Kindgo
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http://www.guardian.co.uk/uslatest/...2321661,00.html
Wednesday January 15, 2003 1:30 AM
WASHINGTON (AP) - President Bush pleased anti-abortion activists Tuesday by declaring a National Sanctity of Human Life Day and pledging his administration's commitment to ``build a culture that respects life.''
``As we seek to improve quality of life, overcome illness and promote vital medical research, my administration will continue to honor our country's founding ideals of equal dignity and equal rights for every American,'' Bush said in a document that enacts no change in policy or program. ``By working together to protect the weak, the imperfect and the unwanted, we affirm a culture of hope and help ensure a brighter future for all.''
As he has done throughout his presidency, Bush appeared to be seeking to burnish his anti-abortion credentials while trying not to alienate moderate voters.
He heralded Born-Alive Infants Protection Act he signed last year, which amends the legal definitions of ``person,'' ``human being,'' ``child'' and ``individual'' to include any fetus that survives an abortion procedure. Bush also underscored his administration's efforts to champion ``compassionate alternatives'' to abortion, such as promoting maternity group homes, encouraging abstinence and adoption and passing parental-notification and waiting-period laws.
He called unborn children ``those without the voice and power to defend their own rights.''
But the president also stopped short of condemning abortion - or the cause of abortion rights activists - outright, using only the veiled language of the anti-abortion movement.
``Every child is a priority and a blessing and I believe that all should be welcomed in life and protected by law,'' he said. ``Through ethical policies and the compassion of Americas, we will continue to build a culture that respects life.''
Bush also took care to speak of the need to honor life at all stages.
He proclaimed this Sunday National Sanctity of Human Life Day, urging Americans to mark the occasion at home or in places of worship, to help others in need and to ``reaffirm our commitment to respecting the life and dignity of every human being.''
The six-paragraph document was enthusiastically received by anti-abortion activists, who said it precisely summarized the philosophy behind their movement.
``This is exactly where we're at,'' said Darla St. Martin, associate executive director of National Right to Life. ``It helps people to understand our cause. It helps people to understand why we are working so hard to defend unborn children.''
The National Abortion and Reproductive Rights Action League did not immediately return a call for comment.
Bush has taken a host of actions favored by Christian conservatives.
In 2001, Bush severely restricted federal funding for human embryonic stem cell research to a select number of existing cell lines.
He has called for a ban on human cloning, both reproductive cloning to make babies and the cloning of embryos solely to cull stem cells for medical research.
Bush has cut funding for international organizations that perform abortions and said states could include ``unborn children'' from the moment of conception in the Children's Health Insurance Program.
The administration also revised the charter of a federal advisory committee concerned with the safety of research volunteers to specify that embryos and fetuses in experiments are ``human subjects'' whose welfare deserves special attention.
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God bless,
Kindgo
Inside the will of God there is no failure. Outside the will of God there is no success.
Posts: 4320 | From: Sunny Florida | Registered: Jun 2002
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