Pro-Life Activists Question Hillary Clinton_s Sincerity

(CNSNews.com) - A pro-life activist says he''s "profoundly disappointed" that Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton has "snubbed a dialogue with pro-life groups" - after she expressed interest in finding common ground with them.

The Rev. Patrick J. Mahoney, director of the Christian Defense Coalition, said pro-life leaders, including himself, have been trying for two months to arrange a face-to-face meeting with Sen. Clinton, but she has declined.

In late January, Sen. Clinton urged a group of abortion rights supporters to find common ground with pro-lifers. "We should be able to agree that we want every child born in this country to be wanted, cherished and loved," Clinton said in a speech near Albany, N.Y.

She also called abortion "a sad, even tragic choice" for many women. Even the New York Times, in reporting on Sen. Clinton''s speech, said she "appeared to be reaching out beyond traditional core Democrats who support abortion rights.

The Christian Defense Coalition is miffed at Sen. Clinton''s apparent refusal to meet.

"It now seems that the statements Senator Clinton made concerning finding common ground on abortion, were politically motivated and not sincere," Mahoney said in a press release.

"These comments should now be viewed as an attempt to reinvent herself and appear less radical on the issue of abortion in light of the 2008 race for the White House."

Mahoney said it is "critical" for the American public to focus more on what Senator Clinton does concerning abortion, rather than what she says, in the run-up to the 2008 presidential campaign.

The Christian Defense Coalition planned to hold a news conference in Washington on Tuesday to "discuss these issues."


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