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Title: Jane Romney: My Brother Won't Ban Abortion
Source:
nationaljournal.com
URL Source: http://www.nationaljournal.com/2012 ... er-won-t-ban-abortion-20120829
Published: Aug 29, 2012
Author: Naureen Khan
Post Date: 2012-08-29 23:33:09 by Ferret Mike
Keywords: None
Views: 5979
Comments: 6
Mitt Romney’s eldest sister, who has backed prominent Democrats for office and is in Tampa showing support for her brother, had some reassuring words Wednesday for women concerned about the Republican Party’s hard line on abortion.
Mitt Romney would never make abortions illegal as president, Jane Romney said when National Journal asked her about the subject after a “Women for Mitt” event. "He’s not going to be touching any of that,” she said. “It’s not his focus.”
Democratic warnings that abortion rights are under threat are an ungrounded fear tactic, Jane Romney said. “That’s what women are afraid of, but that’s conjured,” she said. “Personally, I don’t think abortion should be used as a football in the political arena.”
Democrats have not lacked fodder for their charges. Vice presidential candidate Paul Ryan and Rep. Todd Akin, R-Mo., who is running for the Senate, are among the many Republicans who oppose abortion with no exceptions for rape or incest. And the Republican platform adopted this week explicitly calls for a constitutional ban on abortion, saying that "the unborn child has a fundamental individual right to life which cannot be infringed." It does not specify any exceptions.
But as Jane Romney put it, “Mitt’s much more in the middle” when it comes to abortion.
Mitt Romney has said he supports legal abortion in cases of rape and incest, and when the life of the mother is in danger. As for the fate of abortion rights, “Recognize this is the decision that will be made by the Supreme Court," he said in an interview with CBS News this week. "The Democrats try and make this a political issue every four years, but this is a matter in the courts. It's been settled for some time in the courts."
Jane Romney said she believes “life is sacred” and suggested those seeking abortion should be required to undergo counseling. But she also said that abortion should “absolutely” be safe and legal. “Every woman needs to be left to make her own choice,” she said.
A ban on abortion is “never going to happen” under a Romney administration, Jane Romney said. “Women would take to the streets. Women fought for our choice, we’re not going to go back."
Little is known about Jane Romney, who said she is an actress in Los Angeles, and she is not a presence on the campaign trail. Unlike Ann Romney and the Romney sons, she has not been deployed as a surrogate. According to a Romney biography by Ronald B. Scott, a journalist for Time in the 1970s and a distant cousin of the candidate, Jane Romney supported California Democratic candidates like Sen. Barbara Boxer and Gov. Jerry Brown.
Jane Romney said that her brother can empathize and understand women from all walks of life. She said that he was there for her when she went through a divorce and raised four teenagers on her own. “Mitt and Ann are the right people at the right time for this country,” she said.
AP Photo/Lenny Ignelzi Jane Romney, left, said abortion is not her brother's focus. She joined the candidate's son Matt Romney, right, for a California State Republican Party appearance in this 2008 photo.
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#3. To: Ferret Mike, *Extended Clip Progressives* (#0)
The Romney's are very close to the Governor Moonbeam family.
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Top • Page Up • Full Thread • Page Down • Bottom/LatestRomney supported California Democratic candidates like Sen. Barbara Boxer and Gov. Jerry Brown
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