NOW Again Attacks Obama's Illinois Voting Record on Abortion Bills

[DeepModem Mom]

WP: NOW Again Attacks Obama's Illinois Voting Record on Abortion Bills
By Matthew Mosk
Washington Post Staff Writer
Tuesday, February 5, 2008; Page A08

A national women's rights group supporting Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton (D-N.Y.) distributed an e-mail yesterday accusing Sen. Barack Obama (D-Ill.) of being soft on abortion rights, revisiting an eleventh-hour attack that some analysts credited with swaying female voters in New Hampshire. The e-mail from Rosemary J. Dempsey, president of the Connecticut National Organization for Women, told members that Obama's record during his time in the Illinois Senate included several instances in which he voted "present" instead of yes or no on abortion-related legislation.

The e-mail quotes Bonnie Grabenhofer, the president of Illinois NOW, as saying that "voting present on those bills was a strategy that Illinois NOW did not support," and adding: "We made it clear at the time that we disagreed with the strategy. . . . Voting present doesn't provide a platform from which to show leadership and say with conviction that we support a woman's right to choose and these bills are unacceptable."

The Clinton campaign has made the same charge repeatedly over the past year.

Rep. Rosa DeLauro (D-Conn.), an Obama supporter, sent out a reply to the NOW e-mail yesterday afternoon, defending his record on abortion and criticizing the e-mail as an effort to "to falsely attack and artificially divide us."

"The facts are clear -- in the Illinois state senate, choice advocates asked strong pro-choice legislators like Senator Obama to vote 'present' on Republican-designed bills like a ban on partial birth abortion to protect a woman's right to choose," she wrote. "Senator Obama has always had a 100 percent pro-choice rating, and he is the only candidate running for President who stood up and spoke out when South Dakota passed an incredibly restrictive ban on abortion."...

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/02/04/AR2008020402980.html

[MadBadger]

1. Now Stay Classy NOW...thought I know thats hard for you to do.

[Bread and Circus]

2. If all else fails, accuse Obama of gang-rape!

[mrreowwr_kittty]

3. I'm glad the legislator responded to it.

And oh yeah, fuck NOW.

:grr:

[Mass]

4. Can somebody give them NARAL number?

:shrug:

[ursi]

5. this group is irritating. their day has come and gone. and I'm not sure anymore

what they've really accomplished.

[Maddy McCall]

17. You have GOT to be kidding.

What has NOW really accomplished??

Tell me that you aren't a woman saying this.

[LostinVA]

19. REad your PM

[LostinVA]

18. OMG -- time to get rid of NAACP, Human Rights Campaign, Amnesty , ACLU

And every other group that advocates for human and civil rights.

UGH.

[Maddy McCall]

20. After all, what have they really accomplished?

Idiots abound.

[griffi94]

6. why would obama vote present

instead of yea or nay?
oh i see maybe he didn't want to take a stand and risk pissing anybody off.
boy that's presidential.....like the other post said to hell with NOW
LOL

i guess we should keep chanting change.

[mrreowwr_kittty]

9. To an ignoramus, things are that simple

To people who take the time to inform themselves, they are not.

Are you sure you're in the right party? Simplistic, black and white thinking is the usual province of the other persuasion.

[madrchsod]

11. he voted present to block a really bad bill

by a rabid republican in this state. it`s used here in illinois to block bills or give cover to fellow party members. it`s a good thing to use sometimes because in illinois your friends and enemies may be in the same party.

[madrchsod]

7. what the fuck?

this has been debunked for months and these people are still at it...they just keep repeating the same old lie...

[BlackVelvet04]

8. Shame he hasn't explained his two no votes on abortion issue in the

senate.

[Nailzberg]

10. IL NOW still hasn't answered this two word question: Lisa Madigan?

Why did you enthusiastically endorse Madigan for IL Attorney General, when she voted present on those very same bills?

[madrchsod]

13. our next senator or governor?

[Nailzberg]

15. My guess is Gov.

I don't think Blagovich runs for a third term. Even if he did, he'd be extremely vulnerable in a primary and Madigan would wipe the floor with him.

I used to think that he would appoint her to Obama's seat to get her out of his way, but now I think it's more likely he won't even run for re-elect, so he'd appoint a friend over a foe to the Senate seat.

[Catchawave]

12. This is *ONLY* the Primary !!1!

Obama's gonna be chewed up and spit out by the 'pugs in the General if he can't deflect and defend a STATE voting record :rofl:

[Adelante]

14. How sad, how dishonest

I was one of NOW's earliest members. This is a shame.

[GoldieAZ49]

16. The FACTS from NOW in Illinois

Hear about Obama vs Clinton from the rep in IL

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OVuMYKs8iJs&eurl=http://my.barackobama.com/page/content/hqblog

Clinton & Co are liars, hoping no one will know the truth before they vote

This is why we don't need another Clinton Administration :puke: