It's interesting to observe that a story in the October 23, 2003 Late Edition of the New York Times headlined "Bill Barring Abortion Procedure Drew on Backing From Many Friends of Roe v. Wade" lists Senator Daschle as one of Roe v. Wade's "friends." The NYT story discusses the passage of the partial birth abortion ban. Excerpt:
Some Democrats who voted in favor, like Ms. Lincoln, said they felt that they were reflecting the views of their constituents. Some, like Senator Patrick J. Leahy of Vermont, said the procedure was morally repugnant.Others, like Senator Tom Daschle of South Dakota, the minority leader, said that after eight years of divisive debate, they were ready to get the matter out of Congress and into the courts. Advocates of abortion rights say they will challenge the measure in court as soon as Mr. Bush signs it; they contend that the ban is unconstitutional because it lacks an exception for the health of the pregnant woman and, they maintain, is overly broad.
"The time has come to move on," Mr. Daschle said on Wednesday. "I have a lot of misgivings about this bill. I have initially opposed it because I didn't think it took into account the need for women's health adequately. But I also believe that we've got to address this issue and let the courts decide whether it's constitutional. In my view, the vote yesterday just moves that process forward."
If Mr. Daschle sounded conflicted about the vote, many of his colleagues seemed equally so. And if those senators are conflicted, so, it appears, is the general public.
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