Lets elect a president who can deal with the pressing issue of our basic rights and freedom connected with the more imminent dangers currently threatening our nation.

I am of the opinion that that those who choose abortion are not all simply choosing the "easy way out." It is an agonizing decision for many. Men are the other half of this issue and their refusal to take responsibility for a girl's plight is often the factor that leads to abortion. The right to choose obviously includes the initial irresponsible choice of unproected sex leading to unplanned parenthood. When will the right to lifers try to legiislate that? Sandy had a good point. Too bad men don't have tell tale signs or other consequences of their ill timed fatherhood. Maybe forcing them to take a pill that would enlarge their breasts and precipitate sudden weight gain as well as forcing them to take financial responsibility would help with this issue.

What about the married couples who use the pill and condoms but still manage to get pregnant? Sure combined they are 99% effective, but there is that pesky 1% still there. Obviously that couple didn't want to get pregnant, maybe they aren't financially able to support a child or simply at a point in their lives where they could raise a child should they be forced to carry that child to term? What if they want children just later in life (5 – 10 years later)? Why should sex only be for procreation?

No abortion shouldn't be a first line of defense for birth control but it should be there. If you don't want to get an abortion that's fine but don't tell my wife and I that she can't have one because you don't like it.

no flip flop THERE eh?

Consider the current administration, arguably the most "pro-life" administration since Roe v Wade. They have had control of Congress and the Supreme Court and have done nothing but pass an inept "partial birth abortion" ban.

Single issue voters need to move past the abortion issue when deciding on a candidate. Bush and company manipulated the religious right to garner their votes, then threw money at them ( faith based initiatives) but did little to advance conservative religious policy.

The media has not overinflated anything. The majority of Americans ARE pro-choice – that's not analysis by the media but social scientists. They may not necessarily define themselves as pro-choice but they DO believe abortion should be legal. The majority of America does NOT support overturning Roe v. Wade though most do want some restrictions. So let's make sure we don't try to twist facts here and accuse the media of something they should not be accused of.

Also, roughly 40% of abortions are performed on women who ALREADY have children (and even more on those who will eventually have children). I think your belief that if you have an abortion you cannot possibly be pro-choice is naive and, quite frankly, shows a very, very simplistic understanding of the issue.

Also, if you feel that nobody has the right to dictate when life ends then you should not believe in the death penalty, eating animals, or even killing insects.

Abortion will NEVER be made illegal–and every politician knows this. Any stance that a campaigning or sitting politician takes against abortion is purely pandering in order to get votes from the religious right.

They already know that abortion will never be made illegal-and here is why:

The System knows that the infrastructure of this country would never be able to handle the increase in population growth that would occur if abortion were to be made illegal.

It is simple economics.

The greatest threat facing the world today is not terrorism. It is not nuclear war. It is not disease. IT IS OVERPOPULATION.

That is why the US government never lifts a finger to stop genocide in the Third World and has never shown anything but a feigned weak criticism of China's forced population control policies.

The Republicans themselves have secretly undermined the effort to outlaw abortion for decades-by stating in their campaigns that they are against it, but then doing nothing to stop it after being elected.
Overpopulation is the issue for them, folks-not morality.

Although I'm not surprise Mitt changed his mind upon visiting the state. John McCain drank the water and decided to change religions when he came to SC.

95% of abortions are not because of rape, incest, or medical reasons. They are starting to become a form of birth control and that is just wrong! I understand some circumstances where it may be needed but more and more people are loosing respect for the miracle of birth. The argument that rape victims will be forced to live with their assault forever is valid but applies to such a small minority it carries very little weight.

Option B: Pro-Choice
Meaning the woman has a choice.

This is a no-brainer. I was adopted as an infant and am personally Pro-Life. However, I ask myself what type world I need to live in where the Government tells me that is my only legal choice.

'nuff said.

The reason Ron Paul rarely gets mentioned is that he dead last in the polls.

I wish every man (and I do mean men, not the supposed "generic" inclusion of women) could experience first hand with their own bodies what its like to carry for 9 months and give birth to a child. If men could experience the "wonder" of child birth, abortion and birth control would become a god given right rather than one women have to fight for every 4 years depending on which yahoo happens to be in office at the time.

The fact that these idiots also want birth control taken away speaks volumes of their real goal and that is to control women not protect children.

I do hope god hates hypocrites because the GOP will be burning!

It would be nice if ANY of the candidates would remember that we are a nation of WE THE PEOPLE, not WE THE GOVERNMENT ... and act towards the betterment of our nation instead of dividing it to enforce a few personal beliefs founded WHOLLY in religion.

It would be nice...

Yeah. Instead of charity, support effective gov't programs (like for example grants/loans for higher education), that aren't part of this or that person's religious institutions, and don't require any allegiance to a particular worldview. These programs already exist, and like the student loan program mentioned above, are usually constantly under assault by Republican politicians.

Posted By Dave, Denton : November 28, 2007 12:51 pm

Bad idea, Dave. There have been many times in the past where wrong concepts were popular. If a similar vote had been done 50 years ago regarding civil rights, we'd probably still be segregated today and it would still be illegal for a black man and a white woman to marry. We know that segregation and marriage bans are wrong today, but they were the accepted norm back in the days of Jim Crow.

Posted By Andrew, Haslett, MI : November 28, 2007 12:19 pm

Ron Paul doesn't register higher on national polls because people realize that because he's so far removed from the standard GOP party line that if he were to get nominated and elected, he'd be unable to govern – kind of like what Jesse Ventura faces when he was elected governor of Minnesota and had no backing in the state legislature.

You mean to tell me that the father of the baby has no right on whether he wants to keep the baby? Maybe you should be aborted!

such a paragraph would be ok but unnecessary! You see if you really want to know where a candidate stands you go to their web page and read or look at their voting record. I doubt any educated person would decide who to vote for off of a CNN political blog.

And i agree...the Ron Paul people need to stop pretending he is the best thing since sliced bread. He should be given his time but be is not the only candidate out there and his poll numbers are not the highest!