prenestino - Music and dancing will also be forbidden in Santorumland.— ahab
- Grandpa Santorum, by the way, was a communist who left Italy to escape the fascists. How ashamed would he be of his creepy, reactionary descendent?— ahab
Comment removed.- I love how Rick drives the leftists into a tizzy. Just wait until the editorial board at the Inky gets going. So transparant and predictable. No wonder they are insolvent.— Kaiser Sosa
- Comment removed.
- Agree with Franklinz. We are looking forward to having Rick as the nominee. He will give us more fun and entertainment than Sarah did four years ago. — prenestino
- There is nothing a politician who professes morality can say that would please the media, or non-religious, so they are fools if they try.— Jean Valjean
- I think Santorum goes too far with his position anti-amniocentesis. I was appalled that he was appalled that Obama supports the killing of victims of botched abortions.— Mr. Smith
- Why is it okay to be pro-abortion but not okay to be anti-abortion? Oh that's right....free speech Only when it fits the Lib mantra— keapitreal
- Because pro-abortionists don't try to make laws requiring anti-abortionists to have abortions. — mkk9772
- What "pro-abortionists"? You are not talking about the Pro Choice people, so whom are you referring to? — prenestino
- @jerk: it's called exercising responsibility. That would be opposed to your apparent belief that if it feels good do it and don't worry about any ramifications. Even if you're a young teen.— keapitreal
- What's interesting reading these comments...no one is arguing the stats....Rick is right— asheehy
You can reach Tom Fitzgerald at 215-854-2718 or tfitzgerald@phillynews.com.
Reach Thomas at tfitzgerald@phillynews.com.
