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April 19, 2007

Has Rudy Giuliani Changed His Position On Abortion?

A
nn Althouse maintains that there's no inconsistency in Rudy Giuliani's expressing support for the Supreme Court's decision upholding the federal so-called "partial-birth abortion" statute. On Ann's view, Giuliani earlier stated that he would vote against the law if he were a legislator, and can now accept the Court's statement that the law is not unconstitutional without contradicting his earlier position.

This is right in principle: legislators vote every day against proposed bills that would, if passed and challenged, a court would uphold against constitutional challenge.

But it may be wrong as a matter of fact. Here is what Giuliani said back in 1999, in his Senate race, about New York's state law allowing the now-illegal abortion procedure:

(image from Elisabeth Bumiller, "Abortion Seen As Pivotal Issue in Senate Race," New York Times, 11/26/99, p. B6.)

He said the New York law worked to create the "necessary scope of freedom and prohibition." If Giuliani thought in 1999 that a law permitting this abortion method was "necessary" to freedom, then how can a 2007 Supreme Court decision that upholds a law barring something "necessary" to freedom be a correct interpretation of the Constitution's due process clause?

Posted by Eric at April 19, 2007 9:42 AM