BUSH, GORE HEADED FOR NOVEMBER SHOWDOWN

By Carol Tobias, NRL PAC Director

After months of preliminaries, the November presidential matchup is now set. Pro-life Texas Gov. George W. Bush will face off against pro-abortion Vice President Al Gore in a contest universally viewed as likely to be intense, arduous, and very close.

Gov. Bush fended off a tough challenge from Arizona Senator John McCain. The nomination fight turned with Mr. Bush's near-sweep of Republican primaries held on "Super Tuesday," March 7.

Pro-abortion Vice President Al Gore won the Democratic Party nomination much more easily. Gore defeated former New Jersey Senator Bill Bradley in every Democratic primary and caucus.

Gov. Bush's path to the nomination started with a strong first step when he won the caucuses in Iowa in late January. But Bush lost in New Hampshire to John McCain, which intensified the wave of favorable media coverage for McCain.

However, Bush came roaring back with victories in Delaware and South Carolina. No sooner had Bush assumed the upper hand than McCain prevailed in the February 22 primaries held in Arizona and Michigan.

The back-and-forth trend continued a week later in the run-up to Super Tuesday. On February 29, Bush won both the Virginia and Washington primaries as well as the North Dakota caucuses. This set the stage for a big Super Tuesday matchup.

On March 7, 11 states held Republican primaries with one other state conducting caucuses. That same day Democrats selected delegates in 15 states for Democrats the first activity since New Hampshire on February 1.

On the GOP side, Bush won big, which included victories in California, Georgia, Maine, Maryland, Missouri, Ohio, and New York. McCain was limited to wins in Connecticut, Massachusetts, Rhode Island, and Vermont.

Following his victories on March 7, Bush had over 600 of the 1,034 delegates necessary to win his party's nomination, compared to over 200 for McCain, and fewer than 20 for pro-life former U.N. Ambassador Alan Keyes.

On March 9, McCain "suspended" his campaign. He said he wished Gov. Bush and his family well but as NRL News went to press, he had not yet offered his endorsement.

Bush went on to win big victories in Colorado, Utah, and Wyoming on March 10. Then, on March 14, he swept the southern states of Florida, Louisiana, Mississippi, Oklahoma, Tennessee, and Texas, giving Bush enough delegates to officially lock up the GOP nomination.

Background

Because there were initially a large number of pro-life candidates on the Republican side, National Right to Life did not endorse anyone before the Iowa caucuses and the New Hampshire primary.

However, as the number of Republican candidates dwindled, it became apparent that this had become a two-person race with only George W. Bush and John McCain having a realistic chance of winning the nomination. National Right to Life then endorsed Gov. Bush.

National Right to Life PAC was very actively involved in the primaries, following the endorsement of George W. Bush. NRL PAC contacted 2,900,000 pro-life families and individuals directly in 17 states to urge them to support pro-life Gov. Bush in the primaries. NRL PAC also ran radio ads in selected key areas.

McCain had said and done enough during this campaign to raise doubts about his pro-life convictions.

For example, Sen. McCain made conflicting statements on abortion during the campaign. On August 20, 1999, he told the editorial board of the San Francisco Chronicle that he would not support reversing the U.S. Supreme Court's decision, which legalized abortion on demand "in the short term or even the long term." In this interview, McCain had referred to abortion as being " necessary."

World magazine quoted McCain as expressing similar sentiments and saying that reversal of Roe v. Wade would "endanger the lives of women." (World, August 21, 1999.) As pro-lifers know, not reversing Roe v. Wade is costing the lives of 1.3 million children every year.

After his stunning losses on Super Tuesday, a reporter for the San Francisco Chronicle asked McCain what he might have done differently. McCain said, "I wished I wouldn't have said what I said to The San Francisco Chronicle," referring to the August interview. The Chronicle article went on to discuss how National Right to Life PAC had used that statement against McCain during the primaries.

McCain is the first major Republican presidential candidate to support a weakening of the pro-life plank in the Republican party platform.

Pro-lifers were also concerned about McCain's statements that he might appoint former New Hampshire Senator Warren Rudman as attorney general. Rudman had a solidly pro-abortion voting record while in the Senate and strongly opposes the repeal of Roe v. Wade. Having someone like that in a cabinet position, advising the president on nominees for the Supreme Court, would be dangerous for unborn babies.

George W. Bush has maintained a strong and consistent pro-life position during the campaign. He does not waver in his support for reversing Roe v. Wade, and he often says that as president he would set a goal that unborn children will be protected in law and welcomed in life.

During a debate in South Carolina, McCain challenged Bush to join him in supporting a change that would weaken the pro-life plank in the Republican party platform. Bush steadfastly defended the platform, saying it should remain the same, that the Republican party should hold firm to its principles.

Gore Gets Democratic Nod

Al Gore racked up victories in every Democratic contest, beating Bradley by wide margins in most of them. After Super Tuesday, Gore had over 1,400 delegates to a little more than 400 for Bradley. 2,170 delegates are needed to win the nomination.

Bradley withdrew from the race on March 9. Gore was also able to wrap up his party's nomination after the March 14 primaries.

Throughout the campaign, Bradley tried to cast doubt on Gore's pro-abortion position by pointing out Gore's 84% pro-life voting record as a member of the U.S. House of Representatives from 1977-1984. In 1984, Gore voted for an amendment to a civil rights bill which declared "unborn children from the moment of conception" as legal "persons." (The amendment was defeated.)

In those days, in letters to constituents, Gore stated that it was wrong "to spend federal funds for what is arguably the taking of a human life."

However, Gore changed dramatically after he was elected to the Senate in 1984. By the time he was tapped to be Bill Clinton's running mate in 1992, Gore had established a solidly pro- abortion voting record.

During his years as Vice President, Gore burnished his pro- abortion credentials at every opportunity. Typically, in an appearance on ABC's This Week on October 31, 1999, Gore stated that the country can "rest assured that a Supreme Court majority appointed in a Gore administration would support a woman's right to choose."

Afraid that Bradley's charges against Gore as being weak on abortion would have an effect, the National Abortion and Reproductive Rights Action League (NARAL) endorsed Gore. NARAL has no doubt where Gore's heart is on the abortion issue. In a 1997 speech, NARAL President Kate Michelman said, "We thank Bill Clinton and Al Gore for saving Roe (v. Wade)."

Discussing a general election race between Al Gore and George W. Bush, the observations of pro-abortion President Bill Clinton made it clear that the future of millions of unborn children may very well rest upon the outcome of the election this year.

In a January speech in Los Angeles, Clinton said that George W. Bush, by endorsing a constitutional amendment to overturn Roe v. Wade, has laid out clearly for voters the choice facing them in November.

Clinton stated, "There is absolutely no question in my mind; whether Roe vs. Wade is preserved or scrapped depends on what happens in the presidential election, and to pretend otherwise is naive." (Washington Times, 1/23/00)